The painting is a black and white, long-ways rectangular canvas painted in oil. There are several very abstract figures and random objects jumbled throughout what appears to be a room full of violence and chaos with an open end on the left. Near this open area there is a very eerie-looking bull standing over a woman that appears to be mourning over a dead child who she is holding in her arms. Near the middle there is a horse that seems to be falling and in pain. It looks like it was stabbed with some sort of sword or spear. Under the horse there is what looks like a dead or dying man holding some sort of long object, maybe part of a human arm, with a tiny flower sprouting out of it. At the top center of the painting there is a light bulb of which the lampshade is in the shape of an eye. At the top right a woman who appears scared of the scene she is seeing is holding a torch or candle in an outstretched arm close the light/eye. It looks like the majority of her body is outside of a small window on the far right. Underneath her is another woman who looks confused and is looking up towards the candle. I also noticed small sharp objects that are in place of the tongues of the bull, mourning woman, and horse. The painting is very jumbled and there are several unidentifiable shapes in addition to what was described above.
I read two articles that have two different opinions on what this work represents. The first analysis by John Berger believes it is an anti-war message, particularly in response to the bombing of the town of Guernica, Spain, by Germans and Italians that occurred during the Spanish Civil War. There were hundreds of casualties, mostly civilian. This would make sense in that the painting is entitled Guernica. In his thesis he states that “Bombs kill and mutilate, and they also murder the meaning of homes. Picasso’s Guernica was and is an accusation against all such murders.” In addition to this he explains how it is “one of the most potent examples of an artist drawing from deep compassion to create a masterpiece of universal meaning.” I fully agree. Picasso, being Spanish, naturally was upset at the bombing of his country by another. The amount of chaos portrayed in Guernica seems to fit Berger’s interpretation well.
A different yet more interesting and metaphorical interpretation is that of William Proweller. In his thesis he states that “Guernica represents a secular and savage corollary to the traditional scenario of Christian Sacrifice.” This is a bit confusing, so I’ll put it in English for you. Proweller is saying he believes it represents a less religious but more violent example of a Christian sacrifice. In case you didn’t know, sacrifice is the killing of any living being as an offering to a god or gods. He reached this conclusion by comparing the figures in Guernica with other works of art, and many appear similar to ancient Christian works, such as Sacred and Profane Love by Titian and Matthias Gruenwald’s Isenheim Altarpiece. After looking at both of these I was able to note several strange similarities. In Sacred and Profane Love there is a stone well that has many similar figures jumbled in very similar positions. In the Isenheim Altarpiece there are several figures that are in the same positions as those in Guernica. In addition to all of the chaos and suffering in the Altarpiece, a woman is mourning over a dead or dying Jesus laying in her arms, very similar to the baby in the woman’s arms. While Proweller takes a much more interpretive approach to his analysis, it is still a plausible one.
Both arguments were good ones, but I think the first interpretation by John Berger seems more agreeable, simply because Guernica was painted soon after the Guernica bombings in Picasso’s home country. While Proweller’s deep and more metaphorical approach seems possible, it fits the situation less than Berger’s approach. However, both make believable arguments, and if you want to read both and decide who you think has a more accurate interpretation, check out the links to both articles below!
-Jake
What a wonderful attitude about this. Thanks for posting! Femme A L'oiseau
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