Discovered an unknown painting under a portrait of Picasso

The discoveries of English researchers suggest that Mateu Fernández de Soto was not the subject expected for the canvas, since the figure of the woman just identified was probably painted only a few months earlier. Her hair is twisted in the chignon hairstyle preferred by the Chic Parisians of the time, which gives her a certain similarity with the protagonists of several portraits made by Picasso in the same year, including “Bevitrice of Absinthe” (Armitage Museum of St. Petersburg) and “Woman with crossed arms” (Kunstmuseum of Basel). The team of scientists from the Courtound Institute of Art has added that the picture has evidently been subjected to different reviews and may have been painted in the vibrant and impressionist style that precedes the ‘blue period’.

“Further research on the painting and detailed analyzes could reveal something more about the mysterious woman, but it is not said that her identity is established. It may have been a model, a friend or even a lover posing for one of the colorful impressionistic images of Picasso on the Parisian nightlife, or a melancholy woman sitting in a coffee, “said the Courtould Institute of Art in a press release.

Barnaby Wright, deputy director of the London institution, explained that the experts had already suspected that another painting was hidden under the appearance of Mateu Fernández de Soto, given the signs and the consistency of the paint.

“Now we know that it is the figure of a woman. You can even start distinguishing her shape by looking at the painting with the naked eye,” said Wright, adding: “The way Picasso worked to transform an image into one Another would have become a distinctive trait of his art, which has contributed to making him one of the gigantic figures in the history of art.

Over the course of three years, Picasso devoted himself from pictorial conventions, using an expressive brushstroke and a blue-green palette now famous for his moody nature. His paintings of the ‘blue period’ have become very popular and are now the subject of numerous studies.