Cubist artists
saw organic forms as compositions of geometric shapes.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art defines Cubism as one of the most important and influential artistic styles of the 20th century. According to Art Lex, in Cubism an organic form is disassembled, deconstructed into geometric shapes or planes and reconstructed as an abstract image. The Cubist style became widely popularized and was copied by many artists and sculptors.
Cubist Pioneers and Influences
The leading figures in Cubist art were Pablo Picasso, a Spanish artist who lived from 1882 to 1973, and Georges Braque, a French artist who lived from 1882 to 1963. Art Lex explains that the two artists were inspired by different sources. After a visit in 1907 to the ethnographic museum at Paris's Palais du Trocadéro, Picasso was intrigued by the geometric stylization he saw in the African masks that were on display at the time. Georges Braque, on the other hand, was inspired by the work of the Fauves, a group of artists who rejected the idea of representing illusory three-dimensional images on canvas. Their art was characterized by vivid colors and bold, emotional brush strokes. Braque and Picasso began a collaborative study into Cubist painting that lasted from 1907 to 1914.
Early Cubism
Before Braque and Picasso, most painters imitated nature or attempted to copy real objects. The Cubist artists began to break away from this artistic tradition between 1907 and 1909 by using multiple points of view to show more than one side or facet of an object at a time. The Art History Archive states that Braque's 1908 painting "Houses at L'Estaque" and Picasso's 1907 "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" were examples of their early efforts to show multiple perspectives within their paintings.
Analytical Cubism
The Eyecon Art website indicates that Analytical Cubism lasted from 1910 to 1912. These paintings were mostly characterized by still life paintings that were rendered in earthy monochromatic colors. The objective of Analytical Cubism was to show an object simultaneously from different points of view or at different periods of time. Two examples of Analytical Cubism are Picasso's painting "Ambroise Voillard" and Braque's "Violin."
Synthetic Cubism
From 1912 to 1914 Braque and Picasso focused on Synthetic Cubism. These pieces often used collages or assemblages of materials such as newspapers and tobacco wrappers in combination with painted areas. During this phase color and contrast assumed more importance than in their previous works. Picasso's "Still Life with Chair-Caning" is an example of Synthetic Cubism.
Influence
When World War I began in 1914, Braque enlisted in the army, and his collaboration with Picasso ended. The two artists parted ways, and their artwork took different paths as well. Picasso began to experiment with Cubist sculpture and was influenced by both Realism and Surrealism, while Braque focused upon figure paintings and single-subject pieces.
The Metropolitan Museum credits Picasso and Braque with influencing many painters such as Juan Gris, Jean Metzinger and Diego Rivera. Their revolutionary painting style inspired not only later Cubist painters, but profoundly influenced the Dada and Surrealist movements as well.
