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Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

guernica.museoreinasofia.es

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Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#41

Post by Daub »

riffraff wrote: post #24
habosa wrote: post #19

I went to Spain as a teenager and saw Guernica in person. It was the first painting to ever really have an effect on me. It's stunning. A perfect example of how art can transmit a message between people across time and space, I just knew that I was feeling how Picasso wanted me to feel. If you have the chance to see this painting you should, no website can do it justice (although this is a very nice try).

I have been to a bunch of galleries and seeing a painting in person doesn't usually make a difference for me compared to seeing it in a book. Guernica is one of the few that did. Perhaps because it's massive compared to other well known paintings. So, I just want to say, I second your recommendation for seeing it in person.

One of the things that made seeing this painting a valuable experience for me was the plentiful background material it was shown next to… drawings, paintings, sketches etc. it showed the depth of creative process that Picasso employed.

One thing I have not seen discussed here is the fact that this painting was commissioned by the (Spanish) Republican government. Effectively, there is a degree of propaganda to the painting. No shade on the guy… my other favorite war crime painting is the executions of the third of may by Goya, and it was also a political commission.

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#42

Post by edwcross »

otherme123 wrote: post #26
Synaesthesia wrote: post #22

Guernica shocked the world. It was the start of aerial bombardment of civilians, something which we have sadly normalised since WW2. but which I regard as terrorism. Picasso also painted another great work titled "Korea" in the same vein. War is an abomination, something we should all fight against.

There was this new theory at the dawn of air warfare called "Strategic Bombing", one of its main advocates was Giulio Dohet. The idea was that aircrafts could get behind the frontlines and bomb vital centers (civilians and production) freely. Hypothetically the morale would collapse, and lead quickly to surrendering. He even calculated that 300 tons of bombs per city over the most important cities would be enough to…

Relevant ACOUP (A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry, Bret Devereaux's military history blog) post: https://acoup.blog/2022/10/21/collections-strategic-airpower...

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#43

Post by bbor »

arc_light wrote: post #34

[dead]

Fascinating, thanks for sharing! After spending a semester there during the Catalonia vote for independence (the one with riot police forcibly storming ballot locations on TV) and reading a bit of history, it seems to me that Spain has to be one of the most fractured developed states in the world.

Well, quasi-fractured I suppose: all the regionalism has lead to an also-strong federalist countermovemnt! See if you notice anything weird about the map of Spain's high-speed rail routes, for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_Spain#/medi...

(BTW, Spain has the second best HSR network in the world, just after China. Congrats, Spain!)

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#44

Post by stavros »

ninjin wrote: post #31
robolange wrote: post #2

I zoomed in as far as I could go and saw some occasional flecks of red. Is that just lint, or remnants of when it was defaced in the 70s?

I lack an answer, but for other interested, here is a link with more details regarding the event: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Shafrazi#Shafrazi_and_Gue...

> On February 28, 1974, Shafrazi spray-painted Picasso's 1937 painting Guernica with the words "KILL LIES ALL" in foot-high letters.

> Tony Shafrazian was born in Abadan, Iran, to Iranian Armenian parents

> In 2020, Shafrazi publicly supported Donald Trump for president.

If nothing else, the universe has a sense of humor.

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#45

Post by tinkertrain »

robolange wrote: post #2

I zoomed in as far as I could go and saw some occasional flecks of red. Is that just lint, or remnants of when it was defaced in the 70s?

There is an "Artwork Details" feature and in it a section "Paint residues from the act of vandalism", they are remnants of the act. I quote:

> The varnish applied in 1962 served as a layer to protect the polychrome and the red paint could be removed without damaging the original.

> At the present time, macrophotographs show reddish micro-residues, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. In some cases, this has entered the fissures.

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#46

Post by Ylpertnodi »

aaa_aaa wrote: post #38
otherme123 wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There was this new theory at the dawn of air warfare called "Strategic Bombing", one of its main advocates was Giulio Dohet. The idea was that aircrafts could get behind the frontlines and bomb vital centers (civilians and production) freely. Hypothetically the morale would collapse, and lead quickly to surrendering. He even calculated that 300 tons of bombs per city over the most important cities would be enough to…

England and US carries the crown of the barbarism on this subject. And now the state of Israel. Check for names Frederick Lindemann, Arthur "Bomber" Harris and Sir Hugh Trenchard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dehousing

> England and US carries the crown of the barbarism...

Germany played a part. Snark aside, v1's and 2's weren't exactly 'targetted'.

Re: Picasso’s Guernica (Gigapixel)

#50

Post by gspr »

habosa wrote: post #19

I went to Spain as a teenager and saw Guernica in person. It was the first painting to ever really have an effect on me. It's stunning. A perfect example of how art can transmit a message between people across time and space, I just knew that I was feeling how Picasso wanted me to feel. If you have the chance to see this painting you should, no website can do it justice (although this is a very nice try).

I had the same feeling when I saw it years ago. Dread, sadness, and a sinking stomach.

A few weeks ago I was vacationing in the Basque country, and realized Guernica (the town) was a mere half hour drive away. So we went. Although none of the town in any way reminds you of the depictions of the painting (save for some memorials), I kept feeling the same eerie dread even as I walked through a perfectly normal, pleasant sleepy town.

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