Guernica is a painting by Pablo Picasso, in response to the bombing of Guernica, during the Spanish Civil War. The bombing of Guernica was an aerial attack that caused widespread destruction and civilian deaths during the Spanish Civil War. The painting Guernica had a large influence on history. This work has gained a monumental status and become a reminder of the tragedies of war, an anti-war symbol. (Guernica)
The whole painting represents several animals and suffering people within a room. There is a horse at the center of the painting, falling in agony as it had been stabbed by a spear. There are two hidden images which are formed by the horse which appear in Guernica: a human skull on the horse's body and a bull appears from underneath. There is a dead soldier under the horse holding a shattered sword which a flower grows. There is a light bulb which blazes above the suffering horse’s head. “Picasso's intended symbolism in regards to this object is related to the Spanish word for light bulb; "bombilla", which makes an allusion to "bomb" and therefore signifies the destructive affect which technology, can have on society.”(Guernica) The horse with two hidden images and the blazing light bulb constitute the entire painting.
Guernica shows the tragedies of war and the suffering it inflicts upon individuals, particularly innocent civilians. Picasso uses black, white, and grey as the main colors of the painting in order to express a distressed and painful atmosphere. Picasso also used a lot of symbols to represent the main theme of the painting, such as the hidden “buffalo” which can be observed from the injured horse and the dismembered soldier with the broken sword. Those symbols express the idea that Spanish people suffered a lot because of the war and they are resisting the enemy. Those tortured people who are drawn around the horse bring us a strong expression of tragedies of war as well. Therefore, Picasso used all those details and colors to express the tragedies of war in his painting. The painting gives us a strong expression of suffering and death in war.
Gassed is a very large oil painting painted by John Singer Sargent during WWI. (Gassed) It depicts the aftermath of a mustard gas attack during the First World War, by drawing a line of wounded soldiers. There are two groups of blinded soldier standing in lines in the painting. Their eyes are bandaged and are blinded by the gas, seemingly waiting for healing. Many other dead or wounded soldiers lie around the central group, and a similar line of eight wounded soldiers in the background. In the background, the moon also rises and some men are far away from those blinded men, seemingly unconcerned at the suffering all around them.
“With mustard gas the effects did not become apparent for up to twelve hours. But then it began to rot the body, within and without. The skin blistered, the eyes became extremely painful and nausea and vomiting began. Worse, the gas attacked the bronchial tubes, stripping off the mucous membrane. The pain was almost beyond endurance and most cases had to be strapped to their beds. Death took up to four or five weeks.” (Ellis 66-67)This quote was said by a nurse who took care of those gassed soldiers during the First World War. It is the first time that gas had been used in war and it caused a huge amount of death and injury. German armies used mustard gas in trench wars when they were against French and British armies. Apparently, gases deal so much damage to soldiers as we can see from the painting and the quote.
The painting reflects the suffering of those soldiers in a way that there are no details such as screaming soldiers, blood or pale colors; however, the painting gives you a strong expression of pain and despair by using yellow and green which are the colors of mustard gas. Tragedies of war are reflected well in this painting in a special way, which is different from Guernica. There are no symbols in this painting. The entire painting is so realistic that you can feel the pain of the soldiers who are all blind and wounded. Those dead bodies on the bottom of the painting also show the suffering and death in war.
The painting's content and style are presented as a groundbreaking painting of the tragedies and horrors of war.Itmarks a clear break from convention and is acknowledged as one of the first paintings of the modern era. This painting represents some groups of victims being shot by a line of soldiers. If you compare this painting to Eugène Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People (one of the most famous history painting which retains the idealized and heroic style), you would find out the differences. In The Third of May, you cannot find any exaggerated figures or symbols. All the people including the shooting soldiers or those victims are drawn by using harsh colors without enough details. Also, you cannot see any unyielding expression on those victims’ faces. Instead, their faces are represented as terrified, helpless and despairing, especially the middle one with the white shirt on him. His two arms opened widely which probably means he is ready to sacrifice. Also there are several people around him covering their faces showing their horrors and helplessness. The dead body underneath the group of people with blood around him shows the tragedy in war. The shooting soldiers and the group of victims become the main characters of the entire painting and reflect the main theme together. The idea of tragedies of wars is represented by this painting very well.
