Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914

Dal Sunday 13 February 2011
al Monday 06 June 2011

Sometime between October and December 1912, Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) made a guitar. Cobbled together from cardboard, paper, string, and wire, materials that he cut, folded, threaded, and glued, Picasso’s silent instrument resembled no sculpture ever seen before. In 1914 the artist reiterated his fragile papery construction in a more fixed and durable sheet metal form. These two Guitars, both gifts from the artist to MoMA, bracket an incandescent period of material and structural experimentation in Picasso’s work. Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914 explores this breakthrough moment in 20th-century art, and the Guitars’ place within it. Bringing together some 70 closely connected collages, constructions, drawings, mixed-media paintings, and photographs assembled from over 30 public and private collections worldwide, this exhibition offers fresh insight into Picasso’s cross-disciplinary process in the years immediately preceding World War I.

The exhibition is organized by Anne Umland, Curator, with Blair Hartzell, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Painting and Sculpture, The Museum of Modern Art.

The exhibition is sponsored by HANJIN SHIPPING logo.

Major support is provided by The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art and an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Additional funding is provided by Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III and by Fundación Almine y Bernard Ruiz-Picasso para el Arte.

February 13–June 6, 2011

Third floor

Related Events

Upcoming
Lectures & Gallery Talks | Gallery Conversations
Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914

Sunday, April 3, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011, 11:30 a.m.
Friday, April 8, 2011, 11:30 a.m.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 16, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 23, 2011, 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, April 28, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Friday, April 29, 2011, 1:30 p.m.

Past
Member Events | Member Previews
Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914

Wednesday, February 9, 2011, 9:30 a.m.
Thursday, February 10, 2011, 9:30 a.m.
Friday, February 11, 2011, 9:30 a.m.
Saturday, February 12, 2011, 9:30 a.m.
Lectures & Gallery Talks | Gallery Conversations
Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914

Monday, February 14, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Sunday, February 27, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Concerts, Readings & Performances | Adult Programs
Marco Cappelli photo by Claudio Casanova
Guitar Innovators: Marco Cappelli and Mamady Kouyate

Organized in conjunction with the exhibition Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914, this program highlights the work of artists as innovative and singular in their approach to the sound of their instrument as Pablo Picasso was to the shape of his radical cardboard and sheet-metal guitars.

Italian guitarist Marco Cappelli, a notable figure in the NYC avant-garde music scene and creator of Extreme Guitar Project, presents a set that bridges traditional contemporary repertoire with daring experimentation. Cappelli performs on several instruments including his classical guitar modified with the addition of 8 to 10 sympathetic strings.

Mamady Kouyate, West African guitarist and leader of Guinean dance band the Mandingo Ambassadors, appears in a rare solo performance. Born into one of Guinea’s most prominent musical families and a former member of the legendary group Bembeya Jazz, Kouyate reworks old riffs and melodies onto the electric guitar with original flair, warmth, and virtuosity.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011, 6:30 p.m.
Concerts, Readings & Performances | Adult Programs
Kaki King at The Independent, San Francisco, CA, October 23, 2008. Photo by Arthur Shim
Guitar Innovators: Kaki King and Pedro da Silva

Organized in conjunction with the exhibition Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914, this program highlights the work of artists as innovative and singular in their approach to the sound of their instrument as Pablo Picasso was to the shape of his radical cardboard and sheet-metal guitars.

Georgia-born, Brooklyn-based guitar player and composer Kaki King is most renowned for her stunning technique, incorporating finger-picking, fret-slapping, and percussive thumping. A dazzling performer, King has gained a reputation as one of independent music’s leading talents, earning her, among other accolades, Rolling Stone magazine’s coveted Guitar God title in 2006.

Eclectic and versatile Portuguese composer and guitarist Pedro da Silva composes in just about every style (contemporary classical, world, film, rock, jazz and electronic), plays 18 instruments, and teaches composition at New York University. For this program, da Silva’s set includes his own intricate compositions for flamenco and Portuguese guitar.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011, 6:30 p.m.
Lectures & Gallery Talks | Gallery Conversations
Picasso: Guitars 1912–1914

Thursday, March 3, 2011, 6:00 p.m.
Friday, March 4, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 12, 2011, 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, March 17, 2011, 1:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 27, 2011, 1:30 p.m.