''Dove'' (French: ''La Colombe'') is a
lithograph
Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...
on paper created by Pablo Picasso in 1949 in an edition of 50+5. The lithograph displays a white dove on a black background, which is widely considered to be a
symbol of peace
A number of peace symbols have been used many ways in various cultures and contexts. The dove and olive branch was used symbolically by early Christians and then eventually became a secular peace symbol, popularized by a ''Dove'' lithograph by ...
. The image was used to illustrate a poster at the 1949 Paris Peace Congress and also became an iconographic image of the period, known as "The dove of peace". An example is housed in the collection of the
Tate Gallery
Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
and
MOMA
Moma may refer to:
People
* Moma Clarke (1869–1958), British journalist
* Moma Marković (1912–1992), Serbian politician
* Momčilo Rajin (born 1954), Serbian art and music critic, theorist and historian, artist and publisher
Places
; Ang ...
. Since then, it has been considered a masterpiece.
Background
Until the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
, Picasso had been predominantly
apolitical
Apoliticism is apathy or antipathy towards all political affiliations. A person may be described as apolitical if they are uninterested or uninvolved in politics. Being apolitical can also refer to situations in which people take an unbiased pos ...
. His art dealer
Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler stated that he had been the "most apolitical man" he had ever known.
However, the Spanish Civil War had a profound effect on Picasso's outlook, causing him to become more concerned with politics, which eventually led to his painting of ''
Guernica
Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the mu ...
'' in 1937. After painting this masterpiece, Picasso became a symbol of
anti-fascism
Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...
. By the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Picasso had joined the Communist Party, motivated by humanitarian concerns. For Picasso,
Communism
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
offered a different path that rejected the fascism of the Second World War and the Spanish Civil War. However, this affiliation caused a certain amount of controversy.
Between 1948 and 1951, he attended several World Peace Congresses. When Picasso was asked to speak at the 1950 Peace Congress in Sheffield, he said, "I stand for life against death; I stand for peace against war."
Description
On 9 January 1949, Picasso created ''Dove'', a black and white lithograph, which he produced in the studio of the printmaker,
Fernand Mourlot
Fernand Mourlot (; 5 April 1895 – 4 December 1988), son of Jules Mourlot, was the director of Mourlot Studios and founder of Editions Mourlot.
Early life and career
Fernand Mourlot was born on 5 April 1895 in Paris, France. He was the si ...
in Paris. It was published by
Galerie Louise Leiris Galerie Louise Leiris was a fine art gallery in Paris established by Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler in 1920. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Head of a Woman (1909) by Pablo Picasso, provenance notes
Initially, the business was known as the Galerie Simon. It ...
in an edition of five artist’s proofs and fifty prints on white Arches wove paper. The image of the white dove is simple, yet striking, and was created using lithographic ink wash.
The printmaker, Fernand Mourlot, described the work as, "one of the most beautiful lithographs ever achieved; the soft tones attained in the feathers... are absolutely remarkable. This plate... conveys the maximum that can be obtained with lithographic ink used as wash."
The dove illustrated in the lithograph was actually a Milanese pigeon, which had been a gift to Picasso from his friend and fellow artist,
Henri Matisse
Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known prima ...
.
Picasso's ''Dove'' lithograph was used to illustrate the poster of the 1949 Paris Peace Congress. It was chosen by the poet
Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon (, , 3 October 1897 – 24 December 1982) was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review ''Littérature''. He wa ...
, a supporter of the
French Communist Party
The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European Unit ...
, who visited Picasso’s studio. ''Dove'' became a symbol of peace and also of world Communism. The day before the opening of the Peace Congress on 20 April 1949, Picasso’s partner,
Françoise Gilot
Marie Françoise Gilot (born 26 November 1921) is a French painter, best known for her relationship with Pablo Picasso, with whom she had two children. Gilot was already launched as an accomplished artist, notably in watercolours and ceramics, b ...
gave birth to his fourth child, who was named
Paloma, the Spanish word for dove.
Significance and legacy
Picasso's images of the dove became a phenomenon around the world. Between 1949 and the artist's death, he created numerous works, including posters, prints and drawings, which depicted the Dove of Peace. Variations of the image were used for Peace Congresses in Wroclaw, Stockholm, Sheffield, Vienna, Rome and Moscow. Images were distributed around the world by the Peace Movement, creating new momentum for the artist's reputation.
For Picasso, the dove was both an important political symbol and a personal one. It was a reminder of his father,
José Ruiz y Blasco
José Ruiz y Blasco (12 April 1838 – 3 May 1913) was a Spanish painter, an art teacher, and the father of artist Pablo Ruiz Picasso (1881–1973).
Family life
José Ruiz y Blasco was born in Málaga, Spain in 1838 and grew up in a midd ...
, who was also a painter and had taught Picasso his early skills as an artist. He had drawn doves in Picasso's childhood home in Málaga in the 1880s. Later in life, when Picasso moved to
Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...
in the South of France in 1955, he built a
dovecote
A dovecote or dovecot , doocot ( Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pige ...
, allowing him to observe and depict the resident doves.
In 1957, Picasso painted ''Studio (Pigeons. Velazquez)'', depicting an open window surrounded by doves. This was one of several paintings he created in the style of Matisse, as a homage to his friend and his doves.
Christoph Grunenberg, Director of Tate Liverpool, said of an exhibition of Picasso's work in 2010, "This shows a very different Picasso, Picasso as a peace campaigner, Picasso as a Communist Party member, someone who was truly committed to bringing East and West during the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
together."
See also
*
List of Picasso artworks 1941–1950
*''
Child With a Dove''
* ''
Dora Maar au Chat''
* ''
Guernica
Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the mu ...
''
External links
''Dove'' (1949)at the Tate
References
{{Pablo Picasso
Paintings by Pablo Picasso
Collection of the Tate galleries
Peace symbols
Birds in art
1949 paintings
Lithographs
Political art
Anti-war paintings