The article by The New York Times chief art critic Roberta Smith Review: Picasso, Completely Himself in 3 Dimensions is devoted to one of the most stunning exhibitions the Museum of Modern Art has seen in the past half a century. Organized by Ann Temkin, Anne Umland from the Museum and Virginie Perdrisot from the Musée Picasso in Paris, this exhibition gathered the legendary works from major state museums and the very many private collections. With over 140 works displayed, this unique event gives people once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to grasp the genius of Picasso as a groundbreaking sculptor of his time.
Each hall of the exhibition represents a particular period of Picasso’s oeuvre. Encompassing those periods as a whole a discerning viewer will explore the formation of one of the titans of modern art. As it can be seen from the exhibition, the period of sculptural works in Picasso’s artistic life was rather nonlinear and episodic. Starting with a three-dimensional works, he gradually moved to the painting, and then in the 30-ies of XX century returned to the sculptures. Since that time, Picasso starts his experiments with a broad range of materials; Roberta Smith counts more that 10 of them, including wire, glass, metal, wood, ceramics as most notable ones. Each time when he took new materials, even the most unthinkable ones such as pedestrian pieces or lumber, Picasso invented entirely new approaches to representational methods and forms. The only truth to be told about his sculpture art is that it was a constant motion.
Looking at Picasso’s early works such as the fabulous “Guitar” (1914) or “Glass of Absinthe” (1914) one can state that he managed to establish Cubism in sculpture with exciting mastery and vehement artistic outcry. His passion for African art and feral motives contributed to the formation of this explicit style, with its sophisticated game of shadows, forms, space and meanings. The busts of his another beloved and long-time muse Marie-Thérèse Walter stand as an intricate bizarre manifestation of woman’s beauty and dominance over the artist’s heart.
The works of his later periods represent an incredible mixture of techniques, so one may even think that works by several artists are displayed at the exhibition. Full of abstraction and hints, Picasso’s sculptures remain vivid, meaningful amazingly versatile. The author explores the most unexpected faces of objects and creatures, often giving them double lives and leaving the viewer space for thorough reflection. To Smith’s point of view, the major question of this remarkable exhibition is “whether Picasso was a better sculptor or painter” (par. 7). And there is no final answer because Picasso as a prophet and enlightener can be perceived only in a complex. As Smith aptly notes: “Picasso was more completely himself in three dimensions: a magician, a magpie genius, a comedic entertainer and a tinkerer with superb reflexes” (par. 8).
All things considered, one can state that Picasso Sculpture exhibition is not just another major event for art-lovers. It is a chance for the whole world to rediscover the outstanding genius, to look at his personality in other colors. Picasso was a tireless explorer of the essence of things. He never accepted common standards and invented entirely new approaches and ideas in terms of materials and methods in sculpture. He was a revolutionary visionary, who had exerted an enormous influence on later artists. One cannot miss such an event of almost historical scale.
Works Cited
Smith, Roberta. Review: Picasso, Completely Himself in 3 Dimensions. 2015. Web.