Pablo Picasso

Spanish, 1881–1973

231k followers

Pablo Picasso

Bio

Spanish, 1881–1973

Followers
231k
Biography

A prolific and tireless innovator of art forms, Pablo Picasso impacted the course of 20th-century art with unparalleled magnitude. Inspired by African and Iberian art and developments in the world around him, Picasso contributed significantly to a number of artistic movements, notably Cubism, Surrealism, Neoclassicism, and Expressionism. Along with Georges Braque, Picasso is best known for pioneering Cubism in an attempt to reconcile three-dimensional space with the two-dimensional picture plane, once asking, “Are we to paint what’s on the face, what’s inside the face, or what’s behind it?” Responding to the Spanish Civil War, he painted his most famous work, Guernica (1937), whose violent images of anguished figures rendered in grisaille made it a definitive work of anti-war art. “Painting is not made to decorate apartments,” he said. “It’s an offensive and defensive weapon against the enemy.” Picasso’s sizable oeuvre includes over 20,000 paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, ceramics, theater sets, and costume designs.

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Career Highlights
Learn more about artist insights.
Blue chip status
Blue chip representation
Represented by internationally reputable galleries.
Auction
High auction record
$179m, Christie's, 2015
User
Solo show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 19 more
Group
Group show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 34 more
Institution
Collected by a major institution
Tate, and 4 more
Publication
Reviewed by a major art publication
Artforum, and 5 more
Fair
Included in a major biennial
Venice Biennale International Exhibition, and 1 more
Biography

A prolific and tireless innovator of art forms, Pablo Picasso impacted the course of 20th-century art with unparalleled magnitude. Inspired by African and Iberian art and developments in the world around him, Picasso contributed significantly to a number of artistic movements, notably Cubism, Surrealism, Neoclassicism, and Expressionism. Along with Georges Braque, Picasso is best known for pioneering Cubism in an attempt to reconcile three-dimensional space with the two-dimensional picture plane, once asking, “Are we to paint what’s on the face, what’s inside the face, or what’s behind it?” Responding to the Spanish Civil War, he painted his most famous work, Guernica (1937), whose violent images of anguished figures rendered in grisaille made it a definitive work of anti-war art. “Painting is not made to decorate apartments,” he said. “It’s an offensive and defensive weapon against the enemy.” Picasso’s sizable oeuvre includes over 20,000 paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, ceramics, theater sets, and costume designs.

Career Highlights
Learn more about artist insights.
Blue chip status
Blue chip representation
Represented by internationally reputable galleries.
Auction
High auction record
$179m, Christie's, 2015
User
Solo show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 19 more
Group
Group show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 34 more
Institution
Collected by a major institution
Tate, and 4 more
Publication
Reviewed by a major art publication
Artforum, and 5 more
Fair
Included in a major biennial
Venice Biennale International Exhibition, and 1 more
Shows Featuring Pablo Picasso
Articles Featuring Pablo Picasso
How Craft Became an Art Market Force
Feb 19th, 2021
How Craft Became an Art Market Force
Inside the Legendary Art-Filled Home of Walter and Louise Arensberg
Sep 11th, 2020
Inside the Legendary Art-Filled Home of Walter and Louise Arensberg
Inside Picasso Biographer John Richardson’s Obsessive Art Collection
Aug 26th, 2020
Inside Picasso Biographer John Richardson’s Obsessive Art Collection
The Visionary Collector Who Transformed Works by Picasso and Matisse into Tapestries
Feb 21st, 2020
The Visionary Collector Who Transformed Works by Picasso and Matisse into Tapestries
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