Picasso Blue Period Encompassed Late Teen Years

Few people realize that the Picasso Blue Period took place at the end Picasso's late teens and early twenties. Between 1901 and mid-1904, blue was the predominant color in Picasso's paintings. The young Picasso was living away from home for the first time. He had little to no income and frequently could not even afford to buy oils for paints. Compounding his living circumstances, his good friend Casagemas committed suicide after breaking up with a young woman.

Picasso's paintings went from brilliant colors to being suffused in the color blue...melancholy, sad, distressed and subdued. Picasso's subjects represented those on the fringes of society..beggars and blind men frequently appeared in his paintings. At the time, the somber tones and depressive subjects of the paintings made them difficult to sell and thus contributed to his poverty.

When the Picasso blue period is viewed in light of the artist's age and circumstances, his paintings become even more astounding. A young man who lived away from home, struggled to establishing a new social circle and earn enough money to live.