In the second decade of the twentieth century, Pablo Picasso abruptly abandoned the abstraction of his Cubist work for a more realist mode. Though Picasso characteristically pursued several styles simultaneously, Sleeping Peasants is among the earliest examples of a style which came to be termed Neo-Classicism. It illustrates a more monumental depiction of the figure, typical of much of Picasso's art from 1919 to 1923. In this period, Picasso did not completely retreat from his earlier pictorial innovations, but added nostalgic scenes of rustic labor and repose to his innovative pursuit of formal abstraction. This scene describes a pastoral, pre-modern existence where farm workers are overcome by afternoon sun or an Arcadian passion. To underscore his anachronistic theme, Picasso used tempera-on-cardboard to mimic the ancient art of fresco and further evoke a classic, Mediterranean milieu.

Copyright © 1997 The Museum of Moder Art, New York

Image and curatorial comments are from The Museum of Modern Art, New York at the URL: http://www.moma.org/

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