Guernica- Pablo Picasso 1937
Picasso created this painting in response to the April 26, 1937 bombing of Guernica in the Basque region of Spain during the Spanish Civil War. The bombing was carried out by German and Italian bombers at the request of the Spanish Nationalist Forces. Guernica has come to be a major anti-war symbol depicting the tragedy and suffering of people, particularly civilians
When I was very very young, my first impression of abstract art like Picasso's was that it was silly... I thought that anyone could create "abstract" art because it was neither technically challenging nor realistic.
ReplyDeleteAfter studying and researching Picasso's artwork in high school, I came to realize the wonder in his Cubist style.
Picasso wanted to portray the world in its full reality... requiring him to capture all its dimensions: the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd were already explored in painting and sculpture, but Picasso wanted to portray the 4th dimension of the world-- time. What I thought earlier as simple mutations and inaccuracies in his artwork were actually his attempts to capture subjects at different angles and at different times of day-- to portray them in their entirety of existence. Picasso's work, ironically, portrayed the world more realistically than anyone else.
I'm not sure what the 5th dimension is... in popular culture, I believe, it embodies "unexplored or unknown aspects of the universe." Perhaps Picasso managed to capture this 5th dimension as well by using simple, 2-dimensional shapes. They have created, on the most basic level, shapes, figures, and depth of space through placement and shading. They have even captured the scene from multiple angles-- giving the viewer a tour AROUND and INSIDE the entire event, but those few simple, 2-dimensional shapes have also sparked a sense in the "5th dimension"-- of feeling and emotion of the spirit-- the "unknown aspects" we have yet to understand.
Picasso was able to create balance amoung strong shapes and high contrast. He does it in a way that seems almost accidental. I've studied the painting before, but this video highlighted each character at all angles which made me realize the continual work Picasso put forth in his work to come out with this end result. Cubism was only amusing for me to look at, but I've come to respect it very much after studying the process of how one of Matisse's nude drawings turned into an abstract piece. Abstract art is not created because of lack of understandment of the forms as seen in real life, but the complete acknowledgement of it. Picasso's Geurnica is a beautiful interpretation of the real forms. He understands how bodies move and turn, and he understands how they react to emotions. He is able to exagerate the forms to capture the moment of chaos. There are shapes that turn into arms and shapes that call attention to a figure. Everything is purposeful, and everything is carefully studied.
ReplyDeletePicasso's Guernica, at first glance, definitely has a dark mood to it, but when I first saw this, I didn't have the same appreciation for it as I do now. For me personally, I have trouble understanding or getting into Picasso's work, but after watching the 3D animation about the piece, the characteristics about the painting I enjoyed most were highlighted even further.
ReplyDeleteIn this piece, the way Picasso shows foreground characters versus middleground and background characters is with the use of lighting. Although outlines overlap and it may look as though they are transparent, Picasso carefully considers where he places light and dark shapes. There is a very balanced aesthetic of figure-ground relationships.
Picasso also uses very expressive lines and faces to show the drama and horror in the piece and what the even was about.
Guernica is a very powerful piece of art. The first impression I have is that I can get a feeling of bloodshed and desperation. I like how Guernica has all the symbolisms like dictatorship, inhumanity, and war. I have always liked abstract artworks because they mainly have color and shape in their paintings to show emotions.
ReplyDeletePicasso has always used space as a tool to capture emotions in his art piece. The Guernica has portrayed this significantly, filling up the whole space with the strange distorted people who are pain and need. The color also goes along with the piece with the dark gloomy colors showing the sadness. The atmosphere and background is all darkened and the figures in the piece are lightened to emphasis on their expressions. The overall abstraction gives a grotesque like feel to it which makes the viewer sense the emotion and horror in the art work.
ReplyDeleteEven though I'm not a big fan of abstract paintings, Picasso's Guernica is always interesting to look at it. Unlike classical paintings that show composition(I don't think I used right term, but I can't think any other word:(.....I mean it is clear that which object is front and which is back) clearly, Guernica makes people confused about objects' locations. Figures are overlaid and sometimes mixed with others. This, in my opinion, emphasizes the purpose and subject of the painting. Complexity of the figures reminds chaos caused by war and let Guernica works as anti-war symbol. Also, its gloomy reddish brown and cold light blue and strong contrast adds more feelings to the piece.
ReplyDeleteI like the 3D video of Picasso's Guernica. It gave me an insight that I may have overlooked considering the image is not in front of me to fully examine. I love the use of cubism to express the emotion that the artist had in mind. Sometimes an emotion is hard to capture. I feel that the use of strong shapes conveyed a state of torment and time...Well done:)
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I feel that the emotions in the faces of people in this painting capture pain. The painting definitely captures the chaos of what was going on at the time. I think comparing the painting and the animation you can get a sense of space with the animation but the emotion is somewhat lost. The animation is cartoony and doesn't give you the same feeling as the original. Although its very cool to see someone take a flat painting and turn it into a 3d piece I like the original better.
ReplyDeleteIn the painting, Picasso is trying to portray the disorder that took place after the bombing. The expressions of the different characters show desperation and chaos. I feel like the video makes the foreground, middle ground and background clear whereas in the painting, it's a little confusing.
ReplyDeletehe first reaction I had to Guernica is of mayhem or destruction. Picasso has managed to show both two dimensional and three dimensional work in this piece. There is verbal as well as physical fight depicted in the piece. The right part of the painting looks heavy. I think it has some touch of the african part. The lines of the palm also make the piece all the more dramatic. The piece is representational and has asymmetrical balance. The visual elements are used very efficiently in respect to lines and color. The curvature along with the use of lines helps create the chaotic feeling produced even in the midst of such cool and slow colors.
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ReplyDeleteAbstract art is a form of art that not everyone can understand it at first glance, and some not even after hours of standing in front of it. Picasso changed the art world forever by transforming what he saw into a fragmented, abstract picture. I personally love it as I work in fear of constraint. I hate rules, and perfection. To me, beauty is when something is drawn out of the lines. Picasso breaks up the human body into different ways that represent it just as beautifully as Michelangelo represented the human body realistically. He uses the space to tell a story of tragedy and horror. The expressions of the characters carry out this emotion of terror. He is successful in his painting without having to paint a full picture in a realistic way.
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