preview

The Ideas Of The Human Condition By Pablo Picasso

Decent Essays

Just as the philosophers of ancient times searched for the answers to the human condition through questions and thought, Pablo Picasso depicted the various stages of the human condition by dissecting the world through art. What views on the human condition do the philosophers of old and Pablo Picasso share and how does each reflect in Picasso’s art and life? What does it mean to be a human and how do those experiences change the way we see the world and the questions we ask regarding it? The human condition as we know it is the events through life, such as birth, conflict, love, and mortality. It can be both positive and negative, but in its essence it is what makes us human.
Shortly before 500 B.C. a great philosopher named Heraclitus was at his peak. He used the style of epigram to explain the human condition meaning in short that reality is opposition or strife and flux. (Melchert) The opposition being what keeps the flux (constant change) in its boundaries, such as a river in its banks. You can see this opposition and flux represented in Picasso’s works defined in his ever changing style and subject matter. During his lifetime Picasso “moved interchangeably between different styles sometimes even in the same artwork.” (The Art Story) Picasso is quoted stating that "Different themes inevitably require different methods of expression. This does not imply either evolution or progress; it is a matter of following the idea one wants to express and the way in which one

Get Access