Drawn from Picasso’s imagination, Allée des Trois Musiciens evokes a world of color and form. Let’s delve into the story behind this fascinating title. The Allée des Trois Musiciens is possibly a nod to Picasso’s famous painting.
Pablo Picasso, the celebrated Spanish artist, created not one, but two versions of “Three Musicians” in 1921. Both were completed in the summer of 1921 in Fontainebleau near Paris. He used a garage of a villa as his studio.
These paintings exemplify the Synthetic Cubist style. The flat planes of color and intricate puzzle-like composition give the appearance of cutout paper. The style originated from this technique. Each painting colorfully represents three figures wearing masks. The figures are dressed as characters from the Commedia dell’Arte.
The figures in the center and left wear costumes of Pierrot and Harlequin. The figure on the right is dressed as a monk. One version includes a dog underneath the table. Art historians believe the figures represent Picasso and two of his close friends. Harlequin represents Picasso himself. Pierrot stands for the poet Guillaume Apollinaire. The monk symbolizes the poet Max Jacob. Apollinaire and Jacob were close friends of Picasso during the 1910s.
There are two versions of the painting. In one version the setting is a bare dark brown boxlike space. The floor is a lighter brown color than the walls. In this space, three figures stand behind a table. On the table are still-life objects. Picasso identified them as a pipe a package of tobacco and a pouch.
The Pierrot figure is the sad clown from Commedia dell’Arte. He wears a white pointy hat a black eye mask a blue and white body and white pants. He plays a gray clarinet. His small brown hands are disproportionate to the rest of his body.
The Harlequin figure is dressed in a red and yellow diamond pattern. He plays a yellow guitar. The guitar and his body are quite easy to make out. His blue mask is part of a larger shape that covers much of the Pierrot. It’s topped off by a black round hat.
The monk wears a black robe and holds sheet music. He has a square nose with a stringy beard. Picasso also included a dark brown dog underneath the table in this version. Its tail flicks upward between Harlequin’s legs.
The Philadelphia version differs slightly. There’s no dog in this painting. Harlequin plays a violin. Pierrot and Harlequin have changed places. The floor is orange not brown. The sheet music is on the table rather than being held by one of the musicians.
Picasso worked on both versions simultaneously. At the same time he also painted “Three Women at the Spring.” He untacked the canvases from the garage walls at the end of summer 1921. Then he rolled them up and transported them.
One version was acquired by Paul Rosenberg. The other was acquired by Albert Eugene Gallatin. In 1949 Paul Rosenberg sold his painting to the Museum of Modern Art.
So, as you wander this street consider the vibrant characters. Think about the innovative artistic style that might have inspired its name. Allée des Trois Musiciens becomes more than just a street. It’s a tribute to art friendship and the enduring power of creativity.