Prostitution and art : Picasso's "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" and the vicissitudes of authenticity

Abstract

The paper argues against interpretations of Les Demoiselles that look for its meaning in Picasso’s state of mind and treat it as the expression of a struggle with his personal demons. Rather, it interprets both versions of the painting as a response and contrast to Matisse’s Le Bonheur de vivre, which is proposed as the main intertext of Les Demoiselles. Moreover, an excursus into Lacanian theory allows the author not only to explain the supposed inconsistencies of Les Demoiselles , but also to propose that in its final version it is a meta-painting which analyses the way representation comes into being.