Picasso Blue Period Quiz: Sorrow, Paris and The Old Guitarist

For a few years in the early 1900s, a young Spanish painter worked almost entirely in shades of blue, and this Picasso Blue Period quiz explains why. Play 10 interactive questions on the dates, the death of Carles Casagemas, Barcelona and Paris, beggars and outsiders, The Old Guitarist in Chicago, La Vie in Cleveland, The Blue Room, hidden paintings and the Rose Period that followed.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Dates
Roughly when was Picasso's Blue Period?
Color
Which color dominated his paintings then?
Friend
Whose death deeply affected Picasso at the start of this period?
Subjects
What subjects did he often paint?
Guitarist
Where is The Old Guitarist displayed?
Vie
Which large allegorical painting is in the Cleveland Museum of Art?
Cities
Between which two cities did Picasso move during this period?
Hidden
What have X-rays revealed beneath some Blue Period works?
Next
Which period followed the Blue Period?
Room
Which painting shows a woman bathing in his Paris studio?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Roughly when was Picasso's Blue Period?
Answer: 1901 to 1904
He was in his early twenties.
Q2: Which color dominated his paintings then?
Answer: Blue
Blue-green tones set a mournful mood.
Q3: Whose death deeply affected Picasso at the start of this period?
Answer: His friend Carles Casagemas
Casagemas died in Paris in 1901.
Q4: What subjects did he often paint?
Answer: Poor, lonely and outcast people
He focused on hardship.
Q5: Where is The Old Guitarist displayed?
Answer: The Art Institute of Chicago
It shows a thin blind musician.
Q6: Which large allegorical painting is in the Cleveland Museum of Art?
Answer: La Vie
It includes a portrait of Casagemas.
Q7: Between which two cities did Picasso move during this period?
Answer: Barcelona and Paris
He settled in Paris in 1904.
Q8: What have X-rays revealed beneath some Blue Period works?
Answer: Other paintings underneath
He reused canvases when poor.
Q9: Which period followed the Blue Period?
Answer: The Rose Period
Warmer pinks and circus figures appeared.
Q10: Which painting shows a woman bathing in his Paris studio?
Answer: The Blue Room
It is in Washington DC.

Picasso Blue Period Quiz – Sorrow, Paris and The Old Guitarist

Pablo Picasso's Blue Period lasted roughly from 1901 to 1904. Deeply affected by the death of his friend Carles Casagemas, he painted mostly in blue and blue-green tones, depicting poor, lonely and outcast people.

During these years he moved between Barcelona and Paris. Famous works include The Old Guitarist at the Art Institute of Chicago, La Vie at the Cleveland Museum of Art and The Blue Room in Washington.

Short of money, Picasso often reused canvases, and X-rays have revealed hidden paintings beneath some works. By 1904 he settled in Paris and began the warmer Rose Period.

What This Quiz Teaches

Art lovers will enjoy these questions.

When the Blue Period happened
Why Picasso painted in blue
What he painted
Where the works are now
What came next

Did You Know?

Blue Period works sold poorly at the time.
Elongated figures recall El Greco.
Picasso was only about 20 when it began.
Many works show blind or elderly figures.
Today they are among his most valuable paintings.