Art Around the World
Mr. Brossman | VA-104
Welcome to Cubism!
Get ready to break reality into pieces and see the world from multiple perspectives at once. Over the next three days, we'll explore one of the most revolutionary art movements in history.
Unit Overview
What You'll Learn
🎨 Day 1
Define Cubism, identify key characteristics, and understand the difference between traditional and Cubist perspective
📐 Day 2
Break down complex objects into geometric shapes and practice combining multiple viewpoints
🔍 Day 3
Analyze how fragmentation creates meaning and prepare for your Cubist self-portrait project
Key Artists
Pablo Picasso
Spanish, 1881-1973
Co-founder of Cubism. Known for groundbreaking works like "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" and constantly reinventing his style.
Georges Braque
French, 1882-1963
Co-founder of Cubism alongside Picasso. Pioneered the use of collage and mixed media in Cubist compositions.
Juan Gris
Spanish, 1887-1927
Developed a more systematic approach to Cubism with brighter colors and clearer forms.
Cubism Timeline
The Multi Sided Portrait
Think About It: If our actual experience of looking at a person involves moving around them, seeing them from different angles, and holding all those perspectives in our mind, why should a painting be limited to just one? What revolutionary method could an artist use to show a subject not just from one place, but from every vital angle simultaneously?
Today we'll learn about artists who got tired of choosing just ONE view. They wanted to show EVERYTHING at once. Click the perspective portrait to see how an artist transformed a common portrait into a work of art.
Historical Context
It's 1907 in Paris, France. For hundreds of years, artists had been painting the same way, trying to make flat paintings look like real, three-dimensional life. But Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque said, "Wait a minute. Why are we pretending a flat canvas is a window? Why don't we celebrate that it's FLAT and show multiple sides of an object at the SAME TIME?"
Characteristics of Cubism
Cubism is an early-20th-century art movement developed by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. It breaks objects into geometric shapes and reassembles them to show multiple viewpoints at once.
👁️ Multiple Viewpoints
Shows objects from front, side, and top all at once
📐 Geometric Shapes
Breaks objects into cubes, cylinders, cones, spheres
💥 Fragmentation
Objects appear "shattered" or broken into pieces
🖼️ Flattened Space
Not trying to create deep, realistic space
🎨 Limited Color Palette
Often browns, grays, blacks (especially early Cubism)
🔲 Overlapping Planes
Shapes layer on top of each other
Picasso's "Three Musicians" (1921)
This painting is a perfect example of Cubism. Let's look at what makes it so revolutionary:
- Three musicians are playing instruments together, but they look like flat, colorful shapes
- Everything is broken down into geometric shapes - rectangles, triangles, and circles
- Bright, bold colors (unlike earlier Cubist works that were mostly brown and gray)
- You can see multiple sides of the instruments and musicians at the same time
- The figures look almost like a puzzle - each piece fitting together to create the scene
- Can you spot the guitar, clarinet, and accordion?
Challenge: This painting is like a visual puzzle! Try to identify where one musician ends and another begins. This is what makes Cubism so interesting - it makes us look CAREFULLY and THINK about what we're seeing!
📓 Today's Exercise in Your Sketchbook: Object Observation and Multi View Drawing
Task 1: Draw the same object FOUR times from different viewpoints (front, side, top, back view). Spend 4 minutes on each view, focusing on SHAPES rather than perfect details.
Task 2: Take a shape from each view and make a Cubist style drawing showing EVERYTHING at once.
Exit Ticket
Before leaving, be ready to tell Mr. Brossman:
- Three characteristics of Cubism
- The name of at least one Cubist artist that's not Picasso
The Geometry of Everything
Cubist artists believed that EVERYTHING in the world could be broken down into simple shapes: spheres, cubes, cylinders, and cones.
🔵 Sphere
Becomes circles and ovals
Examples: heads, apples, balls
⬜ Cube
Becomes squares and rectangles
Examples: boxes, buildings, books
🥤 Cylinder
Becomes rectangles and circles
Examples: arms, legs, bottles, trees
🔺 Cone
Becomes triangles and circles
Examples: hats, ice cream, mountains
Breaking Down an Object
Step-by-Step Process:
- Observe the Overall Form: Look at the hot glue gun as a whole before worrying about details like buttons or the cord. Squint slightly to blur fine details so only the major shapes stand out.
-
Identify the Largest Shapes First: Break the object into its biggest components:
- Body of the glue gun → rectangle or elongated trapezoid
- Handle → vertical rectangle
- Nozzle → cone or triangle
- Trigger guard → smaller rectangle cutout
-
Look for Basic Geometric Shapes: Ask, “What simple shape does this part resemble?”
- Cylinders → rectangles when viewed from the side
- Curved parts → circles, ovals, or semicircles
- Angular areas → triangles, rectangles, or trapezoids
Remember: We're not worried about making it look REALISTIC. We're finding the STRUCTURE underneath.
📓 Today's Exercise: Geometric Deconstruction Practice
Part A: Simple Object Geometry
- Draw FOUR different OBJECTS that would logically go together in the same place.
- Break down the objects into simple shapes.
- You can use Google images for reference.
Example: An art classroom
- Drawing 1: Work table
- Drawing 2: Paint bottle
- Drawing 3: Sink
- Drawing 4: Hot glue gun
Part B: Multiple Perspectives Challenge
Combine the different drawings into ONE drawing. Don't worry about it "making sense"—Cubist art is about showing MORE information!
Challenge:
- Take your images and cut them into geometric shapes with scissors
- Combine the image pieces into a new and interesting composition
- Glue the new composition to a new piece of paper
- Color the art with bright bold colors
- Add additional geometric (circles, ovals, rectangle, and triangles) shapes to the art
Artist Tip: Draw some of the objects from different angles, cut them apart, and layer them into your sketchbook composition.
Think-Pair-Share Questions
- How did thinking in geometric shapes change the way you see objects?
- Was it frustrating to NOT draw realistically? Why or why not?
- How is this preparing us to understand Picasso's portraits?
The Identity Puzzle
Discussion: A realistic photograph shows ONE moment, ONE expression. A Cubist portrait shows COMPLEXITY—emotions, thoughts, multiple sides of personality all at once. Which one tells you MORE about what it feels like to be human?
Why Break Things Apart?
Imagine describing your best friend to someone. Would you just show one photo? Or would you want to say: "They're funny, but also serious. They're confident in sports but shy in class. They look different when they're laughing versus when they're concentrating."
Picasso said: "I paint objects as I THINK them, not as I SEE them." He wanted to show MORE than a camera could.
Simultaneity
Showing multiple moments/views at the same time
Fragmentation
Breaking apart to reveal inner structure
Multiple Truths
There's not just ONE way to see something
Intellectual vs. Optical
Thinking about objects, not just looking at them
Analytical vs. Synthetic Cubism
Analytical Cubism (1907-1912)
- Muted colors (browns, grays, blacks)
- Highly fragmented
- Breaking DOWN objects into pieces
- Example: Picasso's "Ma Jolie"
Synthetic Cubism (1912-1914)
- Brighter colors
- Simpler shapes
- Building UP compositions
- Added real materials (collage)
- Example: "Guitar, Sheet Music, and Glass"
The Social Context
Why did this movement happen when it did?
- Europe was rapidly changing (1907-1914)
- Photography challenged the need for realistic painting
- World War I was approaching—fragmentation reflected a fragmenting world
- Modern psychology (Freud) showed that humans are complex, not simple
- African and Oceanic art challenged European ideas about "correct" art
📓 Today's Activities
Exercise 3: Cubist Analysis Workshop
Part A: Answer the questions from the MS form "Cubist Analysis" (https://forms.office.com/r/qFP3dNVqFR) on critical analysis of Cubist artworks and reflection
Part B: Cubist Face Exploration Exercise
Objective: Create a fragmented, Cubist-inspired portrait using photography, geometric shapes, and bold color.
Materials Needed:
- Camera or phone
- Clear acetate sheet
- Fine-tip marker (for acetate)
- Sketchbook paper (2 sheets)
- Colored pencils or markers
- Scissors
- Glue stick or white glue
- Ruler (optional, for geometric divisions)
Steps:
- Photograph Your Face: Take a clear, well-lit photo of your face from a front, profile, or three-quarter view. Print it or display it on a screen so you can trace it.
- Trace the Basic Shapes: Place acetate over the photo and trace the essential contours (head, eyes, nose, mouth) with simple lines.
- Transfer to Sketchbook Paper: Lay the acetate on sketchbook paper and trace the drawing to create a clean line version of your face.
- Divide with Geometry: Draw straight-line geometric divisions inside the face to create triangles, rectangles, and angular shapes.
- Add Color: Fill each geometric section with bold, contrasting colors for your first colored portrait.
- Cut the Pieces: Cut along the geometric lines to separate the face into multiple colorful fragments.
- Reassemble with Gaps: On fresh paper, glue the pieces back in place but leave intentional gaps so the face feels fragmented.
- Color the Negative Space: Fill the gaps with bright colors that complement or contrast the face pieces.
Tips:
- Embrace asymmetry and unexpected placements when reassembling.
- Consider how colors interact across the gaps.
- Aim for a final piece that feels unified yet fractured—like a mirror reassembled.
🎨 Coming Next: Shattered Mirror Self-Portrait Project!
You've learned WHAT Cubism is, WHY it matters, and HOW to think geometrically from multiple perspectives. Next week, you'll combine all these views into ONE powerful self-portrait that shows the different sides of YOU.
Resources & Support
Materials Needed
- Artist sketchbook
- Pencils and erasers
- Colored pencils or markers
- Rulers (for Day 2)
- Small handheld mirror (for Day 3)
- Laptop (charged)
Key Vocabulary
Cubism
Art movement that shows objects from multiple viewpoints simultaneously using geometric shapes
Fragmentation
Breaking objects apart into pieces to reveal inner structure
Multiple Viewpoints
Showing front, side, and top views all at once
Geometric Shapes
Basic forms: spheres, cubes, cylinders, cones
Simultaneity
Displaying multiple moments or perspectives at the same time
Flattened Space
Embracing the flat surface of the canvas rather than creating deep, realistic space
Additional Learning Resources
📚
Research
Learn about Fernand Léger & Robert Delaunay
🎨
Practice
Try Synthetic Cubism collage techniques
🖼️
Explore
Create multi-object compositions
💭
Reflect
Journal about your artistic process
Important Reminders
Cultural Responsibility: Picasso borrowed ideas from African art that he saw in Parisian museums. Today, we recognize this as cultural appropriation when not done respectfully. The African artists who created those masks never got credit or compensation. As we study Cubism, we acknowledge these sources and think about what respectful cultural exchange looks like.
Assessment Criteria
You will be assessed on:
- Participation in discussions and critiques
- Completion of sketchbook exercises
- Ability to identify Cubist characteristics
- Progress in geometric shape studies
- Quality of written reflections
- Willingness to experiment with non-realistic approaches