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.
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.
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| Guernica by Pablo Picasso |
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.
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