Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Harlequin
Pablo Picasso Spanish
Not on view
Characters from the Italian Commedia dell’Arte, Harlequin in particular, make a frequent appearance in Picasso’s oeuvre, especially in his work after World War I. The sitter for this picture was the painter Jacinto Salvadó. More than a portrait or even a depiction of a theatrical motif, this work is a meditation on art-making itself. The picture was brought to varying levels of finish, as represented by the summarily rendered background and the highly realistic and finely detailed face.