How did Expressionism begin? | Why did Picasso use blue?

What was Picasso's full name?

Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Mar?a de los Remedios Cipriano de la Sant?sima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso.

The old guitarist Picasso:

"Guitarist" .. Music as a tool to face the misery of life, (The Old Guitarist), is one of the creations of Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, 25 (October) 1881-8 (April) 1973, which he painted in Madrid in 1903 and has reserved a seat on the lists of the most famous paintings in history since its presentation To the public for the first time in early 1904.

Why did Picasso use blue?

Picasso's blue period:

The painting belongs to what is known as the "blue period," the period that followed the suicide of a friend of Picasso, Spanish art student, Carlos Cassigmas, started in 1901 and took control of Picasso paintings during that period tragic topics, he used to paint blue and its degrees significantly, this is why it called  "blue period,"

This painting depicts an old guitarist, possibly blind guitarist, wearing worn-out clothes, sitting in a dark space, and holding a guitar. It is one of the most famous paintings in the blue period. Because it shed light on the psychological, mental, and material suffering in the lives of creators. The old guitarist is often seen as a reflection of Kasegmas himself, although he suicided when he was young.

Although Picasso is known as the pioneer of the Cubist school, this painting belongs to expressive doctrine. It is an artistic doctrine adopted by Picasso in the blue period before the appearance of Cubism in the form known to him and French artist Georges Braque (1882-1963).

What are the characteristics of expressionism?

expressionism as an artistic doctrine originated in Germany in the early twentieth century and spread to all parts of Europe. Expressionism tends to represent the world in a streamlined manner and strong colors, relying on the tragic themes and existential sorrows that overshadowed the world of modernity in that period. The works appeared as bleeding colors on the canvas, so what is essential is not the aesthetic form of the painting,  it is emotional sincerity. The Norwegian Edvard Munch is more than inspired by that school, with his iconic "Scream" icon.

Who started expressionism? How did Expressionism begin?

Expressionism appeared in 1905, through four German students studying architecture who wanted to become painters: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Erich Heckel, Fritz Bleyl, and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff.

Picasso's blue period paintings:

Picasso, in the painting, used the color blue. And this blue sadness camped on this and other blue period paintings was a reflection of the feeling of depression, which overshadowed the world of modernity and led to world wars and atomic bombs. The state of gloom and the existential questions that dominated humanity, in general, were fueled in particular by the suicide of Cassigmas on a personal level.

In the "old guitarist," the focus is not on the state of aging with its known effects, as much as on the aging of the soul whose effects are reflected in the poverty and isolation of the player who is not humanized by anything other than his worn-out machine, blind, poor, only with worn-out clothes, Alone with himself in a bleak space.

Those feelings that the painting reflects and the ability to paint a scene fraught with suffering come only from a man who knows well what it means to be poor and lonely. Besides his friend's suicide, Picasso was completely bankrupt in 1902, and this may be the reason why this blind musician was portrayed, that the poor bankrupt Picasso who just lost his friend must have lost the ability to see any hope. And that case of hopelessness is not just on a personal level, On the general level, the old guitarist reflects the state of the lower classes as a whole, who the world does not care about, and the skin of the old guitarist confirms this, perhaps this person has not had a meal in a long time. Picasso compensates The blind guitarist for the loss of vision with a state of insight from the ability to play despite blindness. Although the player does not show any sign of life other than playing, the idea of playing itself comes as a form of resistance. Resisting the near-death fueled by extreme poverty, isolation, loneliness, and gloom. This confirms a theory that the creator, even in his darkest moments, even if he is on the edge of death, has no hope except the aesthetic of his craft as one single way out of the suffering of humanity during that period. And if the "old guitarist" is a depiction of extreme poverty, pain, and isolation, it is also a depiction of the meaning of the immortal term Dostoevsky: "Beauty may save the world."

You can also read:   What does Neo-Impressionism mean?

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