Joie de Vivre points to a rivalry between Picasso and Matisse, with this painting a direct parody of the Frenchman's artwork of the same name.
The colours and setting used by Picasso remind us of his Mediterranean Landscape, there was also a clear divergence from Matisse's own work. The French Riviera gave Picasso an ability to relax from the horrors and depressive elements of war and occupation, and it was here that his relationship with a young French artist, Francoise Gilot, began to develop.
It is believed that she is captured in Joie de Vivre, which suggests at a happiness for the artist at that time. They spent time with Matisse together at that time and she was more than just a budding student to Pablo.
Characters in this portrait have an organic feel about their movement and form, stretching to the Mediterranean sun as if one of Van Gogh's flowers.
