Analytic Cubism, from Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso

1. The Coming of Cubism
Natasha Ash
Art History 202
Spring 2014

2. Analytic Cubism
• Analytic cubism was first started by two artists, Georges Braque and Pablo
Picasso, when they came together they used experimentation. Which led
to abstraction of subjects and space. Braque and Picasso’s use of space and
shape are what made their style to unique and special. The subjects in the
painting lose their coherent shapes and their relation to one another in the
cube shapes. With cubism artists rejected the traditional ideas of
techniques of perspective and copying nature, instead these artists’
paintings lack a depth, are confined to geometric shapes, and the overall
composition.
• These paintings lack the foreground and background of depth. The shapes
are all on the same plane, there is just shapes and space. The reason for
the lack of depth is to keep a minimal realism. More realistic and natural
paintings have the different levels of planes, foreshortening, and shading.
This is that idea that there is not just one view point, the space was done in
a different way, different perspective. Everything in the paintings were
given equal importance, the figures, the background, and the objects.

3. • Braque and Picasso used geometric shapes, in these shapes you can
see the different views and perspectives that are used. In some you
can see the frontal view or others you can see the side view of a
person. They observed this kind of style from African art, the way
they used shapes and masks. Instead of giving texture, color, and
space they would use the fragmented objects with these various
views. To be able to see what is in the shapes, they would puts some
small details likes; the strings of a violin, sheet music, or some human
features.
• The composition of these are very important, the way the shapes are
together, the colors, the small details of features. Braque and Picasso
used grey, browns, and blacks for all of the overlapping. In the
paintings you can see the strokes of their paint brush, seeing blend of
color and moving into another shape. Although these are abstract
paintings it is important how they fit together.

4. Conclusion
• Braque’s and Picasso’s came together with their
new style. Braque had moved into the military,
while Picasso moved on with his style and
changed it slightly. But with every painting the
subject causes slight changes and editions.
Most of the paintings are so abstract they it
makes the subject matter unrecognizable, with
the painting to the right you can see the face at
the top center of the painting. You can see the
body and the arms, slowly being able to put the
pieces together, with the different view points.
You can even make out the pipe and part of a
chair within all of the different shapes. They
wanted to challenge the viewers and transform
art with their style.
The Poet
Pablo Picasso

5. Georges Braque, French (1882-1963)
Violin and Candlestick
1910
Oil on canvas
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
This is painting you are able to tell
the shapes of the violins very well,
compared to Braque’s later
paintings. He keeps within the
natural earth colors and he used the
black to outline the objects and the
different shapes. This painting is not
as abstract as many of the other
pieces, the outer edges of the
painting are just square shapes only
down through the brushstrokes and
the colors, while most is happening
in the center of the painting.

6. Georges Braque, French (1882-1963)
Violin and Palette
1909-1910
Oil on canvas
Guggenheim Museum
There the artist is moving toward the
abstraction of ordinary subjects and
space. None of the objects have there
natural shapes, you can see the violin
with all of the sharp edges, the sheet
music, and the palette. Although there
is dark shading around the violin,
which makes it look a little more in
front of everything, when most of the
subjects are on the same plane,
bringing all of these elements
together.

7. Pablo Picasso, Spanish (1881-1973)
Portrait of Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler
1910
Oil on canvas
Art Institute of Chicago
This is a portrait is a well known
art dealer in Paris. It breaks up
the objects into the small parts,
to give it the different views and
perspectives. They also arranged
everything to make a perfect
composition. All of this allowed
for the viewer to really analyze
the pieces and to look at all of
the different perspectives.

8. Pablo Picasso, Spanish (1881-1973)
Ma Jolie
1911-1912
Oil on canvas
Museum of Modern Art
This is a portrait done by Picasso,
but not like a traditional one. It is
difficult for a viewer to make out
the different figures and features.
But this is a carefully organized
design, with the way the brush
strokes are laid, the different
shapes together, the colors, and
where the different body parts are
placed. You can see the head,
shoulders, and the body. There are
even a musical staff and writings.

9. Pablo Picasso, Spanish (1881-1973)
Girl with Mandolin
1910
Oil on canvas
The Museum of Modern Art
This is considered one of the
most beautiful cubism paintings,
but Picasso referred to it as
unfinished because of how
eligible it is. That gives an idea of
how abstract Braque and Picasso
wanted their pieces to be. This
piece is a lot softer and
smoother than others.

10. Exciting
• It is clear that Braque and Picasso didn’t just do this to have fun, they
knew what they were doing. They put these together carefully,
knowing everything mattered. They wanted the viewers to think, to
concentrate, to understand what they are looking at. It is amazing to
see all that is in these paintings, all that’s behind all of these abstract
pieces. There are a lot of different aspects to these paintings although
they look simpler and less detailed.

11. Works Cited
• Choi, Elizabeth. "Picasso and Early Cubism with Braque." VCU. N.p., 2004. Web. 8 May
2014. <http://www.people.vcu.edu/~djbromle/modern04/elizabethc/index.htm>.
• Croddy, Stephen W. The Semiotic Analysis of Analytic Cubism. Kent: Semiotic Society of
America, 2001. ProQuest Central. Web. 8 May 2014.
<http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.harford.edu/pqcentral/docview/213748852/41A92
77EC2FC4D76PQ/1?accountid=11292>.
• Flint, Lucy. "Pablo Picasso." Online Collection. Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation,
2014. Web. 8 May 2014. <http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-
online/artwork/3429>.
• "Georges Braque." SFMOMA. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 2014. Web. 8 May
2014. <http://www.sfmoma.org/explore/collection/artwork/89>.
• Rewald, Sabine. "Cubism." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The Metropolitan Museum
of Art, 2000. Web. 8 May 2014.
<http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cube/hd_cube.htm>.
• Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael W. Cothren. Art History Eighteenth to Twenty-First
Century Art. Boston: Pearson, 2014. Print.