Etching, 1905. 121x90 mm; 4x3 1/2 inches, wide margins. Edition of 250. Printed by Louis Fort, Paris. Published by Vollard, Paris. From Saltimbanques. A very good, dark, richly-inked impression of this early etching with strong contrasts and no sign of wear.
Coinciding with his Rose Period (or Circus Period) of painting, Picasso's first series of etchings in 1905, generally known as La Suite des Saltimbanques, and created at the outset of his career at only 24 years old, are mostly candid representations of the lives and private moments of acrobats and gypsies. Picasso frequently attended the Cirque Médrano in Montmartre, Paris, near his studio. As a young artist, he was drawn to the bohemian lifestyle of the circus folk, their freedom of expression and their declassé subculture. Bloch 2; Geiser 3.
