6 Facts About Modern Artists, From Picasso to Monet
Modern artists are among history’s most beloved creators, known for their innovation, experimentation, and, often, fascinating personalities. Prominent figures such as Vincent Van Gogh, Henri Matisse, and Pablo Picasso dominated the movement, which spanned more than a century from the 1860s through the 1970s. The period saw the transition from traditional art to a new era of abstraction, featuring otherworldly landscapes, distorted figures, and vibrant colors. Here are six fascinating facts about the artists behind the movement.
Picasso’s Full Name Contains 23 Words
Pablo Picasso’s larger-than-life persona was exemplified by his daring painting style; he was a co-founder of the cubist movement, a style exemplified by his famous 1937 anti-war painting “Guernica.” Today, his enduring fame has earned him the right to go by one name: Picasso. But when he was born on October 25, 1881, in Málaga, Spain, he was given a full name that was 23 words long, honoring various family members and saints. The exact full name varies by source, but was roughly: Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruíz y Picasso. The surname Picasso comes from his mother, Doña María Picasso y López.
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Vincent Van Gogh Painted “The Starry Night” in a Hospital
One of history’s most famous modern art pieces was created in an unlikely place. Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh struggled with his mental and physical health for most of his life. In 1889, he admitted himself to Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, a hospital located near the town of Saint-Rémy in southern France. At the hospital, Van Gogh received two rooms, one bedroom and one spare room that he transformed into a private studio, which he used to create around 150 paintings during his 12-month stay. Among them was “The Starry Night”;the scenery in the artwork is reminiscent of southern France, with rolling hills and cypress trees. The brightest star, located near the center, is Venus. Today, “The Starry Night” hangs in New York City’s Museum of Modern Art.
Salvador Dalí Collaborated on a Film With Walt Disney
Salvador Dalí is a Spanish artist known for his surrealist artwork, such as the melting clocks in his 1931 painting “The Persistence of Memory.” What is less well known is that the artist once collaborated on a surrealist animated film with Walt Disney, though the film was not completed in his lifetime. Disney approached Dalí about the project after getting the idea from a Mexican folk song called “Destino.” The plan was for Dalí to handle the animations while Disney worked his magic on the rest. The film was three months into production in 1945 when Disney decided to pull the plug, anticipating a low return on investment due to the financial strain of World War II. All that remains of the original work is a short demo reel and some initial sketches. Many years later, the project was revived by Disney’s nephew, Roy E. Disney, and a team of animators who finished where Dalí left off. The six-minute short, titled “Destino,” was released in 2003.
Henri Matisse Began Painting After an Appendicitis Attack
In 1889, Henri Matisse was working as a law office clerk in Saint-Quentin, France. He showed little interest in art at the time, but he would soon become one of the most prominent painters in 20th-century France. Matisse’s life changed in 1890 as he was recovering from a severe appendicitis attack. Isolated and bored, he welcomed the art supplies his mother gave him to keep him occupied. Matisse quickly took to painting, and within one year, he decided to quit his job at the law office and move to Paris to pursue art full time. He became a leader of the fauvist movement, a style characterized by bold colors and textured brushwork, as seen in his painting “Green Stripe,” created in 1905.
Georgia O’Keeffe Was the First Female Artist Exhibited at MoMA
New York City’s Museum of Modern Art, or MoMA, is one of the most influential modern art museums in the world. MoMA debuted its first-ever female solo exhibition in the spring of 1946, featuring Georgia O’Keeffe, known as the “mother of American modernism.” She is famous for large-format paintings of natural subjects, especially flowers, many of which were highlighted in the exhibit. One, “Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1,” sold at a 2014 Sotheby’s auction decades later for $44.4 million, setting the record for the most expensive painting by a woman artist. Also featured in the 1946 MoMA exhibit were landscape portraits from New Mexico, where O’Keeffe visited often and lived when she retired.
The Term “Impressionism” Comes From a Monet Painting
Having an entire art movement named after one of your paintings is quite a feat, and one that French painter Claude Monet can claim. His 1872 work “Impression, Sunrise” (depicting a port scene in Le Havre, France) inspired critic Louis Leroy to coin the term. Leroy called the piece “impressionist” because he thought the artwork looked more like an incomplete sketch than a finished painting. However, notable impressionists such as Monet, Paul Cézanne, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir proved that their style — characterized by thin brush strokes, unblended colors, and an emphasis on lighting — was anything but incomplete. The movement officially began in 1874 after a group of artists known as the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, Printmakers, etc. met in Paris to launch a new exhibition; Monet was among the founding members. Impressionism became one of the most popular modern art movements, spanning two decades in the 1870s and 1880s.
