PabloRuizy Picasso
A short biography of a famous painter and sculptor
A male born in 1881, died in 1973- PabloPicasso was one of the most famous painters of the
1900's.
As the son of a professor of art, Picasso's talent for drawing was recognized at an early age. An
advanced student at the Barcelona Academy of Fine Arts from the age of 14, he experimented in
his youth with nearly all of the "avant-garde styles" current at the turn of the century.
He also became known for his sculpture , drawings, graphics, and ceramics works. In some way he
was the artist most characteristic of this century, because he responded to changing conditions,
moods, challenges so intensely and so rapidly. His "searching style" made him the leader in
expressing the complexity of the 1900's.
For Picasso, the meaning of art was to be derived from other works of art, and not directly from
nature. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's work had a significant impact on his early paintings, as did
the work of Paul Cezanne. Their influence, among others, can be detected in the paintings of
Picasso's "blue period" (1901-1904), which was stimulated by his exposure to life and thought in
Paris, where he made his home after 1904.
In works such as The Old Guitarist (1903; Art Institute, Chicago) he created "evocative
portrayals" of blind, impoverished, or despairing people in a blue palette. His use of blue as a
motif was apparently derived from the symbolic importance of that color in the contemporary
romantic writings of Maurice Maeterlinck and Oscar Wilde, whose work often "derived its force
from depictions of madness or illness." Although his palette and subject matter changed when he
entered (1904) what is called his "rose period," during which he painted harlequins and circus
performers in a lighter and warmer color scheme, a mood of spiritual loneliness and lyrical
"melancholy" that marked his "blue" paintings was retained. These paintings, do display "a
classical calm that contrasts clearly with the nervous expressionism" of the blue period.
Picasso's art challenges the viewers' traditional view of life. He appeared drawn to tension and
conflict. Picasso seemed to explore the fantastic world of nightmare and deep imagination which
modern psychology and modern art cites as great influence on our daily actions. He hoped to
reveal unknown influences that lie hidden in the viewers' half unconscious life. Perhaps Picasso
was influenced by the art of his native Spain, which often seems fascinated by the visionary and
the monstrous.
Picasso was born in Malaga, Spain, but lived in France from 1904 until his death. He was a child
prodigy, painting realistic works when he was only 14 years old. Picasso's first personal style,
called the Blue Period (1901-1904), focused on the themes of loneliness and despair, and featured
mainly shades of blue. The style of this period was between 1904 and 1906 to a style that stressed
warmer colors and moods. Abandoning the thin, discouraged faces of the Blue Period, Picasso
gave his new subjects more flexibility and frequently included some circus scenes in his works.
By 1906, he began painting great figures that were massive, to withstand potential shock or fear.
In 1907, Picasso painted "Les Demoselles d' Avignon", a landmark in art. This picture marked a
decisive break with traditional notions of beauty and harmony. Five female figures with masks,
rather than faces "pose in a convulsive, jagged array-distorted, shaken, and savagely transformed."
The new image grew to be known as cubism.
In early 1912, Picasso began including newspaper clippings, bits of debris, and stenciled works in
his paintings. In this way, he hoped to break down the distinction between art and non-art and to
make viewers re-think their relationship to traditional art.
After World War I, Picasso extended his explorations of form, placing special emphasis on
"brilliantly colored" dreamlike images. From 1918 to 1924, he painted with a classical style, using
huge and stately figures. In the 1920's and 1930's Picasso portrayed figures as though from the
inside out, and the lifeless objects in these works appear to have a life of their own.
"His Guernica (1937) was painted as a protest against the bombing of the town of Guernica during
the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939 ). The painting was Picasso's attempt to make a public
statement using his personal symbols of rage and despair. The picture is an expression of crisis
and disaster beyond individual control." (Author's thought)
In 1944, Picasso joined the Communist Party because he felt the Communists had been more
effective in fighting the Nazis. Even though Picasso supported the Communists, Picasso's art is
official condemned as "decadent" and "unacceptable" in most Communist countries.
After 1945, Picasso's painting, sculpture, and ceramics developed to a more relaxed and gentle
feeling . He appeared to make peace with the emotions that had "tormented him" so often in the
past. Some critics feel this new Picasso had outlived the best days of his art. Others feel this
represented another advance in Picasso's visual and mental adventures in art. Surely, Picasso was
a magnificent artist who created many styles of painting and his legend will continue
(Note: One of Picasso's famous painting is worth $76,000,000 USD)
. Pablo Ruiz y Picasso
A short biography of a famous painter and sculptor
A male born in 1881, died in 1973- Pablo Picasso was one of. adventures in art. Surely, Picasso was
a magnificent artist who created many styles of painting and his legend will continue
(Note: One of Picasso& apos;s famous