The Art of Picasso. Works in Black & White

Picasso Black and White is the first exhibition to explore the remarkable use of black and white throughout the Spanish artist’s prolific career.

Claiming that color weakens, Pablo Picasso purged it from his work in order to highlight the formal structure and autonomy of form inherent in his art. His repeated minimal palette correlates to his obsessive interest in line and form, drawing, and monochromatic and tonal values, while developing a complex language of pictorial and sculptural signs. The recurrent motif of black, white, and gray is evident in his Blue and Rose periods, pioneering investigations into Cubism, neoclassical figurative paintings, and retorts to Surrealism. Even in his later works that depict the atrocities of war, allegorical still lifes, vivid interpretations of art-historical masterpieces, and his sensual canvases created during his twilight years, he continued to apply a reduction of color.

About Picasso

Picasso was born in Málaga, Spain, on October 25, 1881, to María Picasso López and José Ruiz Blasco. His father, a painter, art teacher, and curator, encouraged his son to become an artist after quickly realizing Picasso’s astonishing artistic gift. Following his studies in Spain, he settled in Paris and embarked on an extraordinary career to become the most influential figure in twentieth-century art.

For more information, visit Picasso: Black & White Exhibition or  www.guggenheim.org