Understanding Cubism: A Revolutionary Art Movement

Debbie Brown
Nov 4, 2024
4 min read

Cubism, one of the most influential and revolutionary art movements of the 20th century, fundamentally changed how artists, and the world, approached visual representation. Emerging in the early 20th century, Cubism challenged traditional perceptions of art and reality, offering a fragmented, multi-perspective view of subjects. In this blog post, we’ll explore the origins of Cubism, its key characteristics, important artists like Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Paul Cézanne, and Salvador Dalí, and its lasting impact on modern art.

Origins of Cubism (1907–1920s)

Cubism was co-founded by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in Paris between 1907 and 1914. The movement was inspired by a need to break away from the classical rules of perspective, light, and color. Influenced heavily by the later works of Paul Cézanne, who encouraged looking at objects from different viewpoints, Picasso and Braque developed a style that fragmented objects into geometric shapes. This gave birth to a new way of understanding reality through abstraction and simplification.

The term "Cubism" was first coined by critic Louis Vauxcelles in 1908, who described one of Braque's landscapes as being made of "little cubes." Cubism remained influential throughout the 1920s and beyond, serving as the foundation for other art movements like Futurism, Constructivism, and Surrealism.

5 Key Characteristics of Cubism

Fragmentation and Geometric Forms: Objects and figures are broken down into geometric shapes, resembling cubes, spheres, and cones. The fragmented forms are meant to represent different perspectives of the same object, often simultaneously.
Multiple Perspectives: Rather than depicting objects from a single, fixed viewpoint, Cubist artists aimed to show objects from several angles at once, creating a more comprehensive image of reality.
Simplified Color Palette: Early Cubism, known as "Analytical Cubism," often used a limited range of muted colors such as browns, grays, and ochres to focus more on form and structure rather than the vibrancy of the colors themselves.
Flat, Two-Dimensional Space: Cubist art often rejects the traditional depth and perspective in favor of flattened, two-dimensional spaces. This emphasis on surface breaks the illusion of a three-dimensional scene.
Collage and Assemblage: Cubism, particularly in its later phase called "Synthetic Cubism," introduced the use of mixed media, incorporating real-world objects like newspaper clippings, fabric, and wood directly into paintings. This technique helped artists challenge the boundaries between art and reality.

3 Key Aspects of Cubist Art

Analytical Cubism vs. Synthetic Cubism: Cubism evolved in two distinct phases. Analytical Cubism (1908–1912) is characterized by monochromatic palettes and the deconstruction of objects into fragmented, geometric shapes. Synthetic Cubism (1912–1919) introduced brighter colors, simplified shapes, and a more decorative approach, incorporating collage elements like paper and fabric.
Focus on Abstraction: While Cubist works often still depict recognizable objects (such as musical instruments, figures, or landscapes), these objects are broken down into abstract, geometric components. This abstraction leads viewers to question their usual ways of seeing and understanding form.
Disregard for Traditional Perspective: Unlike Renaissance art, which relied on linear perspective to create depth, Cubist works often discard this convention, opting instead for a flat, two-dimensional representation that defies the viewer's expectations.

Major Artists of Cubism

Pablo Picasso (1881–1973)

Pablo Picasso, one of the founders of Cubism, is arguably the most famous name associated with the movement. His early Cubist works, such as "Les Demoiselles d’Avignon" (1907), shattered conventional ideas about space and form. Picasso’s experimentation with abstraction, geometry, and the manipulation of perspective played a critical role in shaping Cubism. Later, he embraced Synthetic Cubism, incorporating real-world objects into his paintings. Picasso's role in Cubism extended beyond its initial period, as his evolving styles continued to influence future avant-garde movements.

Georges Braque (1882–1963)

Georges Braque, the co-founder of Cubism, worked closely with Picasso in developing the movement. His work, such as "Violin and Candlestick" (1910), focused heavily on the fragmentation of objects and the simultaneous depiction of multiple perspectives. While Braque’s art shares many similarities with Picasso’s, he brought a quieter, more reflective tone to the movement. Braque’s contributions to Analytical Cubism were critical in shaping the movement’s early phase, and his innovations in texture and collage helped move Cubism into its Synthetic phase.

Paul Cézanne (1839–1906)

Though Paul Cézanne is not directly a Cubist, his late work profoundly influenced Picasso and Braque. Cézanne’s method of simplifying objects into geometric forms and showing multiple viewpoints inspired the Cubist approach. His paintings, such as "Mont Sainte-Victoire" (1904), emphasized the structural underpinnings of objects, which Picasso and Braque would later take further into abstraction. Cézanne’s ideas about form and structure were foundational to Cubism, even though he died before the movement officially began.

Salvador Dalí (1904–1989)

While Salvador Dalí is more closely associated with Surrealism, he engaged with Cubism early in his career. Dalí’s experimentation with the movement is seen in works like "Cubist Self-Portrait" (1923), where he played with the fragmented forms of Cubism before moving fully into the dreamlike imagery of Surrealism. Dalí’s brief interaction with Cubism demonstrates the movement's wide-ranging influence on other avant-garde artists.

Conclusion

Cubism was a groundbreaking movement that redefined artistic conventions and opened the door to a new way of seeing and understanding the world. Through its emphasis on geometric shapes, multiple perspectives, and abstraction, Cubism challenged traditional notions of space, depth, and reality. Artists like Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Paul Cézanne were central to the movement's evolution, while Salvador Dalí’s early engagement with Cubism highlights the movement's impact on future art forms like Surrealism. Cubism's legacy continues to inspire artists today, making it one of the most important movements in the history of modern art.