CUBISM

CUBISM
Cubism was an art movement in France that lasted from 1908 to 1918 and beyond. It was started by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque.

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At the beginning of the 20th century, Braque and Picasso were not interested in showing traditional realismillusionism by using realistic perspective as had been done in the past.

Meditation, 1885 William Bouguereau

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Braque and Picasso were influenced by Paul Cezanne, who simplified natural forms into spheres, cylinders, cubes, and cones . . .
Rocky Landscape, 1887 Paul Cezanne

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new scientific ideas about time and space, like Albert Einsteins theories of relativity. . .

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and multiple images and flat perspective of photography.

Running Full Speed, 1887 Eadweard Muybridge

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They were also influenced by the recent importation to Europe of African masks.

Nuna Buffalo Mask

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Cubists wanted to show objects as geometric shapes (like Cezanne),

Little Harbor, 1909 Georges Braque

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from different angles at the same time (like scientific ideas about time and space at the beginning of the 20th century) . . .

Woman with a Guitar, 1913 Pablo Picasso

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and scenes as flat (like photography).

Woman Seated, 1908 Pablo Picasso

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Can you see the influence of African masks in Picassos Les Demoiselles dAvignon?

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Cubism developed and changed over time: the first phase was Analytic Cubism. It is sometimes called Facet Cubism because the subject and surrounding space is broken into facets, or pieces of separate surfaces (like a cut diamond).

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Ambroise Vollard, painted in 1910 by Pablo Picasso, is an example of Analytic Cubism. Do you see the facets?

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This is Portrait of Picasso by Juan Gris.

Portrait of Picasso, 1912 Juan Gris (Spain)

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While Analytic Cubism took forms apart, the next phase of CubismSynthetic Cubismput forms together using collage and assemblage, which created questions about whats illusion and whats real.

Still Life with Glass, Dice, Newspaper and Playing Card, 1913 Georges Braque

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Picasso, Braque, and others continued to explore the ideas of Cubism. Synthetic Cubism included the addition of stenciling and lettering, and used vibrant colors, instead of the dark, limited color palette of Analytic Cubism.

Still Life with a Poem, 1915 Juan Gris

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Insert picture here

What ideas do you see in this untitled work from 1915 by Picasso?

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Cubism influenced many artists from all over the world . . .

The Traveler, 1915 Liubov Popova (Russia)

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Street: Near the Palace, 1915 Lyonel Feininger (USA)

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Cubism influenced a new movement in Italy called Futurism. Do you see Cubisms influence?

Unique Forms of Continuity, 1913 Umberto Boccioni

What do you need to know about Cubism?

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Who: Picasso, Braque, Gris What: Cubism (Analytic Cubism & Synthetic Cubism) When: 1908 1918 and beyond Where: France; later in Europe, Russia, and USA Why: To reject traditional perspective and explore ideas of time and spaceshow portraits, still life, and landscape from several angles at once; explore boundaries of illusion and whats real How: By breaking up the picture plane into facets, using geometric shapes, adding lettering, constructing collage and assemblage

Test Yourself: CUBISM

Who: Picasso, Braque, Gris What: Cubism (Analytic Cubism & Synthetic Cubism) When: 1908 1918 and beyond Where: France; later in Europe, Russia, and USA Why: To reject traditional perspective and explore ideas of time and spaceshow portraits, still life, and landscape from several angles at once; explore boundaries of illusion and whats real How: By breaking up the picture plane into facets, using geometric shapes, adding lettering, constructing collage and assemblage