Picasso’s magnum opus, Guernica, spans an unbelievable eleven by twenty-six feet. It’smonstrous size is a commentary on the expanse of ground zero in the Spanish town after the bombings of the Spanish Civil War. After its creation, the mural caused quite an uproar, as it was thought to have inaccurately depicted the state of the nation. Shortly after the brief stout of criticism, the mural was exhibited in various cities worldwide and became the tool with which the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War were brought to light.
Guernica is representative of two major tropes, the atrocities of war and the suffering war inflicts upon innocent civilians. This potent mural created in May of 1937 would come to serve as a universal reminder of the cost of war, and the struggle for peace. Picasso’s work has become a benchmark for visually representing conflict. Guernica Re-Imagined explores how the canon of Western art threads throughout the contemporary murals of Palestine and Bogside- why do the artists choose to use Picasso? Does his universal legacy help gain popular support amongst those less familiar with art?
