Publisher's Synopsis
Pablo Picasso's art fundamentally altered conventional modes of representation and perception whilst he still held great respect for tradition. Christopher Lloyd argues that this paradox is best demonstrated through Picasso's drawings. Lloyd sets out and interprets the achievement of Picasso the draughtsman, tracing his work from his academic training onwards through his life, covering his Blue and Rose Periods; the gestation of 'Les Demoiselles d'Avignon'; Cubism; brushes with Surrealism, and his final years. He argues that Picasso was pre-eminently a graphic artist and many of his paintings are interchangeable with his drawings in both style and purpose. Drawing serves as the vital thread connecting all of Picasso's art, just as it links his private world with his public persona.