1. Photo: Herbert List/Magnum Photos
Pablo Ruiz y Picasso
Pablo Picasso in front of The Kitchen (La cuisine, 1948) in his rue des Grands-Augustins studio.
Photo: Herbert List/Magnum Photos

2. One of the most influential and prolific artists of the 20th century, Pablo Ruiz y Picasso was born on October 25, 1881, in Málaga, Spain. By age 13 he showed a great command of painting. His early works were done in a traditional, representational style.
Self-Portrait, 1896, oil on canvas, © Museu Picasso of Barcelona, © Reproductions of Picasso’s work: Successió Picasso. VEGAP. Barcelona 2014
Science and Charity, 1897, oil on canvas, © Museu Picasso of Barcelona © Reproductions of Picasso’s work: Successió Picasso. VEGAP. Barcelona 2014

3. From 1901 to 1904, Picasso employed predominantly blue and blue/green hues in his paintings. Known as his Blue Period, the somber scenes showed solitary figures against a desolate background. The melancholic paintings were influenced by the suicide death of Picasso’s friend, Carlos Casagemas.
The Old Guitarist, late 1903-early 1904, oil on canvas, Art Institute of Chicago, © 2016 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

4. Picasso’s palette lightened after he moved to Paris in 1904
Picasso’s palette lightened after he moved to Paris in This time is referred to as his Rose Period because of the pink and orange hues in the piantings. These paintings often included circus performers, including the Harlequin which became a personal symbol for the artist throughout his life.
Family of Saltimbanques, 1905, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Collection National Gallery of Art, , © 2012 Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

5. In 1907, Picasso made a radical transition in his art with Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. Inspired by African and Iberian sculpture, as well as the paintings of French artist Paul Cezanne, Picasso broke traditional pictorial conventions by breaking up the picture plane and flattening out the forms.
Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, 1907, oil on canvas, Musuem of Modern Art, Acquired through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest, , © 2016 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

6. Together with George Braque, Picasso developed Cubism between 1908 and This approach to painting broke the subject apart, so that it could be seen from a variety of angles on one two-dimensional surface. The first phase, known as Analytic Cubism, was monochromatic and very angular. The later manifestation, Synthetic Cubism, incorporated larger forms, color, and collage elements, like newspaper and cardboard attached to the canvas.
Still Life with Glass and Lemon, 1910, oil on canvas, Cincinnati Art Museum, Bequest of Mary E. Johnston, © 2016 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York,
La bouteille de Suze (Bottle of Suze), 1912, pasted papers, gouache, and charcoal, University purchase, Kemper Museum of Art, Kende Sale Fund, 1946, WU 3773, © Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

7. In 1917 he went to Italy for the first time
In 1917 he went to Italy for the first time. He worked on the stage set for Sergie Diaghilev’s Ballet Russes. There he met his first wife, Olga Khokhlova, a dancer with the company. They had one son together, Paulo, in 1918.
Portrait of Olga in an armchair, spring 1917, oil on canvas, Picasso Museum, Paris

8. Picasso met Marie-Thérèse Walter in 1927
Picasso met Marie-Thérèse Walter in She became his mistress and his model. In 1935 they had a daughter, Maya. When Olga discovered the affair, she left Picasso, although they never divorced.
Girl Before a Mirror, 1932, oil on canvas, gift of Mrs. Simon Guggenheim, Museum of Modern Art, , © 2016 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Department

9. Picasso met surrealist photographer Dora Maar in 1935
Picasso met surrealist photographer Dora Maar in They became lovers until the early 1940s, through the Spanish Civil War and the beginning of World War II. Picasso called her his “Weeping Woman”.
Weeping Woman, 1937, oil on canvas, Tate Modern, Accepted by HM Government in lieu of tax with additional payment (Grant-in-Aid) made with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the Art Fund and the Friends of the Tate Gallery 1987

10. Guernica, 1937, oil on canvas, Museo Reina Sofia, DE00050
One of Picasso’s most powerful works is Guernica, a black and white mural created for the Spanish Pavilion at the International Exposition in Paris in Inspired by the bombing of the Basque town, Guernica, during the Spanish Civil War, the painting speaks to the brutality and hopelessness of war. Check out a work inspired by Guernica in the Loveland Museum’s front lobby.
Guernica, 1937, oil on canvas, Museo Reina Sofia, DE00050

11. Picasso met painter Françoise Gilot in 1943 when she was only 21
Picasso met painter Françoise Gilot in 1943 when she was only 21. They moved in together in 1946 and were together for 10 years. They had two children: Claude, born in 1947, and Paloma, born in 1949.
Françoise Gilot and Pablo Picasso, 1952, photograph by Robert Doisneau.

12. Picasso began experimenting with ceramics in his 60s
Picasso began experimenting with ceramics in his 60s. He met Jacqueline Roque in She worked at Madoura Pottery in the south of France. They married in 1961 and she remained with him until his death.
Yousuf Karsh, Pablo Picasso, 1954, gelatin silver print, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Mr. and Mrs. Charles Kramer Collection, 1983, , © Yousuf Karsh
Jacqueline with a Scarf, December 28, 1955, linoleum cut, Museum of Modern Art, Acquired through the generosity of Mrs. Edmond J. Safra and the General Print Fund, , © 2016 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

13. During his life, Picasso created more than 20,000 works of art
During his life, Picasso created more than 20,000 works of art. Always exploring forms of expression, he worked in and experimented with painting, sculpture, printmaking, drawing, set design, and ceramics. He died on April 8, 1973, in Mougins, France.
Self-portrait Facing Death, 1972, pencil and crayon on paper