Spain has a rich artistic heritage and has produced many
world famous writers, artists, and architects including
El Greco, Cervantes, and Gaudí. Painters such as Dalí and
Picasso have been very influential
in twentieth century art. The film industry has enjoyed
huge international success too, most recently for the work
of Pedro Almodovar who has followed in the footsteps of
the surrealist genius, Luis Buñuel. Federico
García Lorca is a world-famous Spanish
poet.
Spanish architecture reflects the
influence of past eras. From the early Roman ruins, the ornate Moorish Alhambra Palace in
Granada with its lace-like stone carvings to the Gothic castles and monasteries, and the
fantastic modernist sculptures and monuments of Gaudí, Spain has been a melting pot,
absorbing characteristics from each successive wave of settlers.
Spain also offers a wide variety of domestic arts and crafts which respect age-old
traditions, as well as modern decorative styles. Catalonian textiles and hand-woven rugs
are world-famous; leather goods have a similar high profile and are extremely popular
amongst the tourists. The spread of tourism has seen huge growth in local craft
traditions. Valencia is home to an international furniture fair and offers a fine range of
hand crafted wooden products, while the Balearic Islands are celebrated for their
colourful painted ceramics.
Madrid is home to one of the world’s most famous art
galleries, the Museo del Prado. This elaborate neo-Classical building holds a
fascinating collection of Spanish, Italian, and Flamenco art dating back to the fifteenth
century. The Guggenheim museum of modern art in Bilbao also attracts visitors from all
over the world.
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)
Picasso, who had a profound influence on artistic development in Spain, is considered
to be one of the greatest painters of the twentieth century. Born in Malaga in southern
Spain, Picasso entered the Academy of Fine Arts in Barcelona when he was just 14 years
old.
His early work was influenced by post-impressionist and symbolist painters like Gauguin
and Braque. His painted landscapes in tiny squares or cubes developed into Cubism. During
the First World War, Picasso settled in Paris, where he married the Russian dancer, Olga
Koklova. Picasso’s marriage was turbulent, and many of his paintings of this period
show violent, disturbing images of women. Three Women at the Spring (1921) is one
example.
During the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) the world was shocked by the bombing of the
civilian town of Guernica by Nazi planes acting under General Franco’s orders. This
inspired Picasso’s famous anti-war painting entitled Guernica. Death became
a favourite topic in his works after that. He met the French painter, Francoise Gilot in
this period, with whom he had two children.
In the 1960s Picasso produced an amazing 50 foot-tall sculpture for the Chicago Civic
Centre. He also donated more than 800 exhibits to the Museum in Barcelona and was the
first living artist to exhibit at The Louvre, with a special show arranged to honour his
90th birthday.
Federico García Lorca
García Lorca is Spain’s most revered poet. He was murdered by the Nationalists at
the start of the Spanish Civil War, and his sudden death brought him new fame. His
surrealist poems carry the rhythm of flamenco and the cultural influence of his native
Andalucia. They are dark explorative poems, rich in imagery. He also wrote plays: Blood
Wedding and The House of Bernarda Alba are among his most famous.
The Gypsy and the Wind
Playing her parchment moon
Precosia comes
along a watery path of laurels and crystal lights.
The starless silence, fleeing
from her rhythmic tambourine,
falls where the sea whips and sings,
his night filled with silvery swarms.
High atop the mountain peaks
the sentinels are weeping;
they guard the tall white towers
of the English consulate.
And gypsies of the water
for their pleasure erect
little castles of conch shells
and arbors of greening pine.
(From Selected Verse, Sonnets of Dark Love translated by John K. Walsh and Francisco
Aragon)
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