'Pierrot' by Juan Gris

Pierrot was a pantomime character: a sad clown who was unlucky in love. Many avant-garde artists painted the figure of Pierrot as a representation of the artist as outsider, but there was also a lighter, more playful side to the depiction of the character.

Juan Gris painted Pierrot while recovering from pneumonia in the south of France. The artist experienced depression throughout much of his adult life. From the late 1910s onwards the figure of Pierrot became a prominent motif in his work, expressing his depressed mental state.