The Actor (painting)
Encyclopedia
The Actor is a 1904 painting
by Spanish painter Pablo Picasso
, one of the most recognized figures in 20th century art
.
in New York City
. It was donated to the museum in 1952 by automobile heiress Thelma Chrysler Foy, daughter of Walter Chrysler
, the founder of the Chrysler
automobile company. Experts estimate that the painting, which is considered to be one of the biggest from Picasso's Rose Period, is worth more than US$100 million.
in a dramatic pose, with an abstract design in the background. It was painted on a canvas measuring 196 centimetres (77.2 in) by 115 centimetres (45.3 in).
stumbled and fell into the painting, creating a rip of about 15 centimetres (5.9 in) in height in the lower right corner. The museum stated that the rip did not affect the artwork's focal point. They also indicated that they intend to have the painting repaired in a few weeks by performing "unobtrusive" work. This was in preparation for an April 27 retrospective of roughly 250 of the artist's works. A posting by a woman claiming to be the one who ripped the painting appeared on Craigslist the next day explaining that she tripped into the painting while attempting to approach a man she had been ogling at the museum.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
by Spanish painter Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, one of the most recognized figures in 20th century art
20th century art
20th-century art and what it became known as — modern art — really began with modernism in the late 19th century. Nineteenth-century movements of Post Impressionism and Art Nouveau led to the first twentieth-century art movements of Fauvism in France and Die Brücke in Germany. Fauvism in Paris...
.
Background
Picasso painted The Actor over another painting, because he could not afford new canvases at the time. He created the painting over the winter of 1904–1905, at the age of 23. This was during the artist's Rose Period, when he changed his painting style from the downbeat tones of his Blue Period to warmer and more romantic hues. The painting currently resides in the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. It was donated to the museum in 1952 by automobile heiress Thelma Chrysler Foy, daughter of Walter Chrysler
Walter Chrysler
Walter Percy Chrysler was an American machinist, railroad mechanic and manager, automotive industry executive, Freemason, and founder of the Chrysler Corporation.- Railroad career :...
, the founder of the Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
automobile company. Experts estimate that the painting, which is considered to be one of the biggest from Picasso's Rose Period, is worth more than US$100 million.
Aesthetics
The painting portrays an acrobatAcrobatics
Acrobatics is the performance of extraordinary feats of balance, agility and motor coordination. It can be found in many of the performing arts, as well as many sports...
in a dramatic pose, with an abstract design in the background. It was painted on a canvas measuring 196 centimetres (77.2 in) by 115 centimetres (45.3 in).
Damage
The Actor was damaged on January 25, 2010, when a woman attending an art classArt education
Art education is the area of learning that is based upon the visual, tangible arts—drawing, painting, sculpture, and design in jewelry, pottery, weaving, fabrics, etc. and design applied to more practical fields such as commercial graphics and home furnishings...
stumbled and fell into the painting, creating a rip of about 15 centimetres (5.9 in) in height in the lower right corner. The museum stated that the rip did not affect the artwork's focal point. They also indicated that they intend to have the painting repaired in a few weeks by performing "unobtrusive" work. This was in preparation for an April 27 retrospective of roughly 250 of the artist's works. A posting by a woman claiming to be the one who ripped the painting appeared on Craigslist the next day explaining that she tripped into the painting while attempting to approach a man she had been ogling at the museum.