Had one of those nights of very productive dreams. The word “saltimbanque” and Picasso’s paintings of circus people from the turn of the 20th century kept bubbling up to the surface.

From late 1904 to the beginning of 1906, Picasso’s work centered on a single theme: the saltimbanque, or itinerant circus performer. The theme of the circus and the circus performer had a long tradition in art and in literature, and had become especially prominent in French art of the late nineteenth century. A more immediate inspiration for Picasso came from performances of the Cirque Médrano, a circus that the artist attended frequently near his residence and studio in Montmartre.

Circus performers were regarded as social outsiders, poor but independent. As such, they provided a telling symbol for the alienation of avant-garde artists such as Picasso. Indeed, it has been suggested that the Family of Saltimbanques serves as an autobiographical statement, a covert group portrait of Picasso and his circle.

Related: Also check out my article series, Carnival Culture, for which I have several new installments brewing.