PICASSO'S "GUERNICA."   Term Paper ID:28480 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Discusses style, symbolism, composition & purpose of artist's monumental mural; its value both artistically & as social protest art.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Discusses style, symbolism, composition & purpose of artist's monumental mural; its value both artistically & as social protest art. Paper Introduction: Picasso's monumental mural "Guernica" is an imposing 11 feet, 6 inches by 25 feet, 8 inches oil on canvas painted entirely in black, white and gray. Many art historians and critics consider "Guernica" Picasso's masterpiece, as well as an example of how the visual arts can be used as protest art without diminishing its artistic qualities. According to historian Frederick Hartt "Guernica" is not only Picasso's finest work of the 1930s but perhaps the greatest of all social protest pictures. In 1937, Picasso was invited by the government of the Spanish Republic to provide a painting for the Spanish Pavilion at the International Exhibition in Paris. As a theme for this work, Picasso chose the bombing of the Spanish town of Guernica. In the years preceding the Second World War, the German Nazis and the Spanish Fascists had colla Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. For example,the bull, the horse, and the wailing woman had all been images in earlierworks by Picasso. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc. With "Guernica," however, Picasso made a statementabout war which has become universally accepted. Today it occupies the center of a roomdedicated to the work of Picasso in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte ReinaSofia; its placement signifies the artistic importance and power of thehuge painting, "a faithful reflection not only of an age but also ofpainful and dramatic circumstances" (Museo Nacional Reina Sofia: TheCollection). Prior to his painting of"Guernica," Picasso's art had shown little interest in the destructioncaused by warfare. The flower provides abittersweet contrast to the death and destruction which surround it.Picasso also used mythical and conventional images and symbols to get hismessage across. He combined "images drawn from Christian iconography, suchas the Slaughter of the Innocents" with motives from Spanish folk culture,especially the bullfight, and from his own past" (Hartt 4 3). In 1937, Picasso was invited by the government of theSpanish Republic to provide a painting for the Spanish Pavilion at theInternational Exhibition in Paris. New York: George Putnam=s Sons, 1976.Raynal, Maurice, et al. In contrast to the electric light, which is represented as amechanized eye whose iris is an electric bulb, is an oil lamp held aboveit, which looks like the lamp held by the Statue of Liberty and which issymbolic of the resistance of humanity against the technology of war. Retrieved at http://meseoreinasofia.mcs.es/e/colecc/sala 6/default.htmO=Brien, Patrick. The major images of the mother, the bull and thehorse came from the iconography of Picasso's earlier works. After theInternational Exhibition, the paining was displayed at New York's Museum ofModern Art. No weapons, bombs, soldiers orairplanes are depicted. The combination of subject and composition create theimpression of ">the monstrous become probable' of which Baudelaire spokewhen writing about Goya" (Raynal 14 ). A wounded, dying horse,stabbed by a spear, has a human skull concealed within its body and legs.A dead man holding a broken sword is shown, his face frozen in a look ofshock and horror. Picasso was so affected by the bombing of Guernica that he would notallow the painting to hang in Spain until Franco and the fascists weredriven out, and the Republican government restored. The severity of the absence of color emphasizes the complexdesign of the interpenetrating planes and the violent, unexpected lineardistortions. The figure of the horse was painted in such a way thatwhen seen from a distance it appears to have been created out of newsprint.The style of painting helps to emphasize the desperation and futility ofthe subject matter. Although "Guernica" was composed mainly in cubist technique, there arealso elements of surrealism in the twisted, garbled faces, the contortedmisplaced features, and the imagery. An image of modern technology can be found in theelectric light visible at the top of the painting. The art of the collage can also beseen in the work. According to historian Frederick Hartt "Guernica" is not onlyPicasso's finest work of the 193 s but perhaps the greatest of all socialprotest pictures. The painting depicts the first moments following thebombing. 1979.Museo Nacional Reina Sofia: The Collection. However, neither in "Guernica" or the preparatory studies Picasso madeis there anything that can specifically be identified with the conflicttaking place in Spain at the time. The mother with the dead child isreminiscent of Michelangelo=s "Pieta." The bull above the mother issymbolic of the forces of Fascism; the bull in Spanish experiencetraditionally represents an adversarial force. The overall impression of the painting is ahorrifying image of people reacting to the devastation of their homes andthe deaths of their loves ones. Thedistorted figures in "Guernica" convey the sense of anguish experienced bythe bombing victims. Works CitedHartt, Frederick. "Guernica" is not only a great history painting, but also oneof the most innovative and important works of modern painting that conveyeda message through art. "This is onereason why Guernica has given rise to so many controversial interpretations(Museo Nacional Reina Sofia: The Collection). History of Modern Painting From Picasso to Surrealism. Art: A History of Painting, Sculpture, Architecture.3rd printing. Although the figures in the painting are distorted ina manner consistent with Picasso's general style, he was not trying to makea statement regarding the destruction of traditional ideals in art. In the words of Patrick O'Brien,"Guernica" depicts a "silent world, silent in spite of the screamsBthestunned silence of extreme grief, of disaster, and of the moments after theexplosion of a bomb" (322). Throughout the work, "agonized heads and arms emerge from thewreckage" (Hartt 4 2). Near this man's lifeless hand, a faintly visible flowercan be seen rising up as a symbol of new life. Picasso: A Biography. Like many of Picasso's earliest works, "Guernica" is painted in amonochrome style, thereby creating a sensation of a "total lack of color"(O=Brien 322). This light symbolizesthat technology can be used for war and destruction as well as for peacefulpurposes. A woman can be seen holding her dead baby and wailing withher head turned upward toward the sky. In the years preceding theSecond World War, the German Nazis and the Spanish Fascists hadcollaborated on the destruction of the town of Guernica and its innocentcitizens, an act that shocked the world. The figures, however, convey with dramaticeffectiveness the passionate sense of suffering which the victims areexperiencing. "Guernica" is anexample of Picasso's experimentation with different styles and techniques.Although primarily cubist technique, the twisted, garbled faces, thecontorted misplaced features, the manipulation of lines, planes and volumesall emphasize plastic scheme and make the total picture complete; thedecorative elements are part of the subject matter, and the subject matterconveys the mood of anti-fascist hatred, as well as the personal horror ofhaving one's homeland, represented by Guernica, destroyed. As a theme for this work, Picasso chosethe bombing of the Spanish town of Guernica. Picasso first experimented withcubism in 19 7, but from 1918 on, he abandoned flat pattern cubism andexperimented with many different other styles including surrealism,curvilinear cubism, sculpture and subconscious images. Many art historians and critics consider "Guernica" Picasso'smasterpiece, as well as an example of how the visual arts can be used asprotest art without diminishing its artistic qualities. When the Republican government was put back in power, thepainting was sent to Spain. Geneva: Albert Stura, 195 . "Thespiritual message of combined terror and resistance is borne, unexpectedly,by the Cubist aesthetic means" (Hartt 4 3). Picasso's monumental mural "Guernica" is an imposing 11 feet, 6 inchesby 25 feet, 8 inches oil on canvas painted entirely in black, white andgray. In depicting the victims of "Guernica," Picasso used simple shapesthat are almost like cartoons. Picasso used many of the resources of his cubist experience in orderto depict the plight of his native country devastated by the Spanish CivilWar, and the momentary triumph of Fascism. In many ways, Picasso's"Guernica" "has become in retrospect a memorial to all the crimes againsthumanity in the twentieth century" (Hartt 4 3). 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