Pablo Picasso was one of the most prolific artists of all time, with his works numbering a quarter of a million. His life and work, however, is often split into several 'periods': blue, rose, African, Analytic Cubism and, finally, Synthetic Cubism.
Picasso was heavily influenced by his pacifist beliefs, although many of his contemporaries believed his refusal to fight in the Spanish Civil War or either World War had more to do with cowardice. It was, however, his revulsion with violence which informed his most famous piece, Guernica. This piece is a condemnation of the first ever air assault, the Nazi bombing of Guernica, Spain. The canvas is eleven by twenty-six feet, and depicts human and animal suffering, alongside the destruction of buildings. No cause, however, is portrayed. Guernica, which hangs in the UN building in New York, was famously covered up when Colin Powell went to present evidence in the build-up to the Iraq war.
Picasso was heavily influenced by his pacifist beliefs, although many of his contemporaries believed his refusal to fight in the Spanish Civil War or either World War had more to do with cowardice. It was, however, his revulsion with violence which informed his most famous piece, Guernica. This piece is a condemnation of the first ever air assault, the Nazi bombing of Guernica, Spain. The canvas is eleven by twenty-six feet, and depicts human and animal suffering, alongside the destruction of buildings. No cause, however, is portrayed. Guernica, which hangs in the UN building in New York, was famously covered up when Colin Powell went to present evidence in the build-up to the Iraq war.