Cubism: Picasso
Picasso's Still Life with Chair Caning 1912 characterises Cubism's divergence from more conventional, academic styles of painting previously dominating French art. Marking a transition between the Analytic and Synthetic phases, Still Life with Chair Caning expresses Cubism's innovations regarding pictorial form and space, rejecting conventional techniques such as perspective, chiaroscuro and tonal modeling, and the desire to imitate nature 'as if seen through a window'.Two prominent influences accounting for Picasso's rejection of conventional forms of painting include Iberian and African sculpture and the Post-Impressionist Paul Cezanne. Picasso admired the bold shapes and energy conveyed in 'primitive' art and was inspired by Cezanne's experiments with space and form and his treatment of nature in terms of the "cylinder, sphere and cone," to explore the inherent structure of an object. Reflecting these influences, Picasso's treatment of form in this work strongly contrasts to conventional forms of painting at the time. Rather than careful rendering of forms and detail to induce the illusion of reality, Picasso fragments the still life into a myriad of transparent geometric planes that intersect
Forms appear schematised and the overall surface 'unfinished' extending Cezanne's Post-Impressionist technique of modulation of broken patches of colour. Picasso has even chosen to analyse a still life, traditionally lower down in the hierarchy. Influenced by Cezanne, and the broad forms of African sculpture, Picasso does not render the still life with traditionally 'beautiful' painterly skill. at different angles, dismantling conventional ideas of integral three dimensional forms. The letters 'Jou' are a reference to the newspaper 'Le Journal' - intended to remind the viewer of the real world but simultaneously it is a pun, being the three letters of 'jouer,' meaning 'to play/to run the risk' implying that oil painting is a kind of game designed to trick the viewer. Picasso's Still Life with Chair Caning strongly contrasts more conventional forms of painting at the time. This idea becomes more extreme as the Synthetic style uses flatter and more decorative forms. ' Combined with this and Cubism's emphasis on formal qualities, the use of a rope as a framing device further isolates the painting as an object in its own right adding another dimension to the purpose of the painting and subverting traditional notions of art and how it is viewed. For example, the pipe is highlighted in white and is framed by dark areas thereby pushing the pipe forward; the painted still life overlaps the simulated chair caning, implying the chair caning is behind. Contrasting to convention, Picasso considered pasting symbols of everyday life to be more real and truthful than imitating nature directly as these elements make the viewer more conscious of the nature of the canvas and that it is capable of deceit. One of the key differences in Synthetic Cubism is the idea of 'building up' as opposed to Analytical Cubism's deconstruction of objects, and this work marks the return to more identifiable form and decorative elements. Picasso integrates the caning into the pictorial space through the painting over its surface. The oilcloth and rope are traditionally non-art/manufactured objects thereby challenging what is considered 'high' art and 'low' art according to academic conventions. In addition, these manufactured, industrial materials raise questions of authenticity and artistic skill. They are no longer two people, you see, but forms and colours that have taken on, meanwhile the idea of two people preserves the vibration of their life.
Common topics in this essay:
Chair Caning,
Cezanne Cubists,
Salon Intermingling,
Cezanne Picasso,
Picasso Cubists,
Synthetic Cubism,
Combined Cubism's,
Ambroise Vollard,
Influenced Cezanne,
Synthetic Cubism's,
chair caning,
conventional forms,
conventional forms painting,
forms painting,
life chair caning,
life chair,
contrasts conventional forms,
contrasts conventional,
tonal modeling,
synthetic cubism,
african sculpture,
space form,
formal qualities,
materials available art,
identifiable form decorative,
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