Le Taureau
circa 1958
A piece like this
needs to be held and touched. Its matte finish is accented by the warp that
expands its centre outwards, making the texture more grainy and rough. But the
raised cloisons remain delicate -
they are fine enough to resemble a line drawing, but in this case one which is moulded
from gold rather than made by a flat medium like ink.
It seems that the
entire medallion was crafted in a very short period of time: it was quickly
designed, coarsely stamped and rounded and then fired, and with barely any
final polishing. In this way Picasso gave it a sense of immediacy. With the
wispy treatment of the bull's legs and horns as well as the arch of its back,
he developed a pleasant dialogue between the medallion's physical elements. The
swish-like style of the design is light and playful, which communicates well
with the weightiness of the metal. But perhaps the best part of this piece is
that even if untouched, it still conveys a sense of feeling - as if the image
of the bull will only last for a few more moments before it melts away into the golden grain.
