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The Genius of Picasso

At the age of fourteen, Picasso was painting virtuoso portraits steeped in the traditions of Renaissance masterpieces. Yet by 1907, when he was twenty-six, he shocked the world with his first landmark work, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, a brutal and disturbing depiction of prostitutes that subverted the ideal form of the female nude. The painting, with an absence of spatial depth, and a picture surface fractured with angular deconstructed figures supporting stylised, mask-like faces, was revolutionary in its time. Even Picasso's avant-garde friends found it hard to understand. His radical new style that tore down the artistic traditions held sacred for five centuries heralded an entirely new and dynamic form of expression. It was a precursor to Cubism, which Picasso invented in collaboration with the artist Georges Braque from 1908 to 1911, and was equally groundbreaking.

This pioneering approach culminated in the revolutionary work, Guernica, which has become known as the most powerful statement against war in Modern art. Painted in 1937, it was inspired by Picasso's outrage at the horrors of the Spanish Civil War and was painted on a monumental scale.

Throughout his long life, his nonconformist and innovative spirit informed Picasso's oeuvre. His prolific output, amounting to twenty-two thousand works, was marked by a continuous series of different styles, each characterised by astonishing originality and technical virtuosity.

His rigorous work ethic meant that he was able to apply his creative genius to a diverse range of mediums, including sculpture, ceramics, mosaics, drawing, printmaking, collage and stage design. The aura of Picasso's 'Midas' touch, his magnetic persona and turbulent personal life, peppered with muses and lovers who fuelled his impassioned creative drive, ensured that he was the first Western artist to become in his own lifetime an international celebrity whose work commanded a mass audience.

His imprint can be found on most of the key artistic movements of the 20th century, including Abstract Expressionism, as illustrated in the work of Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning. Picasso is acknowledged as the greatest and most influential figure in 20th-century Western art. His visionary oeuvre can be paralleled with the radical ideas championed by his counterpart, the giant of scientific thinking, Albert Einstein. Both men shattered conventional ideas of reality, dramatically changing forever the way we perceive the world.

Questions for Further Discussion:

1. Compare an early and late portrait or self-portrait by Picasso. In what ways are they different? Which do you prefer and why?
2. Why is Picasso regarded as the greatest and most influential artist of the 20th century?
3. Picasso challenged people to look at the world in a new way. If you were an artist working today, how might you do this? Discuss the subject, medium and techniques you might use.
4. Locate and research an artist who you think has been influenced by Picasso and explain why.

 Other References (Preparing for Your Visit)

• Dora Maar in her own Right
• The Surrealist Movement