By Danielle Smith
Executive Arts Editor
Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s newest exhibition “Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time” successfully offers viewers insight into the great artists’ creative processes.
“Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time” grants viewers the opportunity to viewing well-known paintings created by artists Pablo Picasso and Diego Rivera, displayed in an expansive gallery. This expertly curated exhibit features many unique aspects that allow it to differentiate itself from other, mundane art exhibits.
“Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time” features over 150 of Picasso and Rivera’s paintings, etchings and watercolors. The artists’ pieces are accompanied by dozens of ancient Greek and Roman sculptures along with Iberian, Mesoamerican and Aztec objects that the artists used as direct inspiration.
The exhibition, which opened to the public on Dec. 4, was organized by LACMA in conjunction with the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City. The two museums aimed to draw parallels between Picasso and Rivera, and expose the public to the ancient forms that influenced the artists.
The first room of the exhibit features unfinished sketches from the artists’ studies at art school, where they practiced skills such rendering form, specifically the human body. These large-scale drawings are a refreshing respite from the complete and finished works that are displayed in typical art museums, exposing viewers to Picasso and Rivera’s creative processes.
The exhibit’s layout is expansive and welcoming, as the gallery consists of five rooms, connected by large doorways, creating an uninterrupted viewing experience. In addition, the unique choice to paint the walls of the gallery a light pink-beige color enhances the vibrant palettes utilized by both artists in their paintings.
Another intriguing aspect of the exhibit is that there are pieces on display for the first time to the public, including Rivera’s “Cubist Composition” in which Rivera experimented with unconventional materials, applying sand to wet paint on a canvas. These debut paintings help to create an unprecedented experience, giving viewers a sense of exclusivity.
Read the LA Times’ review of the exhibit here.
Ancient pieces of art are dispersed throughout the exhibit, mostly consisting of sculptures. The juxtaposition of the ancient art pieces next to Picasso and Rivera’s paintings that were directly influenced by them is a truly eye-opening, allowing viewers to draw connections between the two styles of art.
The curators of the exhibit put great care into creating a complete collection of artwork, setting up a dark room that displays a LACMA commissioned film directed by Rodrigo García, “Ideologías y Muralismo.” The film details Picasso’s “Guernica” and Rivera’s “Pan American Unity,” to aid viewers in understanding the artists’ involvement in political activism.
“Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time” is an intriguing and well-designed exhibit that successfully immerses viewers in the mindsets of Picasso and Rivera. The curator’s choice to include preliminary sketches of pieces and ancient art along with the finished paintings creates a comprehensive explanation of the artists’ inspiration.
“Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time” is on display at LACMA, located at 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, until May 7. Tickets to this special exhibit are $25 for seniors, adults and college students, and free for anyone under the age of 17.
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