Cubism

Also called Cubist art

Developed in early twentieth-century Paris by Picasso, Braque and others, Cubism took its name from a critic’s description of geometric forms as little cubes. Artists fractured objects into planes and combined viewpoints, later adding paper collage. Figures, tabletops and surrounding space interlock rather than obey a single fixed perspective.

Kind

Art movement

Period

1907–1914

Lineage

Early twentieth-century avant-garde

Medium family

Printmaking, traditional arts and regional crafts

Medium

Oil painting · Collage

Technique

Geometric construction · Paper cutting

Colour

Earth tones

Key traits

1. 01Break objects into intersecting planes, interrupting and reconnecting contours.
2. 02Combine different viewpoints in one image and compress single-viewpoint depth.
3. 03Let objects and backgrounds share planes or lines within a shallow, interlocking space.
4. 04Analytic approaches may use small muted planes; Synthetic approaches may use larger shapes, paper fragments and lettering.