Spanish portraiture was a man’s game, reflecting a patriarchal society where status was everything

Nobility was suggested by white lace cuffs and collar, the hilt of a sword and a proud pose.


Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artist Rights Society

Picasso fattens up his musketeer and lends him a sense of humor, with a splayed-leg stance, crossed eyes and clenched teeth. Painted more than 325 years after the Velázquez and El Greco portraits, Picasso’s “Musketeer” copies many attributes of the earlier works, including a somber palette, ruffled cuffs and collars, a rakish hat, and a goatee and mustache.