Introducing Our Newest On-Demand Class
Pablo Picasso. The Ascetic (detail), 1903. The Barnes Foundation, BF115. © 2026 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
$100; members $90
(3 modules)
About the Class
Explore the formative years of Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) in this self-paced course focused on the pivotal period from 1900 to 1907.
Through 18 videos, you’ll take a close look at paintings and drawings from the Barnes collection and beyond, learning how the young Spanish artist established his identity on the world stage as a gifted painter without a fixed style. Along the way, examine Picasso’s evolving subjects, palettes, and techniques, as well as the creative and geographic environments that influenced his work.
Moving between close-up details and broader art historical questions, the course invites you to consider: What changed in Picasso’s art between 1900 and 1907, and what persisted? What is at stake in labels like “Blue Period” and “Rose Period” that have shaped the reception of his early practice? And is “early” a neutral chronological marker or a value judgment?
Throughout, Picasso’s early work is situated within its historical moment, connected to diverse artistic traditions, and viewed in the context of his long and influential career.
About the Experience
- Learn at your own pace. Access course modules anytime, anywhere. Watch and rewatch as many times as you like.
- Engage through short, focused lessons. Each video distills key ideas into clear, engaging lessons.
- See every detail. The Barnes’s deep-zoom Visual Experience Platform (VXP) lets you explore paintings at an extraordinary level of precision.
- Interactive Lessons. You’ll be prompted to pause videos and dive deeper into each artwork, practicing the Barnes Method as you go.
Watch this brief introduction to the course and read more below.
Modules
Module 1
“I, Picasso” (6 videos, 75 minutes total)
Trace the foundations of Picasso’s early career and how he made his first impressions on the art world. Focusing on 1900 to 1904, explore how his encounters with Spanish traditions, French modernism, and other artists’ work shaped his unique voice.
Module 2
Picasso in Paris (6 videos, 68 minutes total)
Step into Picasso’s Paris. Discover how a vibrant circle of poets, performers, and patrons fueled new directions in his work after his move to France in 1904.
Module 3
Representing the Body (6 videos, 76 minutes total)
Examine a breakthrough moment in Picasso’s career. Between 1906 and 1907, Picasso reimagined how the human body could be represented on a flat surface—pushing form, space, and perspective to bold extremes that would make a lasting impact on modern art.
Instructor
Naina Saligram
Saligram is a fellow researching the 46 works by Picasso in the Barnes. She has held curatorial, research, and teaching positions at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Yale University Art Gallery and has previously taught Barnes classes on subjects including primitivism and surrealism.
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