THE EXAMINATION OF AESTHETIC EVALUATIONS OF FEMALE PORTRAITS IN PABLO PICASSO’S OEUVRE

The issue of this study was to examine whether aesthetic evaluations of female portraits from various painting periods in Pablo Picasso‘s oeuvre differ in terms of arousal potential (AP) and primordial content (PC). Additionally, this study examines the trends of aesthetic evaluations in a time perspective, i.e., whether they correspond to the assumptions of Colin Martindale’s evolutionary theory. The research was conducted on a convenient sample of 55 young adults (M = 23.9 years, SD = 2.46). The stimulus material consisted of 16 (4x4) female portraits belonging to Picasso’s blue period, rose period, analytic cubism, and synthetic cubism. The scales of arousal potential (AP) and primordial content (PC) were used to measure aesthetic evaluations. One-way ANOVA results indicated statistically significant differences in the expression of AP (F(3, 876) = 44.16, p = .000, ŋ2 = .142) and PC (F(3, 876) = 176.61, p = .000, ŋ2 = .388) depending on Picasso’s artistic periods. Post hoc Tukey test showed statistically significant differences in the values of these dimensions within individual periods. This means that the aesthetic evaluations of the respondents clearly separate these four periods. Also, the trends of aesthetic evaluations of female portraits from different periods of Pablo Picasso’s oeuvre were examined as a function of time, i.e., the order in which the portraits were created. A statistically significant expected trend of moderate linear growth was obtained in AP assessments (R² = .57, F(3, 876) = 44.2, p < .001). In the estimation of PC (R² = .897, F(3, 876) = 177, p < .001) the trend is also significant, but the interpretation of the results should be cautious due to the small number of stimuli within each period. It is necessary to conduct more detailed research, on a larger sample of respondents, but also with a larger sample of stimuli. It was also useful to conduct a qualitative analysis in order to delve deeper into the problem of aesthetic experience and compare the results with the claims of theorists and art historians.