#art, Artists Series pg.7: «Picasso the Genius»

Picasso was one of the first, if not «the» first artist to make of himself and his life part of his work. He was not afraid of publicity of any sort, and as he got older he got bolder and bolder. He had pics of him in the bathtub, on the beach and even standing with his dogs in underwear at his front door published. He was the image that would capture hearts and minds alongside his paintings. He started this trend that Dalí took to the extremes about twenty years or so later…

But, how did he become the «genius» of art of the 20th Century? With superb planning skills, tremendous talent (for sure) and with a little help from his friends. Of course we must factor in the amount of good luck that he enjoyed all his life. First he was never a «starving artist» eking an existence in the lower depths of Paris at the turn of the 20th Century. He immediately gained an income and a dealer. He also managed to surround himself with influential people in the arts and in the intellectual circles of the time. He became the darling of the American millionaire art collector Gertrude Stein and he married into the aristocracy. Secondly, he quite clearly planned every step he took in art.

He is remembered for his «Blue Period», for cubism and for the collage. But in effect he went through many «periods». From the blue to the rose to the black (African), and those three overlap a lot, to the more extravagant ones like neo-classicist, cubist, surrealist, war year paintings, the Françoise period, the Dora Maar period and ultimately to the end of life. He claimed to never seek a style, that God, the ultimate creator, never focused on a style. He created a lizard and a snow leopard, a rose and a scorpion. Picasso saw himself as such a creator…

So, as you have noticed I am not filling these posts with «facts» that you can research on Wikipedia or other books. After all there are many books about Picasso out there. Some are very, very good, others are rubbish. What I am trying to do is to give you some perspective as well as my understanding and appreciation of the man and of his art.

One of the paintings that made Pablo Picasso a household name was «Guernica». It is thought that he painted it after succumbing to a maddening impulse after hearing about the bombing of that city by the German Luftwaffe, in support of Franco’s troops during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Well, it was not exactly like that. The title alludes to that historical event, but not the painting, not really.

Picasso was commissioned to paint it by Max Aub, the Director of Fine Arts at the petition of the government of the Spanish Second Republic. It was to be exhibited at the International Exposition of 1937 in Paris. The aim was to attract good public attention to the republican cause during the Spanish Civil War. The painting itself is based upon the «Minotauromaquia» an etching and engraving that he had done in 1935.

All I can say, in conclusion, is that Picasso is my favourite, no doubt about it, a pillar for my art development, education and inspiration, and a philosophical source that enlightens me. But I will leave you with a view of some of the things he did towards the end of his life that will leave you scratching your head and thinking, «is this the work of the genius of the 20th Century?»