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Pablo Picasso co-created Cubism and painted Guernica 1937 after the German bombing of the Spanish city. He produced an estimated 13,500 paintings and 147,800 works overall. His painting Garçon a la pipe sold for $104 million in 2004, a record at the time.
Names, aliases, and relatives of Pablo Picasso — birth name, kin, and personal ties.
Pablo Picasso by the numbers — life, work, and family.
Pablo Picasso — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.
Born on October 25, 1881, in Málaga, Spain, Pablo Ruiz Picasso was the first child of Maria Picasso and José Ruiz Blasco, an art professor and museum curator. His father began training him in drawing and painting before 1890, and by age 13, Picasso had surpassed his father’s skills. After a year at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Madrid, he moved to Paris in 1901, where he found a vibrant artistic community.
In 1901, Picasso entered his Blue Period, using somber tones to depict poverty and despair. The Rose Period followed from 1904, introducing warmer colors and harlequins. By 1907, inspired by African art, he painted Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, a precursor to Cubism, which he co-founded with Georges Braque. In 1937, after the German bombing of Guernica, he created Guernica, a monumental anti-war painting. During World War II, he remained in Paris, protected by his fame, and later joined the Communist Party, receiving the Lenin Peace Prize in 1950.
Picasso married Olga Koklova, a Russian ballerina, in 1918; they had one son, Paulo, before separating in 1935. He had a daughter, Maya, with Marie-Thérèse Walter, and two children, Claude and Paloma, with Françoise Gilot. In 1961, he married Jacqueline Roque, who remained with him until his death. Picasso died on April 8, 1973, from lung and heart failure while entertaining guests at his home in Mougins, France.
Picasso’s influence extends across modern art; he co-founded Cubism and contributed to Surrealism and Realism. His prolific output—over 147,800 works—holds Guinness World Records. His paintings are among the most expensive, with Garçon a la pipe selling for $104 million 2004. The artist David Bowie was nicknamed the Picasso of Pop. His role as a central figure in 20th-century Western art is recognized through these records.
Browse the complete filmography of Pablo Picasso — every film, TV show, and documentary credit, ranked by popularity.
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Every award, honor, and recognition received by Pablo Picasso — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.
Pablo Picasso's bibliography — every authored, edited, and co-written book, ranked by edition count.
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A wall of memorable lines from Pablo Picasso — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.
When I Was a Child, My Mother Said to Me, If You Become a Soldier, You’ll Be a General. If You Become a Monk, You’ll End up as the Pope. Instead, I Became a Painter and Wound up as Picasso.
Good Taste Is the Enemy of Creativity.
Everyone Wants to Understand Painting. Why Is There No Attempt to Understand the Song of the Birds?
Good Artists Borrow, Great Artists Steal.
It Isn’t Necessary to Paint a Man with a Gun. an Apple Can Be Just as Revolutionary.
You Should Have an Idea of What It Is You Want to Do . . . but It Should Be a Vague Idea.
Many People Say They Don’t Like My Art Because They Don’t Understand It. Well, I Don’t Understand Chinese, but That Doesn’t Mean I Don’t Like It.
Give Me a Museum and I’ll Fill It.
Two Boys Arrived Yesterday with a Pebble They Said Was the Head of a Dog and I Pointed Out That It Was Really a Typewriter.
There Are Painters Who Transform the Sun into a Yellow Spot, but There Are Others Who Thanks to Their Art and Intelligence Transform a Yellow Spot into the Sun.
I’m Always Doing Things I’ve Never Done Before, That’s How I Get to Do Them.
Every Child Is an Artist. the Problem Is How to Remain an Artist Once We Grow Up.
I Can Paint False Picassos as Well as Anybody.
Little-known facts about Pablo Picasso — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.
Billionaire casino mogul Steve Wynn purchased Le Reve, a portrait of Picasso’s mistress Marie-Therese Walter, for $48 million in 1997. In 2006, Wynn accidentally put his elbow through it, postponing its sale; the painting eventually sold to Steve Cohen in 2013 for $155 million.
Guinness World Records recognized Picasso as the most prolific painter: during a 78-year career, he produced an estimated 13,500 paintings, 100,000 prints and engravings, 34,000 book illustrations, and 300 sculptures and ceramics, totaling 147,800 works.
Picasso’s affair with Marie-Thérèse Walter produced a daughter, Maya Widmaier Picasso, born in 1932. Another relationship with artist Françoise Gilot resulted in two children: Claude Picasso born 1947 and Paloma Picasso born 1949.
British rock star David Bowie was nicknamed the Picasso of Pop because of his comparable influence on pop music.
He was born at 11:15 pm LMT.
Despite being a Communist, Picasso was the world’s wealthiest artist at his death in 1973, leaving an estate valued between $100 million and $260 million.
As of May 1999, Picasso had more auction sales than any other artist: 3,595 sales worth a total of $1.23 billion. His painting Femme aux bras croises sold for $55.6 million in 2000, and 190 of his works have sold for over $1 million.
Picasso’s first son, Paulo Picasso, was born in 1919 to his wife Olga, a Russian ballerina.
He was the grandfather of Olivier Widmaier Picasso.
An estimated 350 of Picasso’s works have been stolen, more than any other artist.
He is referenced in songs by Wings, Jonathan Richman, Gretchen Peters, Fish, and Jay-Z. The song Picasso’s Last Words Drink to Me by Wings directly quotes his final words.
A Rose Period painting, Boy With a Pipe, bought by John Hay Whitney for $30,000 in 1950, sold at auction in 2004 for a record $104.2 million, with proceeds funding the Greentree Foundation.
Fernande Olivier, Picasso’s first love, could not marry him because she couldn’t find her husband to secure a divorce. She later learned he had been stabbed to death in a bar fight shortly before she met Picasso.
According to an essay by Ayn Rand, Picasso was not impressed with the Apollo 11 moon landing.
Picasso’s 1938 portrait of his daughter Maya, Fillette au Bateau, sold for £18.1 million at Sotheby’s in March 2023. Maya, then two and a half, died at 87 in December 2022.
The film The Picasso Summer 1969 follows an architect trying to meet Picasso. Picasso was to appear but declined; a body double played him in long shots.
Picasso was quoted as saying to Françoise Gilot that women are machines for suffering, reflecting his reputation as a womaniser and misogynist.
Picasso’s birth certificate and baptism record include very long names combining various saints and relatives.
The surname Picasso originates from Liguria, Italy. His maternal great-grandfather, Tommaso Picasso, moved to Spain around 1807.
Picasso’s training under his father began before 1890, and his early works are preserved in the Museu Picasso in Barcelona.
Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Pablo Picasso.
Celebrities similar to Pablo Picasso — same craft, ranked by reach.
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