Pablo Picasso
Guernica
1937
Work in front of witnesses
On April 26, 1937, in the midst of the Spanish Civil War , the Basque town of Guernica was bombed by German and Italian planes, in support
to Franco's nationalist camp .
Several hundred civilians perished
feels and the city is in ruins: the
carnage is total. The inter-
national is moved and the newspapers
from all over the world recount the tragedy .
​
Picasso, then installed in Paris, cannot remain the
arms crossed. And since he was asked to
lize a fresco for the Spanish pavilion at the Universal Exhibition in Paris, he decides to evo-
see the Sacred Mas of Guernica on a canvas of
almost 8m wide by 3.5m high. During _
A month, locked up in his studio, he will channel his anger and work methodically to understand
lay down a work like no other. Taking the side of black and white to recall the photos of
war broadcast in the press , he multiplies the
preparatory drawings and carefully studied the
composing . And above all, he proposes to his
loincloth, photographer Dora Maar, to attend the
genesis of the work. Day after day, she immor-
thus talizes the different stages of execution of the
cloth. And if this report is of documentary interest
undeniable ment , it is before
everything of one valuable remedy for
Picasso himself: as and when
measure of his work, he relies
indeed on the successive shots
of Dora Maar to modify her
painting, perfect the balance of blacks and whites and appreciate the accuracy of its composition.
Dora Maar, Guernica, Stage I , 1937
Dora Maar, Guernica, Stage III , 1937
What we can take away:
​
It is rarely enjoyable to work while someone is watching what we are doing over our shoulder. However, soliciting an outside perspective even as we progress in our project can be interesting. The impartiality of the observer implying a more objective view than ours, he will be better able to question the validity of our decisions to help us move in the right direction.