Spanish artist Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was one of the most interesting and influential artists of the 20th century and a contributor to the Cubist movement. Picasso had a long career during which he was very prolific. He is most known for his paintings, of which he created about 1900, and some of his best-known works are Child with a Dove, Paul in a Clown Suit and Three Musicians.
His other work is a little bit less known, but he has also been a prolific sculptor and ceramicist. Whereas he was a formally trained painter, his sculpting was more personal and experimental. Footballeur shows a footballer with their leg in the air, ready to kick a ball.
Instead of a static piece of work, Picasso could express the energy and movement of the player with the sculpture. When you see the piece, you almost want to imitate the work and copy the action of the ceramic footballer.
Was Picasso a football fan then?
Picasso’s work in general does not feature much football, however, he was interested in sport.
Dr Mike O’Mahony, an art historian specialising in representation of sport, said: “Picasso’s main passions were boxing and bullfighting, but he was ‘moved’ by football. Football emerged for him in the 1960s.
“His interest seems to have been directly motivated by his strong associations with Barcelona, where he spent his formative years before moving to Paris”.
Footballeur (1965) shows that Picasso was really interested in the aesthetics of the movement of the players and it is a beautiful artistic representation of an action shot.
The Other Work Of Pablo Picasso; The Colour Lithograph ‘Football’ Created In 1961
Players fly around the field in the dynamic and fun Pablo Picasso Football, 1961. A bright yellow ball stands at the centre of the composition and players with red and blue jerseys rush to kick it. The bodies are full of movement, with arms raised above their heads and legs kicked up as they hurry to help their team. Patches of green represent the grass field on which they play and bring another colourful element to the composition. The players are represented by silhouettes and lack any defining features aside from the colours of their jerseys. This puts more emphasis on the competitive aspect of the soccer match.
The relative simplicity of the composition and the figures contrasted with the action-packed scene shows Picasso’s talent at portraying feelings through more simplistic work – something that brings his prints back into the realm of childhood joy and delight.
Is football art?
Footballers are often described as artists on the field, and there is a lot of similarity between the energy and movement on the pitch and the aesthetics in artworks. Football and art are both able to evoke similar emotions such as joy, despair, anticipation and belonging. Many artists have captured the emotions of a match over the last century.
Sources: masterworksfineart.com, nationalfootballmuseum.com, Wikipedia.com