Pablo Picasso, 1956 (Barnes).In paintings typical of his work during the late 1930's, Picasso concentrated on subjects that reflected the troubled times in which he lived. Indeed, these were troubled times for all of Europe. Economic hardships, moral turpitude, and the rise of fascism were all too common. The personal life of Picasso, too, was just as turbulent. During the months of December, 1938 to January 1939, Picasso was confined to bed with severe back problems, lost his beloved mother, and witnessed the fall of his homeland, Spain, to the regime of Franco. Picasso's still life Bull's Skull, Fruit, Pitcher is typical of his mature Cubist paintings of this time period in that he uses various symbols to express his inner feelings, especially towards his country, his family, and himself, while at the same time representing the feelings of a whole nation and telling his fellow countrymen that, despite all of their hardships, they must still have hope.Bull's Skull, Fruit, Pitcher is clearly a Cubist painting. None of the forms portrayed in the painting is as it should be. All of the objects are seen, seemingly, from varying viewpoints simultaneously, a Cubist perspective. There are only five clearly discernible objects in the painting: a large bull's skull, two pieces of fruit, a pitcher, and a pink tree. The bull's skull, which lies on the left-hand side of the canvas, is grotesquely malformed. All over the bone are various cracks and places where the skull has been chipped away. Nothing about the skull is as it should be. For example, although both eyes stare at the viewer, the jaw points to the right. Furthermore, the jaw is drawn in such a way as it never could be; the left side of the jaw connects to the right side of the face and thus creates a paradoxical image. The nostrils are chipped and 'bleed' into the mouth; in other words, one cannot tell where the nostrils end and the mouth begins. The bull has no upper teeth but has fo...
