Making art accessible to children, one artist and one artwork at a time

In the year that marks Spanish artist Pablo Picasso's 50th death anniversary, a look at his artwork that appeared on an Indian postage stamp

Written by Vandana Kalra

New Delhi | January 18, 2023 01:13 PM IST

3 min read

Pablo Picasso he father of Cubism, he introduced the avant-garde art movement in the early 1900s in France, rejecting traditional perspective and emphasising on two-dimensional surface. (Pic source: Wikicommon)

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ARTWORK: Three Musicians, 1921
ARTIST: Pablo Picasso
WHERE CAN IT BE SEEN: In the collection of Museum of Modern Art, New York

One of the most influential and celebrated artists of our times, April 8, 2023 marks the 50th death anniversary of Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. While museums across the world are marking the anniversary through various exhibitions and events, the governments of France and Spain are working together on a year-long set of retrospective exhibitions dubbed “Celebration Picasso 1973-2023”, which will focus on specific periods of his art, celebrating his life and legacy.

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The father of Cubism, he introduced the avant-garde art movement in the early 1900s in France, rejecting traditional perspective and emphasising on two-dimensional surface. One of his large paintings, Three Musicians, also appeared on the Indian postage stamp in 1982. Measuring 6ft 2 inches on each side, the square was painted in 1921, when he was spending the summer with his family in Fontainebleau.

With three deconstructed angular figures in bright colours seated around a table in a box-like room, there are several interpretations of the work. Some believe that two of its characters come from Commedia dell’arte, a popular form of theatre from the 16th to the 18th century in Europe: on the left, in blue and white, is Pierrot as a clarinet player; and Harlequin, in orange and yellow, is with the guitar in the middle.

The monk in the black robe is not part of the theatrical stage, but Picasso does make him a part of his set. Another interpretation suggests that the Pierrot figure was poet Guillaume Apollinaire, a friend of Picasso’s, and the Harlequin was an alter ego for the artist himself. The monk, meanwhile, was French poet Max Jacob. With musical notes in front of them, as the three seem to play music, a dog sits beneath them, with only his tail visible under the table.

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Over the years, several of Picasso’s works have appeared on postage stamps world over, including Spain, Russia, Vietnam and Cuba. The Indian stamp, issued in 1982, with a face value of Rs 2.85, had the artist’s name in Hindi and English.

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