Pablo Picasso

Pablo Picasso, born in Spain in 1881, was a Spanish painter known for shaping contemporary art through his bold work in modern art and Cubism. Born in Andalusia, Spain, Picasso was introduced to art and painting at an early age from his father who earned a living painting game animals and teaching art classes. He attended the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona at 13, and later studied at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, although he often skipped classes, preferring to roam the city and visit nearby art exhibits. As the 19th century drew to a close, Picasso moved to the center of the European art scene – Paris, France – the country he would remain in and be inspired by for much of his adult life. 

From 1901 to 1909, Picasso entered one of the most productive periods of his career. In this time, periods such as the “Blue period” and “Rose period” and influences by African art and Primitivism allowed Picasso to experiment with his style and react to both personal and cultural changes. Beginning in 1907, he worked with fellow artist Georges Braque to create one of the most significant art movements in contemporary art – Cubism. Using earthy tones and geometric shapes, Picasso represented his subjects from a variety of angles in total abstraction. During the 1910s, Picasso was introduced to collage, a medium that led him to create one of the most bold and influential pieces of his career – “Guernica” (1937) – a piece created in response to the German bombing of the Basque town of Guernica. Using bits of newspaper and sheet music, Picasso was able to poke fun at the art establishment while also introducing new textures and abstractions to his pieces.