Pablo Picasso – a man of deep contradictions

Pablo Picasso was one of the most prolific artists of the last century. During his 78 year career he produced 13,500 paintings, 100,000 prints and engravings, 34,000 illustrations and 300 sculptures – constituting a total of 147,800 works of art!

Picasso was also a man of deep contradictions. He was a self avowed communist, yet he was also one of the world’s wealthiest artists, leaving his heirs an estate valued at $260 million ($1.5 billion in 2008 dollars) when he died in 1973. Picasso once famously remarked, ‘I like to live like a poor man, except with lots of money’!

Claude Monet – an artistic visionary in more ways than one!

Claude Monet was a French painter and founder of the impressionist movement. The signature characteristic of Claude Monet’s work was the use of light and it featured prominently in many of his landscapes.

In 1923 Claude Monet had eye surgery to remove cataracts. These cataracts had affected Monet’s work, causing a reddish tone in many of his paintings. After this surgery Monet was able to see ultraviolet wavelengths normally filtered by the lens of the eye! Some believe this extraordinary vision was responsible for the striking presentation of color demonstrated in his later works.

Salvador Dali – a great draftsman, a disgusting human being?

Salvador Dalí was a famous Spanish painter and draftsman known for his extensive use of symbolism. Dali was a founder of the surrealist movement. However, as an artist he was not limited to any style or media. His repertoire ranged from film, theater and sculpture to fashion and photography.

Salvador Dali was also a very controversial character. On Dalí’s personality, George Orwell once remarked that ‘one ought to be able to hold in one’s head simultaneously the two facts, that Dalí is a good draughtsman and a disgusting human being, the one does not invalidate or, in a sense, affect the other.’

Dalí was a close friends of the fascist dictator Franco. Dalí publicly stated that he admired Franco for clearing Spain of ‘destructive forces’ and he praised Franco for signing the death warrants of political prisoners. Dali holidayed with the Dictator and his family and painted a portrait of the fascist dictator’s granddaughter.

Welcome to the Web Aesthetic Project!

The Web Aesthetic Project aims to create the web’s best and largest archive of fine art images! You can use Web Aesthetic to learn more about your favorite artist and source high-quality archived images.