Pablo Picasso is one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century. Picasso liked to experiment with his art. Together with artist Georges Braque, he invented a new style of art called cubism. Cubism is a style of art where an artist shows an object or a person from lots of different angles at the same time. It is called cubism because the objects and people look like they are made out of cubes and other geometric shapes. How many shapes and angles can you find in this painting?
In the early 1900s, Picasso wrote to Braque, “I’m in the process of imagining a guitar.” He used many new and revolutionary materials to create art about guitars — including cardboard and collaged materials. What do you notice about the guitar in this painting?
In this activity, you will use pieces of cardboard to create your own cubist work.
For this activity you will need:
- Cardboard
- Scissors
- Glue
- Markers
To make your cardboard creation:
- Pick a subject for your work of art. It can be an object or a person. Carefully examine your subject from many different angles. What shapes do you notice?
- Cut a piece of cardboard into the different shapes you see in your subject. Arrange them on another piece of cardboard or sturdy base to create your composition
- Glue the shapes to the base.
- Use markers to add colors to the different shapes. Check out how Picasso uses different colors to show different angles in “The Guitar.” Try using this technique as you decorate!