Analytic Cubism Grid Drawings

Analytic Cubism Grid Drawings

Cubism

• Paul Cézanne has been dubbed the “Father of Cubism”, although Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque are considered the creators of Cubism.

• Paris 1907-1914• Rejected tradition:– Direct observation – Perspective– Foreshortening

Cubism

• Emphasized the 2D nature of a canvas or painting surface

• Reduced and fractured objects into their simplest geometric forms

• Shallow depth, very little space, like relief carving

• Multiple or contrasting vantage points

Analytic Cubism

• Fractured the objects and reassembled them in a way that was new but that still resembled the original object

• Abstract, but REPRESENTATIONAL• Subjects:– Still lifes with musical instruments, bottles, pitchers, glasses,

newspapers, playing cards– Human face and figure– Landscapes were rare

• Influenced other artists: Juan Gris, Marcel Duchamp, Jean Metzinger, and even Diego Rivera

Synthetic Cubism

• Emphasis on collage– Usually large pieces of neutral, colored, or printed

paper collaged to look like a specific object– These were called “papiers collés” (collages)– Even included fragments and signs from actual

objects (newspaper, playing cards, advertisements)

– Synthetic Cubism inspired Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden (Harlem Renaissance)

Assignment

• Choose a person to paint who you think “wears many hats”

• This could be someone who has many different skills, interests, jobs, personalities…

Assignment

• You will use the grid technique to sketch the main outline and features of the portrait, but will use Analytic Cubism to bring it to life.

• Analytic Cubism techniques:– Reduce forms to simple geometric shapes– Use these shapes to show the planes of the

person’s face (which areas stick out, which areas cave in)

Weeping Woman with Handkerchief, Pablo Picasso, 1937, Analytic Cubism

Ambroise Vollard; Pablo Picasso; 1915; Analytic Cubism; Oil on Canvas

Jean Metzinger

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example: Look at the difference between the side that’s been reduced to simple shapes vs. the side painted

realistically

My Example