10 Hidden Details You Never Noticed In Famous Paintings

Painted in 1903 the old guitarist marks the beginning of Pablo Picasso's blue period, the point in his career where he painted predominantly in blue, which is kind of obvious from the name and look of the painting, but also the point in the Spaniard's life where he was incredibly depressed and poor.

Reusing canvases is not unheard of for struggling artists as it cuts cost on new materials; when news is revealed about a secret hidden painting being discovered under a preexisting work, nine times out of ten it's due to the canvas being reused.

Often this is done pretty seamlessly and no one notices, but in The Old Guitarist you can make out the face of a woman above the man's neck. Using infrared and x-rays, art historians have been able to determine that there are in fact, not just one, but two separate pieces underneath the blue masterpiece, with one being a nursing woman (thus the face) and the other a cow... alright.

So not happy with his cow painting, Picasso covered it by a mother and then covered that with one of his most celebrated and iconic works, so probably good choice.