PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973): FROM THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR TO VIETNAM
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Updated:
June 13, 2011
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Contents
Source
These Study Guides on War and Art were originally prepared for a course entitled "Responses to War: An Intellectual and Cultural History" given in the Department of History at The University of Adelaide between 1989 and 1999.
Banner Art
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| "Guernica" (1937) |
Bibliography
Picasso's Guernica, ed. Ellen C. Oppler (New
York: W.W. Norton, Norton Critical Studies in Art
History, 1988).
Rudolf Arnheim, The Genesis of a Painting: Picasso's
Guernica (Berkeley: University of California Press,
1973).
Anthony Blunt, Picasso's 'Guernica': The Whidden
Lectures for 1966 (Oxford University Press, 1969).
Eberhard Fisch, Guernica by Picasso: A Study of
the Picture and its Context, trans. James Hotchkiss
(London and Toronto: Associated University Presses,
2nd enlarged edition, 1988).
Herschel B. Chipp, Picasso's Guernica: History,
Transformations, Meanings (Berkeley: University
of California Press, 1988). Contains an extensive
bibliography.
Roland Penrose, Picasso: His Life and Work
(London: Granada, 1985). Chapter 10 "Guernica,"
pp. 295-324.
Patrick O'Brian, Pablo Ruiz Picasso: A Biography
(London: William Collins, 1976).
Frank D. Russell, Picasso's Guernica: The Labyrinth
of Narrative and Vision (London: Thames and Hudson,
1980).
Picasso in Perspective, ed. Gert Schiff (New
Jersey: Spectrum, 1976).
Pablo Picasso: A Retrospective, ed. W. Rubin
(New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1980).
E.F. Granell, Picasso's Guernica: The End of a
Spanish Era (Ann Arbor, Michigan: UMI Research
Press, 1981).
Ludwig Ullman, Das Bild des Krieges in der Kunst
Picassos (Osnabrück: Universität Osnabrück,
1983).
A. Stassinopoulos Huffington, Picasso: Creator
and Destroyer (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
1988).
D. Zimmer, "Letter from Guernica: The Bridge
across the Mundace," Encounter, January
1978, pp. 58-60.
Herschel B. Chipp, "The First Step Towards Guernica,"
Arts Magazine, October 1988, vol. 64, pp. 62-7.
Sidra Stich, "Picasso's Art and Politics in 1936,"
Arts Magazine, October 1983, vol. 58, pp. 113-18.
Biography
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)
| Spanish painter Pablo Picasso painted mural (1937) of bombing of Basque city of Guernica by German airforce during Spanish Civil War. Depicts victims of war, suffering women, children, and horse. Perhaps greatest painting about war ever made. Focuses on victims. Timeless and universal in its themes. OH Photograph of PP.
Six days after the bombing of Guernica PP began
work on mural for the Spanish Pavillion of the
International Exhibition in Paris held in summer
of 1937. |
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War and Art
Pablo Picasso's mural "Guernica" (1937)
| His reaction to the Nazi bombing of the Basque city of Guernica: the mural "Guernica" (1937): "Guernica" mural (72K) Scene takes place in darkness in open space, possible town square surrounded by burning buildings. Figures within the triangle: fleeing woman, the wounded horse (suffering humanity, originally had small winged horse/soul leaving gash in side), the broken statue of the warrior (classical image perhaps of fallen Spanish republicans). Tip of triangle "eye" of electric light globe (image of sun/eye) and woman with the lamp (light holding darkness/bull at bay). To right burning building with falling woman (perhaps also burning, in stance of suffering Mary Magdelene). To left wailing woman with dead baby (originally on ladder, like bringing Christ down from the cross) behind which stand bull (threatening or protecting woman and child?). Other figures are bird (rising or falling, originally small winged horse/soul) and flower (symbol of regeneration and hope, like 600 year old tree left standing). |
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| Details of the mural |
Far left - bull, woman and dead child |
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| Dora Maar's photographs of the mural in progress |
state I - 11 May 1937 |
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| Sketches for the mural |
head of a horse - 2 May 1937 |
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| Slides of "Guernica"
Slides of "Preparatory Studies"
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a weeping woman - 3 June 1937 |
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1. The Meaning of the Bull and the Horse
Bull and horse: conflict between two animals
concerned PP for years. Pictures of bullfights
where bull gores horse. (Blunt p. 15). Horse
represents suffering humanity. Wound of horse
like spear thrust into side of Christ. Open
mouth a cry of agony. Similar pictures of Christ
in agony. |
head of a horse - 2 May 1937 |
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2. The Composition Study of 1 May 1937
| Composition
study "7
May 1937" (124K) PP's ideas come together in composition study of May 1, 1937 (1). Classical figure of soldier fallen. Women in house with lamp warding off bull. Gored horse screaming with soul (winged horse) leaving body. |
Composition study "7 May 1937" (124K) |
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3. The Meaning of the Women and Children
Falling and burning? women - tear shaped eyes and nostrils. Study of weeping women and dead child. (1) |
mother with dead child - 10 May 1937 |
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4. The Meaning of the Flower
| Flower beside collapsed knee of horse grows a flower. Symbol of hope and regeneration after destruction. Description of witness to bombing a few hours after event:
Combination of innovative symbols and conservative Christian symbols. |
Detail of the Flower |
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Other Works about the Spanish Civil War
| Other Works done during or about the Spanish Civil War: Cartoon strip - "The Dream and Lie of Franco" (8 February 1937) |
"The Dream and Lie of Franco" - Part 1 - reversed |
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Other Works Dealing with Theme of War and Peace
| Works done during or about WW2 |
The Charnel House 1944-45 |
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| Works about the Korean War |
War 1951 |
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| Other works:
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Lysistrata (32K) (1934) |
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| Peace Posters:
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Peace Poster 1949 |
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| Other titles (no pictures):
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