Data Bases • Custom Term Papers • Free Term Papers • Free Research Papers • Free Essays • Free Book Reports • Plagiarism? Links • Top 100 Term Paper Sites • Top 25 Essay Sites • Top 50 Essay Sites • Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com • Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com • Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com Free Essays • Term Paper Sites • Chuck III's Free Essays • Free College Essays • TermPaperSites.com • My Term Papers • Get Free Essays • Essay World • Planet Papers	Search Lots of Essays Back to Subjects - Art Picassos Guernica Picassos Guernica While it may seem at first glance that Guernica, by Pablo Picasso, is a political statement against the tragedy of the bombing of a small Basque town during the Spanish Civil War, this painting holds connotations beyond the syllogism for which it is given credit. Picasso, unlike Romantic period artists, who are attributed to great political propaganda, is not suggesting an emotionally based judgment should be made about the contemporary event, but rather a focus on the contemplation of the forces of good and evil at work throughout timeless On the afternoon of April 26, 1937, German forces under the command of the Spanish fascist leader Francisco Franco embarked on the first aerial bombing of a civilian target, the small town of Guernica. The attack was due to the conflict in Spain, the Spanish Civil War: an issue of Democracy against Fascism. The war heightened the threat of Communism and Fascism in Western Europe to a new level. Franco’s attack on the small town, a center of culture in Basque, made it clear that his forces were strong and unrelenting. His allegiance with German forces spawned one of the most tumultuous times in modern history. The aerial bombing of Guernica became a symbol of his unmerciful, cruel political power. Guernica was almost completely destroyed. News of the mounting death toll However, universally, the impact of the Guernica bombing could have been minimal. While Spain would surely never have forgotten Franco’s reign of terror and its zenith with the bombing of Guernica, Picasso contributed an everlasting reminder to the entire world of the threat of Fascism and the evil of unrelenting power. Having been invited to contribute a piece to the Spanish Pavilion for Paris’ World’s Fair in 1937, Picasso was inspired by the grief of Spain to present an image that would make the most powerful statement against Franco yet. His creation became not only the symbol of the Spanish crisis but of protest of Fascism for all time. Not only is the size of the mural overwhelming, but the shocking images that mix classic symbols with modern technique provide an emotion and passion that is unforgettable. While passion and empathy undeniably drove Picasso to choose his subject, Guernica, it is not the fruit of spontaneous emotion, but of a contemplation for the unpredictable fate of all humans at the mercy of evil, which is expressed through his dedication to the past. “The deliberation with which Picasso worked out the symbolism of Guernica and the form exactly appropriate to its expression represents one aspect of his debt to the long tradition of classical art” (Blunt 44). Picasso, while ahead of his contemporaries in innovative style and technique, does not portray contemporary imagery. Specifically, he does not represent the scene realistically as he eliminates any distinct features of the event such as symbols of Fascism itself. Only the title of the work gives any indication of the subject which is being expressed, making this piece applicable to many events throughout modern history. It is Picasso’s use of classic, ancient and religious symbols that creates this tone. “It appears that Picasso, lamenting for the Guernica victims, calls upon past great lamentations” (Becraft 21). The design of Guernica is formulated upon the banal symbols of In comparing Picasso to predecessors of political propaganda it is clearly defined that “in these paintings the artists were not concerned to show the beauties of nature or the nobility of man, but on the contrary the evil of the world and the brutality of human beings. They therefore felt at liberty to underline the ugliness of the created universe, to distort the human figure, and to invent monsters to convey their meaning. But Picasso, who had broken down these conventions, was able to go further, to use more violent distortions, to disrupt the bodies of human beings and animals in a much more drastic manner. In his Guernica the expression of horror is even greater than the models he followed” (Blunt 56). Picasso did not invent his figures nor did he create monsters, but altered prosaic symbols with abstract treatment to make their representations shockingly grotesque. One example, “the formalized features and the open mouth of the principle figure in Poussin’s The Massacre of the Innocents reveal unmistakably their origin in the masks which Greek and Roman actors wore when acting tragic parts, and it is not unlikely that Picasso also had such models in mind when he employed this device” (Blunt 47). Picasso adopted such recognizable features but used his personal style to make the effect far more The crouching mother, on the far left side, holds her child in her lap, limply, with his head tilted backward, hanging lifelessly in her arms. Her head is flung upward, toward the sky, and her mouth is open as if to signify her shrieking cries. This scene is comprehensible, not just to the sympathetic mothers of the world, but every human who could understand that “no mother holds her child that way: it must be dead” (Fisch 25). This image relates, as well to the masks worn in Greek and Roman tragedies, which had open, gasping mouths and inward sloping, wrinkled foreheads to signify terror and anguish. “The gesture of the head thrown back relates closely to Roman reliefs which used this symbolism to “express the death agony,” as well (Blunt 50). The mother represent the weak masses under the power of Fascism who have no control over their fate of tragedy. She is the mass population of Spain who despairs over its condition, but is unable to change the situation as it is helpless. Like the mother figure, the helpless Spaniards are also seen in two other female characters. There are two women on the far right side of the mural who express their agony with the same facial features of the mother. One has a severely injured leg and drags her disabled body behind her. The other women screams in terror as she is trapped in a burning building. It is significant that Picasso, in all three representations of the Spanish masses, uses a female character. This is most likely due the historically inferior role of women in nearly all societies. Therefore, he accentuates this weak condition through the sex he chooses to present his embodiment of the Spaniards. The decapitated soldier in the foreground of the painting exhibits the facial expression derived from Greek and Roman drama and reliefs, however, he expresses signs of influence from other earlier art, which gives it a different role in the painting. This image has its roots in the biblical images of the Crucifix and Christian art depicting the scene of Christ suffering on the cross. The most closely related to Picasso’s images are the most grotesque depictions of crucifixions common in Medieval churches, from stained glass to paintings and frescos. In addition to the arms of the soldier being spread across the bottom of the painting in a cross form, he has lacerations covering his arms as if he had been scratched a multitude of times. In the Medieval renderings of the Crucifix, The scrapes and cuts on the body of Christ from the thorns he wore, are emphasized immensely. The bloody appearance of the lines on the arms of the soldier indicate similar scratches. This interpretation of the soldier is particularly suitable to the goal Picasso had in mind. Dante believed “the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in times of moral crisis maintain neutrality” (source unknown). The soldier tells us a similar message. In the Medieval churches such grotesque imagery was used as political propaganda by the church to increase its power over the masses. The scene of Christ on the cross instilled fear in the common man which motivated him to be good in the eyes of God so as not to receive the punishment of eternity in hell. The soldier is of the same representation, for while he has suffered as ghastly death he has fought for the good of the Spanish people against the evil of Fascism. He is the inspiration to the masses to take control of their own fate by risking all they have for the purpose of saving humankind from The soaring woman who carries the lamp into the center of the painting has the facial features characteristic of Greek and Roman goddesses. She carries the light over the scene of tragedy. A similar figure in Rubens’ The Horrors of War, 1687, extends her hand to a terrified man. The passionate expression on the face of the lightbearer in Guernica is almost a replica of the woman’s in Rubens painting. The Renaissance figure conveys compassion and anguish over scenes of horror in her face, as is unmistakable in the expression of the woman carrying the lamp over Guernica. While she may represent hope, another interpretation of this figure, however, gives an entirely different meaning. It has also been interpreted that this figure is a symbol of evil such as the female figures of evil in Rome known as furies. In Latin the word Lucifer literally means “light bearer”. The soaring figure may depict a helper of Satan known as a fury because she carries a lamp. She is also significantly larger than the other female figures below which offers a suggestion that she is different, and possibly not mortal. If this is the case, this figure’s expression of evil goes far beyond the specific event to a greater and more universal suggestion of evil. Picasso’s symbolism does not distinguish itself between animals and people. The animals in Guernica are not limited to their true role, but like the human figures represent a larger sector of humanity. “The horse is the good in us, for one role; the bull is the evil in us, for one role. The dove, the horse the bull permit us to view ourselves in different aspects” (Becraft 30). The animal figures, in fact, illustrate characteristics of humanity such a dependency, strength Picasso, himself, said, “The horse represents the people” (Russell 43). One of the few explanations about the symbolism of the figures in Guernica, Picasso offered a statement about an ambiguous figure. The horse, while strong and sturdy, has a mortal wound from a spear in Picasso’s depiction, thus, lending an explanation that the horse is suffering humanity. While individuals can withstand the attacks for a period of time, the severity of an attack on human rights, like the bombing, is a mortal wound to all of humankind. Unlike the dying, still people around him, he is one of the few active figures in the scene. He struggles against his wound by attempting to remain standing and he roars for help as indicated by his thrown-back head and flared nostrils. The horse, while he seems to be mortally wounded, is attempting to make his lasting impression against his most likely fate. He is the people of Guernica, as their fate inspired a lasting opposition through Picasso’s struggle to keep the town of Guernica alive in the mind of Picasso’s source of inspiration for the horse derives from his lifelong interest in Spain greatest tradition, bullfighting, which is the reason for his choice to incorporate the bull as well. This gives meaning to the role of the bull. While the bull seems strong and fierce, his strength is limited to the power of the bullfighter, which has him crippled. As the relationship between bullfighter and bull is part of Spanish tradition, it is also the relationship between the government and the people. The government can only be strong as long as the people allow for this strength. “The central symbol of the bull is one of the oldest in the art of the Mediterranean, going back as far as the Minoan Age” (Blunt 44). The bull stands firmly, and stoically, presenting strength, while the expression on his face seems sympathetic to the scene around him, especially the mother with the dead child to which his is facing. However, sympathy is not the expression on the bull’s face, but rather he is melancholy for his own destruction. Upon seeing the scene of tragedy, the bull seems to lament for the inevitable chaos it will bring himself. “The Yin and Yang are seen in Guernica as the dark nostrils of the horse and the light nostrils of the bull. Black and white, day and night, good and evil, civilization and barbarism: many dualisms come into play” (Becraft 29). The bull is Fascism, and the horse is the people. Fascism has caused its own destruction by elevating the dissatisfaction of the people. The final animal in Guernica is the bird, which is barely distinguishable because of its dark tones. Because it is somewhat hidden and smaller than the other figures, it seems to be related to the “dove of peace” from the Bible, which is often not largely visible in Christian art, but instead is a small hidden object bringing its message from afar. However, this bird resembles a goose. One explanation for this rather artistically uncommon creature appearing in the mural is that because of a reputation that, “since the time when geese, owing to their watchfulness and cackling, saved Rome from hostile attack, it has been known that geese are excellent sentinels” (Fisch 48). The bird is the savior of the people. It is the character who announces the catastrophe to spur a rescue effort. The people are dependent on this figure for its ability to be a third party to the conflict, and come to the aid of those in distress. Because Guernica does evoke a judgment or conclusion, it is undoubtedly a contemporary political statement. However, Picasso was devoted to the classic imagery which inspires contemplation of the greater forces behind evil and good. His figures represent these forces. His style represents the modern world and the contemporary conflict. “He is both a romanticists and a classicist, but a romantic opposed to strict rules and devoted heart and soul to the metamorphosis of reality; one who refuses to interpret life by syllogism alone, acknowledges its many riddles and mysteries, and, for all his classicism, is capable of adopting simultaneously a multitude of different perspectives” (Zervos 202). While Picasso used imagery from earlier models and composition style from many artists he studied closely he reacted against a realistic portrayal in Guernica. These characteristics combine to make an everlasting impression on humanity, which some scholars attempt to refute on the basis that his political agenda is unworthy of praise because he was most focused on creating more a shocking piece for his exhibition, in which the tragedy was merely an outlet for his desire. However, Picasso’s careful treatment of the subject, the fury with which can be seen in him through the grotesque distortions of his figures, and the sympathy for which he begs of humanity in the helpless, horrified faces which look upon the world from his mural, make an everlasting impression on civilization of the brutality of war. Whether Picasso’s political agenda was his priority is certainly debatable, but Picasso once said, “I like what continues”. Guernica must be a source of great satisfaction to him. Bibliography: Works Cited Becraft, Melvin E. Picasso’s Guernica. New York: The New York Times Company, 1981. Blunt, Anthony. Picasso’s ‘Guernica’. London: Oxford University Press, 1969. Fisch, Ederhard. ‘Guernica’ by Picasso. London and Toronto: Associated University Press,1988. Russell, Frank D. Picasso’s Guernica. Montclair, NJ: Allanheld, Osmun & Co., 1980. Zervos, Christian. “ Historire d’un tableau de Picasso”, Cahiers d’ Arte. Vol.12, no. 4-5, Paris, 1937, pp. 109-111. Word Count: 2544
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