Formerly in the collection of the prestigious Museum of Modern Art, New York, Le miroir was created in June 1947, during an idyllic period of peace, happiness and creativity for Pablo Picasso. At this time, Picasso was savoring a summer sojourn with his new family in Golfe-Juan, a tranquil town on the sun-drenched Côte d’Azur. With the company of and inspiration from his young lover, Françoise Gilot, and their newborn child, Claude, Picasso entered a phrase of joyous creativity and thriving practice. Recovered from the trauma of angst-filled war days, Picasso is rejuvenated by the fresh perspectives of a blissful life in the Mediterranean, which inspired the increasingly joyful, frivolous yet immensely creative subjects. The dark, tormented and at times claustrophobic tension in Picasso’s wartime still life subject is now replaced by a renewed sense of optimism, which imbues the canvases, as the present work exemplifies, with light, colours and a glorious sense of joie de vivre. Defined by its pure colours and harmonious lines, the compositionally minimal Le miroir is an exceptional example of this style that strikes a balance between simple elegance and playfulness.

Beneath the abstract black frame of the mirror, is a bowl of ripe cherries, a sensual motif alluding to the story of a passionate love at first sight. In 1943 in German-occupied Paris, a 21-year-old Gilot and 61-year-old Picasso crossed paths at Le Catalan restaurant, when Picasso brought a bowl of cherries to the table where Gilot was dining with friends. Gilot later recalled their first encounter:

From then onwards, the cherry motif is seen occasionally in Picasso's still life paintings, representing the feelings associated with Gilot's presence. With their plentiful abundance and ruby-red colour, cherries also served as a symbol of romance and indulgence. The romantic connection is further enhanced by the anthropomorphic forms of the compotier and the glass. The round shape of the compotier holding the cherries acts as a female symbol, while the angular bottle standing tall on the side serves a male role. Contradictory yet complementary, this symbolic correlation of quotidian objects can be read as the union between the artist and his lover, while emphasizing on the sensual pleasure of life.

Inspired by a chance encounter with the owners of the Madoura pottery studio while travelling in Southern France with Gilot in 1946, Picasso returned a year later and began working furiously at Madoura, completing over 1,000 unique pieces between 1947 and 1948. The sculptural qualities and the selection of objects in this picture reflect his deep engagement with pottery as a major practice and source of inspiration during this period. Black strokes boldly indicate shadows behind the glass and the bowl, while the sweep of white paint behind the bowl gives a sense of volume to this radical yet purified, two-dimensional scene. Furthermore, the use of sand alongside oil as its medium provides this painting with a unique sense of tactility that would otherwise be appreciated in sculptural works only.

Reflecting an amorphous, textured blue orb, the mirror on the wall is a device of virtuality that adds a whimsical touch to the overall composition. A recurring motif in Picasso’s oeuvre, the mirror is often employed as a symbol of self-identity, as well as the transience of life especially for works created in wartime period. The mirror in this work, however, is liberated from its functionality to express the humour, playfulness and unexpectedness that lies at the core of Picasso’s works in this period.

前紐約現代藝術博物館藏之《鏡子》創於1947年6月，對畢加索而言，那是一段和平安定、幸福快樂，並充滿著愛的溫馨時光。其時，他正在陽光普照的法國蔚藍海岸的清幽小鎮戈爾夫·胡安（Golfe-Juan）與家人度假；在年輕愛人弗蘭索娃．吉洛（Françoise Gilot）和兩人的幼兒克勞德（Claude）的相伴下，畢加索全速進入了一段創意無限、創作蓬勃的時期。藝術家從戰爭年代的焦慮中恢復過來，並展開了嶄新的幸福家庭生活，煥發出無限創作活力，因而啓發筆下歡快、輕鬆卻又極具創造力的繪畫主題。畢加索戰時靜物畫中的黑暗、痛苦、有時甚至幽閉的緊張感，現已被一種嶄新而充滿活力的樂觀情緒所取代，為畫布注入了光明、色彩，以及一種光輝璀璨的生活樂趣。《鏡子》正是這種風格的傑出典範，其畫面構圖極簡卻充滿故事性，並以純粹的色彩與和諧的線條為特徵，在簡約優雅與有趣玩味之間取得了重要的平衡。

放諸鏡子抽象的黑色框架下，是一盤成熟的櫻桃；如此讓人垂涎欲滴的水果，正象徵著一段一見鍾情的故事。1943年，在德國佔領下的巴黎，21 歲的吉洛和 61 歲的畢加索在Le Catalan餐廳初次相遇，當時畢加索帶著一盤櫻桃走到了吉洛與朋友共進晚餐的餐桌上。吉洛後來在回憶錄裏記載：

兩人由此認識，並展開長達十年的親密關係。自那時起，「櫻桃」作爲一個象徵圖案便偶爾出現在畢加索的靜物畫中，代表著此時與吉洛的曖昧情愫。櫻桃果肉甜美、色澤鮮紅，也是浪漫和沉溺的象徵。在本作中，水果盤和玻璃的擬人化造型，更進一步增強了這種浪漫的隱喻。盛著櫻桃的果盤以俐落的線條勾勒呈橢圓形，象徵著女性，而在旁邊高高豎立、棱角分明的瓶子，則代表著男性。這種矛盾卻又互補的象徵關聯性，可以解讀為藝術家與愛人的關係與結合，並反映出藝術家重視生活的感官享受。

1946 年，畢加索與吉洛在法國南部旅行時，偶然遇到馬杜拉陶藝工作室的主理人，並深受陶藝工作所啟發；一年後，畢加索再次回到馬杜拉，開始全情投入的陶瓷創作，僅在1947年至1948年間，便完成了過千件作品。本作的描繪手法富有如雕塑般的立體感與質感，加上畫中陶器的巧妙應用和擺設，反映了陶藝是藝術家此一時期的主要實踐和靈感來源。畢加索利用純黑的線條筆觸，大膽地描繪了玻璃杯和盤子背後的陰影，而盤子後的一抹奶白色，則為這個本來平面的二維空間帶來了體積感。此外，畢加索更在油彩之上使用了沙子作為混合的創作媒介，賦予了本作一份本應只屬雕塑作品的獨特觸感。

畫中牆上的鏡子，反射出無定形、富有質感的藍色形體，為整體構圖增添了一種超現實的幻象色彩。鏡子是畢加索作品中反覆出現的主題，尤其是在戰時所創的畫作中，常被用作自我身份認同的象徵，亦表達著生命的短暫與過渡感。然而在本作中，鏡子卻擺脫了其明顯的功能性，體現畢加索此時期更重視作品的玩味與趣味性。