Think about the images that document your life: The snaps your mom took as a baby, those hideous school pictures, and a vast array of selfies that carried you through your twenties. As it turns out, Pablo Picasso’s life was documented in a similar way — only he did so by painting self-portraits of himself throughout his years. And just like your awkward teenage pics are a lot different from your adult selfies, so are Picasso’s paintings of himself as a young man vs. an old one. His technique evolved tremendously over the years, and it reflected in his self-portraits — but he doesn’t think of it that way. “The different styles I have been using in my art must not be seen as an evolution, or as steps towards an unknown ideal of painting,” Picasso once said. “Different themes inevitably require different methods of expression. This does not imply either evolution or progress; it is a matter of following the idea one wants to express and the way in which one wants to express it.” Check out the portraits in succession below.
