Before Picasso, there was Pablo Ruiz. Young, fearless, and about to change art forever.
Behind the Artist: When Pablo Became Picasso
Art documentary
Picasso
Subscribe now to watch
Subscribe NowIn this Power of Art episode, historian Simon Schama discovers what motivated Pablo Picasso to depict the full-on horror of war at Guernica.
In 1937, the defenseless Basque town was bombed by Nazi air forces during the Spanish Civil War. There Schama reveals why Málaga-born Picasso, whose bohemian paintings had been void of contemporary political context to that point, came to create this vision of atrocity in what is one of his best-known works.
Drawing inspiration from Goya, this grim black-and-white oil painting now hangs in the Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid. Physically larger than a movie screen, Simon contends its size magnifies Picasso's anti-war message and helps connect us with our worst nightmares.
Cast & Crew
(Director), Simon Schama (Self), Pep Cortés (Picasso)