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Guernica, painted by Pablo Picasso in 1937, was made as a symbol of the bombing and destruction of Guernica, the Basque city, by the Germans during the Spanish Civil War on April 26, 1937. The Germans were in support of the Nationalist forces of the Civil War. Guernica was one of the main cities of the Republican forces, the side against the Nationalists. The Germans, under Hitler, used this opportunity as a trial run of what will later end up being the Blitzkrieg tactic. Many of the people living in Guernica were gone at the time of the bombing and many men were out in the war; mainly women and children were attacked in this bomb run. Guernica was a village that had no military targets except a weapons factory in the outskirts of town which was left intact and undamaged after the attack. When news became international, Pablo Picasso became aware of what happened in his home country and decided to start painting Guernica as the commissioned painting by the Spanish Republican government. Guernica became a symbol of the destruction caused by war towards the innocent. In 1985, a copy of Guernica was commissioned to be put in the United Nations building in New York City. Rumors spread that Guernica was covered in a blue cloth because the US diplomats argued for war on Iraq. Others claimed that the TV news crew said it was a bad backdrop (Guernica (Painting)).

Pablo Picasso uses black, grey, and white to give the mood of sadness, pain, and chaos. Picasso paints women and children, which exemplifies the death of mainly women and children who were left in the city of Guernica. The image of the light bulb represents the advancements of technology that is creating more violence and destruction like what happened in Guernica. The light bulb also creates an image of an evil eye giving the sense that the advancement of technology is evil and creates the death and agony shown in the bodies and postures of the corpses and animals in the painting. Next to the bulb is a lit candle, which was the old version of a light bulb; the candle represents hope for the people, a hope for the people for a time of peace and the decline of the usage of the technologies that are advancing; this hope exists and became reality after WWII, after the dropping of the two atomic bombs, the world decided that it is a far too powerful weapon for humans to be using. Picasso adds in little pieces of hidden images that symbolize something else into Guernica such as a hidden skull which symbolizes death (Harris and Banton).

This painting is a representation of the violence caused in the Spanish Civil War. The violence depicted in the painting using dead bodies, ghosts, etc creates an ambience of pain and suffering in the people. Parts of the human body that were cut off from the main corpse are shown in the foreground. Women and children were painted as the victims of the attack to show the violence towards the innocent done by the Germans. This painting became an antiwar symbol for many people. The violence done by the Germans to the Basque city of Guernica affected not only the people there, but the entire world.

Harris, Mark and Simon Banton. “Picasso’s secret Guernica.” http://web.org.uk/picasso/secret_guernica.html.

Wikipedia. “Guernica (painting).” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guernica_(painting).

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Liberty Leading the People, painted by Eugène Delacroix in 1830, is a representation of the July Revolution. Delacroix was the leader of the Romantic school in French painting. He lowered the emphasis on the detail of the characterization of the figures and instead used a wider variety of coloration to give a sense of freedom. Liberty is represented by a built woman carrying the tricolore flag in one hand and a bayonetted musket in the other. Liberty is depicted to be striding her way across the mound of dead bodies. She looks as if she’s going out into the viewer. The people around her are shown as a mixture of people from different social classes. The high class is represented by the man in the top hat and the bourgeoise are represented by the young boy with the pistol. Delacroix paints in the towers of Notre Dame in the left side of the painting, representing liberty and Romanticism and to state that the scene is happening in Paris. Delacroix also uses pyramidal composition which represents victory. The dead bodies form a pyramidal structure, which is made to be a counterbalance to contain and balance towards the vigorous brushwork in the painting and the rhythm of the scene. (Dorbani)

The scene is the representation of the July Revolution. The July Revolution was a three day revolution that overthrew King Charles X and promoted the ascension of Louis-Philippe to the French throne. La Charte, the French Constitution made by Louis XVII, and the fact that France was still ruled by hereditary right, not through popular vote triggered the July Revolution. A shift from the Bourbon Restoration into the July Monarchy. Both were constitutional monarchies but the Bourbon Restoration reestablished the power of the Roman Catholic Church in their politics which upset the French causing civil unrest and eventually the July Revolution. The July Monarchy was achieved after 3 days of fighting and unrest by the people. After the July Revolution, the Belgian Revolution began, later creating the Kingdom of Belgium. (July Revolution). This painting influenced the Statue of Liberty given by France to the USA. The statue is in the similar position but instead of carrying the violent gun, she holds a torch.

Liberty Leading the People shows the scene of pure violence. The depiction of the dead bodies caused by the violence of the Revolution was a pedestal of Liberty; liberty can only be achieved through violence.The painting also shows the weapons used by the people. Lady Liberty herself is carrying a musket and the flag of nationalism shows the violence that happened to get the French tricolore flag as their national symbol and to gain liberty in that Revolution.

Dorbani, Malika Bouabdellah. “July 28: Liberty Leading the People” http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673237674&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673237674&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500815&baseIndex=2&bmLocale=en.

Wikipedia. “July Revolution.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_revolution.

Wikipedia. “Liberty Leading the People.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Leading_the_People.

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The Spirit of ’76 is a painting by Archibald McNeal Willard that shows the iconic American Revolution. Willard painted it after he saw a parade in the town square. He meant to paint the scene with the two boys drumming and the fifer but a friend of his told him to make it a more patriotic scene. Willard inserted the US army holding the first flag of America showing pride and victory and balances it using a British officer dead in the foreground. The three men playing the instruments were inspired by the three kids who played in the Wellington holiday parade. The painting was also inspired by the stories of the Revolution told to him by his grandfather (Giblin 42).

The American Revolution happened in the 18th century when the thirteen colonies in North America united and revolted against the British Empire. The American colonies did not want to be ruled from overseas (British Empire) without any representation from America. In 1774, each colony had its own governmental institution making them their own individual states. The British sent troops to disband these institutions and in 1775, the conflict grew into the American Revolutionary War. The American Revolution itself was successful and created the United States of America, starting with the 13 states. All British claims on the US were abolished in the Treaty of Paris in 1783. The revolution brought the creation of a democracy for the people, elections for the representative of the government. Many prisoners of both sides were framed for treason and later hanged. In the Battle of Bunker Hill, about 1000 British soldiers became casualties compared to only 500 Americans (American Revolution).

The Violence used in the American Revolution was depicted in the painting through the wounds of the three main figures in the painting. The triumph of war is still depicted in the picture through the enthusiastic drumming and fifing of the main figures. The dead soldier lying in the foreground represents the death of the British in America and is depicted with a canon next to him that was used in order to fight off the other side. The triumphant soldiers in the background carried the guns and bayonets used in the war, showing the true violence of the American Revolution.


Giblin, James C. and Ursula Arndt. The Story of the Fourth of July. Google Books. http://books.google.com/books?id=x2UzaVfG3tgC&pg=PA41&dq=%22Archibald+Willard%22+Wellington&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=bvSYSLHlJ5vOjgHEx7DHBw&sig=ACfU3U0LJh9i5ALuCqaaQRnQDlvJBzFoEw#v=onepage&q=%22Archibald%20Willard%22%20Wellington&f=false.

The Spirit of ’76. http://www.americanrevolution.org/spirit.html.

Wikipedia. “Archibald MacNeal Willard.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archibald_MacNeal_Willard.

Wikipedia. “American Revolution.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution.

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Russian Propaganda

This particular propaganda was used in the October Revolution in 1918-1922. This poster says: “Long Live World October [revolution]! Workers conquered power in Russia. Workers will conquer power in the entire world.” The poster, like many other Soviet Propaganda posters, use red as a primary color of the poster.The symbol of Communism, the hammer and sickle, is shown in the background. In the foreground, Communist ideals of anti-intellects and anti-religion are depicted by a person kicking a Christian and an intellectual out of the poster. The main focus is the red flag saying, “Long Live World October” and the march of the proletariats. The proletariats are depicted to be strong, robust, and courageous men who wear the same type of clothing and the same hats, showing the equality that Communism brings to the people. The background consists of the factories and buildings which are important to Communism.

The October Revolution was the uprising of the Bolsheviks after WWI. The Russian Provisional Government was overthrown and power came to the soviets/groups of the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were tired of the economic and social crisis happening in Russia after the War. Mass strikes began forming and the garrisoned soldiers and sailors ended up taking part of the masses. The Russian Executive Committee of the Soviets ordered an attack against the protestors which resulted in 56 people dead and 650 wounded. Popularity of the Bolsheviks kept increasing significantly. The uprising of the Bolsheviks was impossible without an outbreak of violence. The Bolsheviks then took the Winter Palace and the formation of the Soviet Union was complete (October Revolution).

The Bolshevik Revolution created a few violent reactions between the people and the government. Firings at demonstrators led to the death and the wounded of many civilians. In the painting, the workers are marching out of their factories with flags which can be interpreted as a movement to rebel against the government. In the far background, a small picture of people rioting, carrying the same red flag, is shown. The propaganda words used in the poster also promotes the violence that later happens in the Revolution. Power is never able to achieved without violence and that ‘an armed uprising is inevitable’ (October Revolution).

Wikipedia. “Russian Revolution.” Propaganda. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda#Russian_revolution.

Wikipedia. “Russian Revolution of 1917.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Revolution_(1917).

Wikipedia. “Propaganda in the Soviet Union.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_in_the_Soviet_Union.

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Tank Man, photographed by Jeff Widener from the Associated Press, became known internationally, except in China itself. The picture is composed of a man, referred to by some as a University Student named Wang Weilin, standing in the path of 4 tanks and stopping the tanks from reaching Tiananmen Square, where protests by Chinese students the day before were broken up by violent actions of the Chinese Governments. The incident happened in Beijing during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. The photograph taken by Widener became one of the most well known pictures of this event; some photographs were taken away by Chinese officials. This photograph did not have many stylistic details but more of a historical and social context. The photograph was well taken to emphasize both the man and the number of tanks outnumbering him. If the shot was taken and included more tanks, the emphasis on Tank Man would be smaller. This photograph is a great shot of the scene to emphasize the important parts of the event. Tank Man stood in the middle of the road to stop the line of about 10 tanks or so (behind the four tanks, not pictured). The tanks tried to maneuver their way to avoid Tank Man, but Tank Man kept taking steps to block the way the tanks was going. The tanks stopped their engines and Tank Man climbed on the tank and talked to several open ports of the tanks. He went off the tank and made one final leap to block the tanks and was taken away. No one really knows where he went, if he was taken away by the secret police, or if he was taken away by other concerned civilians. The Chinese government could not present him after this event was publicly known.This piece of photograph shows the force a man can have to support his political beliefs (Iyer). Tank Man was featured by Time as one of the 100 Most important people of the Century in 1998. The technology of media allows people like Tank Man to be transformed from a nobody into a voice of the people that gives him somewhat of a power to influence others (Tank Man).

This photograph is now censored in China. A documentary by Frontline stated that Google images has censored photos of Tank Man. Google images results of “Tiananmen Square” in the USA show many pages of pictures of Tank Man while Google images in China shows a few pages of pictures of tourists and none consisting Tank Man nor the Massacre. In the same documentary, Beijing students were shown the photograph of Tank Man. They claimed that they have no idea about the pictures. One of them thought it was a parade, another thought it was a military ceremony. One of the students called it artwork, but before whispered “89.” The Chinese government might be limiting the knowledge the students have about 1989 or the student concealing what he knows about 1989 (Tank Man).

Tank Man was a representation of the violent actions taken by the Chinese Government during the Protests. The government used tanks and militants against civilian protesters. The actions of the Chinese Government were unnecessary and should have been controlled by other ways other than violence and deaths could have been essentially avoided. Tank Man was believed to be promoting anti-violence against the Chinese governments because he just leaped in front of the tanks and did not attack the tanks or the operator of the tanks a single bit. The photograph itself shows how the tanks, somewhat a symbol of violence and war, were going and fighting against civilians.


Iyer, Pico. “The Unknown Rebel.” April 13, 1998. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,988169-2,00.html.

Wikipedia. “Tank Man.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tank_man.

Wong, Jan. The Tank Man. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/themes/tankman.html