Table of Contents

Pablo Picasso

Cubism

Pablo Picasso, together with Georges Braque (1882-1963), is credited with inventing Cubism, a modern art movement that simplifies topics to geometric patterns. Among the influences on the couple were Iberian sculpture, African masks, and Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne.1)

Bizarre Cubiques

When French art critic Louis Vauxcelles (1870-1943) observed that Picasso and Braque's work was full of “bizarre cubiques,” he coined the term “Cubism.”2)

Not Only A Painter

Picasso was a sculptor, ceramicist, stage designer, poet, dramatist, and print writer in addition to a painter.3)

Guernica

According to legend, a Nazi commander spotted a painting of Guernica and questioned Picasso whether he had painted it. “No, you did”, Picasso said.4)

Carrying A Pistol

Picasso was known to carry a handgun loaded with blanks. He'd shoot it at anybody he thought uninteresting or at anyone who offended Cézanne.5)

Birth

Picasso was born on October 25, 1881, into a middle-class family in Málaga, Spain. He did, however, spend the most of his adult life in France.6)

Child Prodigy

Picasso was a kid prodigy who was able to sketch before he could speak.7)

Symbolist

Picasso began as a Symbolist, influenced by painters like Edvard Munch and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.8)

Name On Products

Picasso's name has appeared on a variety of commercial items, including an automobile (Citroen Xsara Picasso), perfume (Cognac Hennessy Picasso), and lighters (ST Dupont Picasso). Picasso's heirs are always arguing about intellectual property issues pertaining to his name.9)

School of Fine Arts

Picasso was accepted to the School of Fine Arts at the age of 13. While most students took their entrance exams over the course of a month, he finished his in just one week.10)

Royal Academy of San Fernando

Picasso studied at Madrid's Royal Academy of San Fernando when he was 16 years old. He quickly dropped out because he disliked formal education.11)

Picasso In Songs

Fish, a former Marillion member, acknowledges Picasso in his song “Big Wedge.” He is also the topic of Jonathon Richman and The Modern Lovers' song “Pablo Picasso”.12)

Mont Sainte-Victoire Château

Picasso was buried at a château he purchased in the south of France in 1958. He purchased the estate because it was located on the slopes of Mont Sainte-Victoire, a favorite spot of impressionist artist Paul Cézanne.13)

Designing For Ballets

Picasso began designing the curtain, sets, and costumes for many ballets since 1917. While his sets and costumes were first panned, they are today seen as emblematic of the innovative art of the time.14)

Weak At Birth

Picasso was born so feeble that the midwife assumed he was dead and placed him on a table. His uncle, who was smoking a large cigar, approached the newborn and blew a smoke ring into his face and was saved thanks to this.15)

Death Without Will

Picasso died without a will, therefore his death obligations (estate tax) to the French state were paid with his artworks.16)

Famous Quote

“Turn off the gray of your life and light the colors inside you” is his famous quote.17)

Another Famous Quote

“When people say I'm too old to accomplish anything, I attempt to do it right now,” Picasso stated.18)

Full Name

Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Nepomuceno Mara de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruz y Picasso is Picasso's entire name, which consists of 23 syllables. His name has references to saints as well as family members.19)

Parents' Names

Pablo Picasso takes his surname from his mother, Mara Picasso y López. José Ruz Blasco is his father's name.20)

Collage

In 1912, Picasso developed collage (from the French, “to glue”) by attaching oilcloth, newspaper clippings, and other material to the surface of a painting.21)

Collage As Component Of Contemporary Art

Collage, because to his and Georges Braque's ability, became a distinct component of contemporary art, rejecting the notion that art is a window to nature in favor of an arrangement of symbolic messages.22)

Different Styles

Picasso frequently switched between styles, sometimes even within the same artwork.23)

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon

Picasso's 1907 “Les Demoiselles d'Avignon”, an abstract picture of five prostitutes, is regarded as one of his most groundbreaking works. His use of Primitivism and deconstructed perspective marked a significant departure from conventional European painting. The artwork, originally titled “The Brothel of Avignon,” paved the path for Cubism.24)

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon Display

Although Picasso's “Les Demoiselles d'Avignon” (1907) is most certainly the most studied work of art in the twentieth century, it was not shown until 1916. Picasso's pals thought the work was too contentious to show.25)

Poetry

Picasso began writing poems in 1935, at the age of 53. His poetry, like his paintings, defy categorization; they are typically untitled, lack punctuation, and are primarily sexual and scatological. One of his poems has the line “the fragrance of bread crusts marinating in pee”.26)

Communist Party

Picasso, at 62, joined the French Communist Party shortly after Paris was liberated from the Nazis in 1944.27)

Stalin Peace Prize

Picasso was given the International Stalin Peace Prize twice by the Soviet Union, once in 1950 and again in 1961 (then renamed the International Lenin Peace Prize). 28)

Dove

The Paris World Peace Conference selected Picasso's dove as the official symbol of many peace organisations in 1949.29)

Family After Death

Picasso left behind a broken family of four children, eight grandkids, two marriages, and several lovers when he died in 1973.30)