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1881 |
October 25: Pablo Picasso born in Málaga, Spain. |
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1904 |
Picasso settles in Paris |
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1907 |
Picasso paints Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. |
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1921 |
Picasso paints Three Musicians. |
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1930 |
January: Resignation of Primo de Rivera; more moderate government in Spain. |
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1931 |
March: Constitution restored in Spain; general elections. Abdication of King Alfonso XIII; provisional Republic established. |
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1933 |
April 1: Spanish Republic declared. |
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1934 |
Fall: Picasso's last visit to Spain. |
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1935 |
March: Picasso begins work on The Minotauromachy. |
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1936 |
February: General elections in Spain; victory for the Popular Front. |
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July: Rebellion marks the beginning of the Spanish civil war. |
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September: Picasso named Honorary Director-in-Exile of the Prado Museum in Madrid. |
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November: Franco bombs Madrid and damages the Prado Museum. Picasso begins work on The Dream and Lie of Franco. |
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1937 |
January: Picasso accepts commission for a painting in the Spanish Pavilion of the Paris Exposition. |
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April 26: German bombers attack Guernica. Three days later, Franco's troops occupy the town. |
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May 1: Protesters in Paris march in the largest May Day demonstration in the city's history. Picasso sketches preliminary drawings for the mural he will call Guernica. |
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May 2-9: Picasso draws compositional studies for the mural. He continues to sketch studies throughout the process of painting the mural. |
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May 11: Picasso draws on the huge canvas for the first time. First photograph of the mural, taken by Dora Maar (State I) shows the familiar raised arm and clenched fist of the Spanish Republic. |
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around May 13: (State II) The raised fist now holds a sheaf of grain.
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May 16-19: (State III) Picasso paints over the arm. |
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May 20-24: (State IV) Picasso shifts the bull away from the horse and closer to the woman and child. He replaces the raised fist with the head of the horse, making it the central figure, and makes the spear more prominent.
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end of May: (State VI) Picasso experiments with color, pattern and textures. Ultimately, he removes them.
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around June 4: (State VII) Picasso adds the bare light bulb.
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a few days later: (State VIII) Picasso makes the sun more dramatic, the light bulb more prominent. The focal point of the mural is a large triangle that dominates the composition. Picasso delivers it himself to the Spanish Pavilion.
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1938 |
Spring: After the close of the Paris Exposition in November, Guernica travels to Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen before returning to France.
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1939 |
March: Franco triumphs in Spain.
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May: Guernica comes to America to raise funds and support for Spanish refugees. Picasso directs that the mural be placed in the care of the Museum of Modern Art.
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September: Outbreak of W.W.II.
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1939-1952 |
Guernica travels throughout the United States: from New York to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, St. Louis, Boston Cincinnati, Cleveland, New Orleans, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Cambridge and Columbus.
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1940 |
June: Occupation of Paris by the Germans.
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1941 |
December 7: United States enters the war against Nazi Germany and its allies, Italy and Japan.
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1944 |
August: Allied invasion of Normandy and liberation of Paris.
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1945 |
May 8: World War II ends.
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1953-1956
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Guernica travels to Brazil and returns to Europe - Milan, Paris, Munich, Cologne, Hamburg, Brussels, Amsterdam and Stockholm - then back to MOMA in New York for the Picasso retrospective celebrating the artist's 75th birthday.
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1957-1958 |
Guernica travels to the Chicago Art Institute and the Museum of Art in Philadelphia. Final loan exhibition, as constant travel has weakened the canvas. The studies continue to travel.
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1968 |
Franco launches an effort to bring Guernica to Spain. |
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1970-1971 |
Picasso makes additional conditions for Guernica's travel to Spain. Originally, he demanded establishment of the Republic; now he sets forth other standards, such as liberty and democracy in Spain. The issue remains unresolved.
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1973 |
Picasso's death at age 92.
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1975 |
Franco's death at age 82.
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1977 |
June 15: First free elections since before the civil war. |
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1978 |
December: Democratic constitution adopted in Spain.
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1981 |
September 9: Guernica finally comes home to Spain.
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