10 things I learned about Pablo Picasso
Before doing extensive research on Picasso, I knew nothing about the renowned artist except that his work is satisfyingly monochromatic and that it wonderfully portrays the chaos of life. I was floored by how advanced and talented Picasso was at such an early age when I had initially seen his work at the Art Institute. His early talent piqued my interest to dig deeper into who he was behind all of his unique work, and how he became to be one of the world’s influential artists.
Art is a lie that makes us realize the truth.
- Pablo Picasso
Picasso’s Famous Shirt
This iconic striped blue shirt that Picasso wore frequently was part of the official French Navy uniform and had 21 horizontal blue lines representing each of Napoleon’s victory (he never volunteered to serve in any army). Supposedly he was photographed in this shirt pretty frequently.
A Child Prodigy
Picasso started painting at a really young age. This is the first known painting, “Le Picador” (1890) which he painted when he was 9 years old. It’s stated that he painted at least two canvases a day.
How did an actual child draw this.
At the Art Institute, we came across “The Old Guitarist” (1903). Picasso painted it when he was 22 years old.
Multi-Talented
Picasso was everything. Not only was he a painter, but he was a committed sculptor and ceramicist.
“La Femme au jardin” (1929)
Picasso’s Love Life
He had multiple passions, but also so many lovers. A lot of his sketches at the Art Institute portray the women that he was involved with. He supposedly married twice and had 4 children with 3 different women.
I took a very blurry photo of the “Six Busts of Women” (1962) from the Art Institute’s exhibit. Picasso claimed that the sculpture was inspired by his dog. Other critics suggest that it was a sketch turned into a sculpture of one of his model’s Sylvette David.
If I were Sylvette, I’d be pissed.
Born & Raised
5. Born in Malaga, Spain on October 25th, 1881. He later moved to Paris to continue his career.
“Yo” (1901) - This is a self portrait which Picasso would later showcase at his first exhibition in Barcelona.
Cubism
Picasso pioneered the Cubist art movement with one of his buddies, Georges Barque (a French painter). Cubism, one of my favorite art movements, is the 20th century avant-garde art style where forms break down into geometric inspiring us to view the image through a new perspective.
“Le Reve” (1932) - A portrait of one Picasso’s mistresses
Picasso, a thief?
In 1911, Picasso was one of the main suspects for stealing the Mona Lisa (they were probably doing the Louvre a favor, she’s not that great). The police believed that Picasso and his buddy Guillaume Apollinaire were the culprits.
Art Periods
Picasso’s work is divided into five main periods: Blue Period (1901-1904), Rose Period (1905-1907), Cubism (1907-1925), Classicism (1920-1930) and Surrealism (1926-onwards).
“The Watering Place” (1905-1096) - A painting considered part of Picasso’s Rose Period.
The Stubborn Student
Picasso struggled with schoolwork, only because he wanted to focus on painting and drawing. His father was an art teacher who taught him art basics at an early age, but he very quickly surpassed his father’s artistic capabilities. His father was determined to make him the best artist in the world, therefore sent him to a hard-to-get-into fine arts school in Barcelona. The application process took months for others, but Picasso was admitted within a week. Even in Barcelona, he would skip classes because he believed the program was too “single focused” on one subject/reference point. Picasso preferred to instead used the city and streets of Barcelona as his subject for many of his drawings and paintings during his early years.
“First Communion” (1896) - Picasso’s first large-scale work inspired by one of his his mentor’s who specialized in religious subject matter. This piece was then showed at the Exposition of Fine Arts and Crafts held in Barcelona that same year. This exhibition is when Picasso’s prodigious talent got discovered.
First Word
Picasso’s first word was “pencil” stated once by his mother. This is probably complete B.S. but I loved the idea of it.
