Cubism Early 20 th century.

Cubism Characteristics Predominantly developed by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. The first truly abstract movement (abstract = “existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence”). At the beginning of the 20 th century, Cubism was a response to the rapidly changing world, a challenge to conventional artworks and techniques like linear perspective. A new way of seeing that reflected the modern age.

Les Demoiselles d’Avignon Pablo Picasso, 1907 Not quite yet Cubism but on the way there… Breaking down the figures and objects into parts. This painting references these areas of art history: African masks, Egyptian statues, still-life paintings, the female nude, and emerging Cubism. Can you find all of them?

Les Demoiselles d’Avignon at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC The title suggests that the ladies he is referencing are actually prostitutes.

Nude Descending a Staircase, 1912 Marcel DuChamp Cubists believed that artistic techniques such as linear perspective limited their visions. Your sight of an object is a product of all views of that object (not a fixed viewpoint).

Guitar (I Love Eva) Pablo Picasso, 1912 Paintings were often of people and objects that were displayed as a combination of multiple perspectives. Often appear as having “fractured planes.” Where do we see fractured planes in this painting of a guitar?

Three Musicians Picasso, 1921

Picasso’s Development… This is a later painting by Picasso. How is this painting different from the others we have seen that are definitively Cubist? Girl Before a Mirror, 1932

Guernica (11.5ft x 25.6 ft) Pablo Picasso, 1937

During the Spanish Civil War, the Spanish town of Guernica was bombed by Germany in support of Francisco Franco’s regime. Some say Picasso painted this in black and white to reference newspapers and how people received information at that time, but also expresses the somber and devastating mood of the massacre. Symbolism in this painting has been disputed and contested. Dominant images are the bull and the horse, but Picasso refused to signify their meanings.

Getting started… To start this unit, you will be doing some observational drawing of musical instruments! Try to do as much shading as you possibly can to show the three-dimensionality of the object and the way the light hits it. Remember to: – Draw what you see, not what you think you see. – Observe lines, shapes, shadows, three-dimensionality. – Draw the same object from multiple perspectives to get a better sense of what it looks like all the way around.

Your Project You will create a mixed media artwork in the style of the Cubists. Media we will use: – Pencil – Colored Pencil – Pen and Ink – Paper – String, yarn, collage, watercolor? You will consider all perspectives of the object into your artwork and incorporate “fractured planes.” What are some ways you could achieve that?