Picasso/Rodin

I was going to start my day by sizing paper. I plan to work on a series of small works on paper. I forgot the size I was going to cut the Arches cold press, 140 lb., watercolor paper. I purchased 10x14” watercolor blocks with 12 pieces per block. I emailed my wife in the States to measure what I was using so I could follow the system I had established. While waiting for her answer, I went to the Musee National Picasso.  There, I saw a wonderful exhibit of Rodin’s influence on Picasso. Rodin looked at space in a new way distorting the representational into exaggerated emotive forms.  Picasso saw this in Rodin’s work and he played off of this visual technique. Rodin’s use of white plaster was also an influence on Picasso. This exhibit had one after another way Rodin influenced Picasso. I was drawn to the second image as in this post. Picasso used simple incised marks  in these blocks of concrete sculpting with a few motions of his hand. I also forgot how much I enjoyed Picasso’s works on paper. He is a master of using traditional water based paints, inks, crayons and graphite. The rest of the day was spent walking back to the Atelier stopping on the way at a bookstore and relaxing with a cup of Cappuccino and a chocolate chip cookie. Thank you Picasso for spending the day with me.