An Introduction to Picasso and Primitivism - Sienna van Alphen

An introduction to Picasso and Primitivism - Sienna van Alphen

Primitivism is a movement in art that reflects the non-Western way of life. It was a stand against bourgeois and an alternative for academic art and traditions.  Pablo Picasso was one of the many artists interested in primitivism during the 20^th century.  He was first influenced by the pre-Roman Iberians. Many of Picasso’s paintings emphasized primitivism through African and Iberian sculpture as well as African traditional masks. 

         One of Picasso’s most famous works is Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.  This masterpiece shows the primitive mind frame Picasso had been so intrigued with.  In an article from the Museum of Modern Art in New York by James Voorhies, describes the distinct connection between African art and Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.  One can clearly see the resemblance of the figures faces to African masks as well as the figures arrangement being very similar to Cézanne’s The Bathers, which was also influenced by primitivism. Picasso’s many paintings and sculptures in the primitive style influenced the cubism that appeared in his later artworks.    

Sources:

Voorhies, James. "Pablo Picasso (1881–1973)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pica/hd_pica.htm (October 2004)

Staller, Natasha. A Sum of Destructions: Picasso's Cultures and the Creation of Cubism. New York: Artists' Rights Society, 2001. Print.