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Picasso was born on October 25,1881 in Malaga, Spain as Pablo
Ruiz. He had later adopted the last name Picasso, his mother‘s
maiden name, as his own. Picasso’s father was an art teacher,
who had encouraged Picasso and his artistic talents. He later
attended the Academy of Fine Arts in La Coruna, Spain. In 1895,
the Picasso family moved to Barcelona. There he had attended
the advanced classes of the art academy after completing a one-month
entry examine in one day. Picasso visited Paris in 1900
and traveled to and from there until about 1904. Sometime during
that year he had decided to stay settled in France, where he
tried a variety of modern styles.
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The
blue period took place between the years of 1901 and
1903. During this time Picasso started his unique style
of art. The sad figures in the art works showed compliance
with their social class. No one really knows why Picasso’s
chose the color blue for his paintings. Some believe
that it was the bluish tinge of photographs (that was
often used in that period) while others think it was
because blue is associated with sadness.
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In 1904,
the rose or as some say the circus period began. Picasso
focused on the social outcast status of circus performers.
In this period he used lighter and warmer colors.
Throughout
this period he also met a woman by the name of Fernande
Olivier. She appeared in numerous paintings that he
made.
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Donna con le pere (Fernande)
1909, 92 x 73 cm
private collection, New York |
In 1905, Picasso begins to drift away from the emotionally
attached paintings like those done in the blue and rose periods.
The main colors used at this time were beige and light brown.
His attention focuses more on form, which is displayed in his
classical sculptures. In 1906, he becomes interested particularly
in Iberian sculptures, which were native to Spain.
Tęte de Femme, 1910 |
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Inspired
mostly by Paul Cézanne, Picasso and the French
artist Georges Braque worked together to create the
first phase of cubism, analytical cubism. Between 1908
and 1911 the two were greatly interested in separating
and analyzing various forms. In 1912, Picasso glued
objects such as paper and cloth to his canvas. Then
he would add paint to the picture creating a collage.
This artwork led to the next phase, synthetic cubism.
Synthetic cubism was more ornamental and the colors
used played an important role. At the left is the picture,
Tête de Femme, which was painted during
the cubist period.
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In 1912, Picasso began to use construction in his sculptures.
He used materials such as wood, string, and other everyday objects.
Picasso extended the definition of art by combining artistic
and non-artistic materials together. During this time Picasso
had broken up with Olivier and met a new lover, Eva Gouel. Gouel
had passed away in 1915. At some point during World War I, Picasso
traveled to Rome as a designer. There he had met and married
Olga Koklova. He painted numerous portraits of her and their
child, Paulo, in a realist style. Throughout this period he
had also painted calm pictures of sculpture-like figures and
pictures inspired by mythology. Picasso also created aggressive
portraits of women and bizarre pictures of small-headed bathers.
Some believe that he produced this kind of art due to the stress
in his marriage. Even though Picasso stated that he was not
a surrealist, many of his pictures had disturbing and surreal
qualities.
Between the years of 1920 and 1925, Picasso gave more attention
to the three-dimensional forms and classical themes. Examples
of this, which can be found in his paintings, are bathers and
women in drapery. The figures in the artworks are shown as large
and heavy.
From about 1925 until 1936, Picasso designed paintings
with geometric shapes. The main colors used during this time
were red, blue and yellow. Some paintings illustrated female
figures with their mouths hung open and teeth that were frightening.
At this time Picasso’s marriage was breaking up and it is believed
that the figures represented Koklova. Picasso tried working
with welding in his sculptures around this time also. Many of
his works included his new companion Marie Thérèse
Walter. The couple had a daughter in 1935 named Maria.
In
1936, Picasso met Dora Maar who became his new companion, despite
the fact he was still with Walter. In 1937, the Spanish government
wanted Picasso to paint a mural for Spain’s exhibition in Paris.
The idea of Guernica came to mind when Picasso had heard that
the Nazi planes had bombed the Spanish town. Picasso described
the bull, which is on the left of the painting, as being the
symbol of brutality and darkness. There is an injured horse,
in the center, which is believed to represent the Spanish people.
An exploding light bulb, which is located in the center at the
top, is seen as air warfare. Figures of people dying observed
on the front represent the inhumanity.
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During
World War II, Picasso remained in Paris. His paintings
throughout this time reflected the uneasiness of the
war. Creations such as Head of a Bull (1943),
are a little lighthearted and unusual. In this particular
sculpture a bicycle seat and handlebars were used to
make the bull’s head. Picasso joined the Communist Party
at the time of the war and afterwards he had attended
peace conferences.
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Bull's Head
1943; 16 1/8" high
Handlebars and seat of a bicycle |
In the 1940’s Picasso met Françoise Gilot, a
French painter, while still in a relationship with Maar. They
had a daughter, Paloma, and a son, Claude. Both children appear
in Picasso’s later artworks. The couple broke up in 1953 and
Picasso married Jacqueline Roque in 1961. Around this time Picasso
took works from past artists and modified them into his own
style. This method was scarcely done by other artist because
it was thought to be unoriginal work. However, in the 1970’s
other postmodern artists started to utilize famous works by
earlier artists for their own creations.
Due to Picasso’s originality
he is considered to be the most influential and well-known artist
of the 20th century. He had numerous followers of
his great works as well as admirers. One of his late creations
was a 50 feet tall sculpture of welded steel. The masterpiece,
Head of a Woman, was a gift to Chicago. It stands in
the front of Chicago’s Civic center and it is now a city landmark.
A slightly new discovery of
a painting many believe is a work of Picasso can also be viewed
at http://www.web.org.uk/black/Welcome.html
WORKS CITED
"Picasso, Pablo Ruiz y," Microsoft® Encarta® Online
Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2000 Microsoft Corporation.
All Rights Reserved.
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/P/picasso_blue.html
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