Pablo Picasso: Guernica

Pablo Picasso painted Guernica in June 1937. It is a mural-sized oil painting which uses a palette of gray, white, and black to depict the suffering of  the people wrenched by violence, bloodshed, and chaos. It is considered to be one of the most powerful and moving anti-war pieces of art in history.

Guernica by Pablo Picasso

Picasso took thirty-five days to complete this masterpiece. The painting was created in response to the bombing of Guernica, a country village in northern Spain, by Nazi German and Italian warplanes at the request of the Spanish Nationalists. The painting was prominently exhibited in the 1937 World's Fair in Paris and then at the other venues to raise funds for Spanish  war relief. Thus, in the process, painting became widely famous and helped to bring world's attention to the atrocious Spanish Civil War.

The painting depicts a wide-eyed bull standing over a woman grieving her dead child in the arms. The center consists of a horse falling in agony after being struck by a spear. A dead dismembered  soldier is lying under the horse. His severed arm still grasps a shattered sword from which a flower can be seen growing. This depicts the glimpse of hope amidst a blood war setting. Above the horse's head, a light bulb blazes in the shape of an evil eye. Then a few bystanders frightened by this horrible scenery can be seen in the painting. There are two hidden elements too in the painting. They are - a human skull overlaying the horse's body and another bull appears to gore the horse from underneath. The bull's head is mainly formed by the horse's entire front leg.

Overall, the painting does an excellent job in achieving its purpose. The blend of grey, white, and black reflects the somber mood and chaotic tone of the the Spanish Civil War. The shape and posture of the figures depict protest. Guernica perfectly symbolizes a deathly setting to represent the destructive power of wars. It does more than just to meet the audience's eye. It provokes emotions of fear, sadness, and pity in the hearts of its viewer while leaving an important anti-war message.

Salvador Dali: The Persistence of Memory

The prominent Spanish surrealist painter named Salvador Dali painted his most recognizable work The Persistence of Memory in 1931. The painting is also called by other names such as "The Soft Watches" or "The Melting Watches." It is called by these names because of what it portrays. This famous surreal piece depicts four different soft melting pocket watches.

The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali

The watches were thought to be unconscious symbols of the relativity of space and time. People assumed it was based on Einstein's theory of special relativity. Dali denied these assumptions and interpretations of his painting. He revealed that the watches were inspired by the surrealist perception of a Camembert melting in the sun. The shapeless figure in the middle of the composition is an example of various contemporary symbolic figures that Dali used to represent himself. He did so to prevent his abstract form from turning into a self-portrait. The figure is interpreted as a "fading" creature,  one that appears in dreams. the creature himself is in the dream state as symbolized one of his closed eye. The orange clock is covered in ants which represents "decay."  The clocks and the creature perfectly blend in together to symbolize the persistence of time in the eyes of a dreamer during a dream.

For me, it is one of the most mind boggling paintings I have ever seen. The use of imagery and symbols is way too refined and strong. The abstract surrealist painting represents even a more abstract idea with a deep psychological affect related to dreams, space and time. The softening of watches is beautifully done as if they are really melting in front of your eyes. In my opinion, one thing that painting lacks is emotional depth. But, this painting was never meant to appeal to emotions. It was meant to appeal to one's eyes, senses, mind, and conscious. This masterpiece is currently located in Museum of Modern Art, New York City.

Pablo Picasso: The Old Guitarist

In 20th century, an artist named Pablo Picasso changed the course of 'Art' by defining many new art forms such as cubism. During his lifetime Pablo Picasso painted many masterpieces. The one that stands out for me is called "The Old Guitarist." It was painted in late 1903 - early 1904. It depicts an old, blind, haggard man with ragged clothing weekly hunched over his guitar. Now, the question is why do I love a painting that portrays some simple senile old man playing guitar. I love it because of how beautifully it was done. I love the way Picasso used the simplicity of the painting to hid all his complicated emotions.

The Old Guitarist by Pablo Picasso

The painting gave spark to Picasso's Blue Period in which he painted essentially monochromatic paintings in the shades of blue. Picasso had moved to Paris  in 1901 along with his dear friend Carlos Casagemas. Unfortunately, tragic events stirred in Carlos' life and he committed suicide after a failed love affair. The death of Carlos deeply affected Picasso. It left him depressed and devastated. To add further to his misery, Picasso was very poor too at that time. His poverty made him to identify and relate to the poor and the downtrodden outcasts of the society. These circumstances led to Blue Period in which he used simplistic shades of blue and gray to depict sorrowful figures lost in their tragic contemplation. The use of oil on panel causes a darker theatrical mood as it blends colors together without diminishing brightness. The lifeless old man symbioses misery while the big brown guitar in contrast acts as only hope of survival. The painting also depicts the solitary life of an artist and natural struggles that come with this career choice.

The old woman hidden behind the Guitarist.

Now, jumping to a shocking revelation, this painting didn't only portray an old man with guitar. Picasso did a good job to hide and blend many Easter-eggs and mysteries in it. X-rays examinations by curators revealed three figures peering behind the old guitarist's body. The three figures are an old woman seated in the center of the composition with head bent forward, a young mother with a small child kneeling by her side, and an animal on the right side of the canvas. Experts also determined that at least two different paintings are found beneath The Old Guitarist. Overall, the melancholic shades of blue and oil perfectly blended with the hidden mystic figures behind the Guitarist shows the complexity hidden beneath the simplicity of the painting. All these elements successfully make "The Old Guitarist" one of the perfect artistic masterpieces ever created.