Analytic Cubism Still Life

Analytic Cubism

• Fractured the objects and reassembled them in a way that was new but that still resembled the original object

• Abstract, but REPRESENTATIONAL• Subjects:– Still lifes with musical instruments, bottles, pitchers, glasses,

newspapers, playing cards– Human face and figure– Landscapes were rare

• Influenced other artists: Juan Gris, Marcel Duchamp, Jean Metzinger, and even Diego Rivera

Still Life

• Still life paintings have had different purposes throughout history:– Each item often symbolized something specific– The arrangement and overlapping of items can

indicate the importance of each item– Vanitas still lifes from the Flemish Renaissance and

beyond: indicate the meaninglessness and transience of life and pursuits

– There is more to a still life painting than meets the eye!

Still Life Hidden Meaning:Vanitas, Barthel Bruyn, Northern Renaissance (1400s-1500s)

Still Life with Skull, Paul Cezanne, 1895-1900, Impressionism

Vase With 12 Sunflowers; Vincent van Gogh; 1888; Post-Impressionism; Oil on Canvas

Le Lavabo; Juan Gris; 1912; Analytic Cubism; Oil on Canvas

Still Life Before an Open Window; Juan Gris; 1915; Analytic Cubism; Oil on Canvas

Table by a Window; Jean Metzinger; 1917; Analytic Cubism; Oil on Canvas

Assignment

• Design your own still life.• Choose objects that symbolize something specific

(to you).• Abstract the still life using any Cubist techniques:– Use lines to dissect the image– Do several sketches, cut them up, and reassemble

them in a new way– Reduce objects to their simplest geometric forms– Show the planes of each object using geometric

shapes

Assignment

• Decide whether you want to: – Set your still life up at home and photograph it

(bring the photos with you to school!)– Bring your objects with you to set up your still life

every day at school and work from live observation

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Student Example

Student Example

Student Example

Student Example

Student Example

Student Example

My Example: 3 Sketches, cut apart, reassemble

My Example: 3 Sketches, cut apart, reassemble

My Example, In Progress

My Example, In-Progress (Blocking In)

My Example, Finished