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Happy Birthday Pablo Picasso!

Oct 25

Written by: Amy
Tuesday, October 25, 2011 8:07 AM

Pablo Picasso, 1881-1973

Pablo Picasso was born today in 1881. Picasso is indisputably the most famous artist of the 20th century. Picasso was a painter, a sculptor, ceramicist, stage designer and a printmaker who once said: "Art is a lie that makes us realize truth.”

Below are eight statements. Some are truths about Picasso, and others are lies, do you know which is which? Test your Picasso knowledge. Answers to questions at the bottom, so no cheating!

Picasso was born in France, however he lived in Spain most of his life.
His full name is 122 characters long.
His first words were “piz, piz”, a shortening of lápiz, the Spanish word for ‘pencil’.
Picasso entered the School of Fine Arts in La Coruna, but it was mostly his mother who t to financial problems, when he lived in Paris, Picasso burned many of his paintings to stay warm.aught him painting.
Picasso had his first exhibit at age 13.
Due to financial problems when he lived in Paris, Picasso burned many of his paintings to stay warm.
Picasso is credited for co-founding the Surrealist movement, along with Georges Braque.
During the German occupation of Paris during WWII, Picasso was forbidden from showing his paintings.

Continue reading to see examples of some of his work from various periods of his artistic life, as well as suggestions for ways to celebrate this great artist’s birthday!

Early Works

Le Picador, 1890 (9 years old)

Educated Traveler Pablo Picasso First Communion

First Communion, 1896

The Blue Period - 1901-1904
This period was influenced in part by the suicide of friend, Carlos Casagemos, of whom Picasso painted many portraits following his death. The paintings of this period are somber, in blue and green tones with many depictions of very thin mothers, children, prostitutes and beggars, and blindness as a recurring theme.

La Vie, 1903

The Rose Period - 1904-1906
Picasso's work, influenced by his relationship with Fernande Olivier, takes on a happier tone during this period. He used lots of orange and pink in his paintings. His art often featured acrobats and harlequin, which became a personal symbol for Picasso.

Educated Traveler Picasso Acrobat & Young Harlequin

Acrobat and Young Harlequin, 1905

African Period - 1907-1909
This is a lesser known artistic period for Picasso. His artwork during this period was heavily influenced by African sculpture and artifacts.

Self Portrait, 1907

Cubism - 1909-1912
The style for which Picasso is known. He developed this artistic movement with Georges Braque. In the cubist style, "objects are broken up, "analyzed," and re-assembled in an abstracted form.

Reservoir, 1909

Synthetic Cubism - 1912-1919
Cubism paved the way to Synthetic Cubism. In this style, cut paper pieces were pasted together to create compositions, and marked the use of collage in fine art.

Guitar, 1913

Classicism & Surrealism

In the period following World War I, Picasso's work was in a neoclassical style. During the 1930's, influenced by his contact with surrealists, the minotaur took the place of the harlequin as a common motif in Picasso's work.

Containing this symbol is one of the greatest works and arguably Picasso's most famous, his depiction of the German bombing of Guernica, Spain during the Spanish Civil War. This mural sized oil on canvas contains heavy symbolism and is a strong anti-war image. When asked about the painting, Picasso responded with: "...this bull is a bull and this horse is a horse... If you give a meaning to certain things in my paintings it may be very true, but it is not my idea to give this meaning. What ideas and conclusions you have got I obtained too, but instinctively, unconsciously. I make the painting for the painting. I paint the objects for what they are." Guernica is displayed in the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, Spain.

Educated Traveler Pablo Picasso Guernica

Guernica, 1937

Later Works

Enamel Saucepan, 1945

Educated Traveler Picasso The Kiss

The Kiss, 1969

Celebrating Picasso's Art

What else do you know about Picasso? What is your favorite painting by this famous artist? Try your hand at creating a Cubist drawing or painting – you could create a still life, a portrait or anything else you might like to try. Need another fun way to celebrate this talented artist on his birthday? Create your own Picasso-esque image using Picassohead.

Answers:

Picasso was born in France, however he lived in Spain most of his life.
FALSE. Picasso was born in Malaga, Spain, but lived most of his life in Paris.
His full name is 122 characters long.
TRUE. Pablo Picasso’s full name is: Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruíz y Picasso
His first words were “piz, piz”, a shortening of lápiz, the Spanish word for ‘pencil’.
According to an account by his mother, this is TRUE.
Picasso entered the School of Fine Arts in La Coruna, but it was mostly his mother who t to financial problems, when he lived in Paris, Picasso burned many of his paintings to stay warm.aught him painting.
FALSE. It was his father who taught him.
Picasso had his first exhibit at age 13.
TRUE. He showed his paintings in the back room of an umbrella store.
Due to financial problems when he lived in Paris, Picasso burned many of his paintings to stay warm.
Sad, but TRUE.
Picasso is credited for co-founding the surrealist movement, along with Georges Braque.
FALSE. Picasso did co-found an art movement, but it was Cubism, not Surrealism
During the German occupation of Paris during WWII, Picasso was forbidden from showing his paintings.
TRUE. He was forbidden by the Nazis from showing his paintings, as they did not fit their "guidelines" for art.

Categories:Education, Art, Students, Teachers

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Hi, I'm Amy! Avid traveler and social marketing guru at NETC. I'm also the editor of NETC's Educated Traveler blog, where you'll find all kinds of information about travel and education, tips, NETC news, classroom lesson ideas and more! Subscribe above!

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Happy Birthday Pablo Picasso!

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