Picasso was a pioneer in the appreciation of African art for its formal qualities. The Spanish artist had turned to various sources for inspiration, notably to Cezanne and Iberian (pre-Roman Spanish) sculpture, before the arts of Sub-Saharan Africa opened his eyes to new ways of the visual world. In particular, African art had a profound impact on Picasso as more conceptually structured than the art of the West, i.e. more dependent on knowing than seeing. By abandoning the single viewpoint and normal proportions as well as reducing anatomy to geometrical forms, he completely re-ordered the human image, like in Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, 1907. In addition to African and Oceanic sculptures, a crude African manner of painting evoked in Picasso associations of tribal magic, superstition, and irrationality.—Diana Guber, “Picasso: I Dreamt of Africa?” 2016.
Pablo Picasso, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, 1907. Oil On Canvas.