Quiz of the Day
Pablo Picasso & Modern Art
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
125th anniversary of Picasso's first solo exhibition — art movements, famous paintings, modern masters
1. In which city did Pablo Picasso hold his first solo exhibition in 1901?
- Paris
- London
- Barcelona
- Madrid
Picasso's first solo show was held at Galerie Vollard in Paris when he was just 19 years old. Art dealer Ambroise Vollard exhibited 64 of his paintings. Critics took immediate notice of the young Spaniard's talent.
2. Which art movement did Picasso co-found with Georges Braque around 1907?
- Cubism
- Surrealism
- Fauvism
- Impressionism
Cubism shattered the single-viewpoint perspective that had dominated Western art since the Renaissance. Objects were broken into geometric shapes and shown from multiple angles simultaneously, revolutionising visual art forever.
3. What tragic event inspired Picasso's monumental painting 'Guernica'?
- The fall of Paris in World War II
- The Spanish Inquisition
- The bombing of a Basque town during the Spanish Civil War
- World War I trench warfare
On 26 April 1937, Nazi German and Italian Fascist warplanes bombed the town of Guernica. Picasso completed the huge 3.5m x 7.8m painting in just 35 days. He refused to let it return to Spain until democracy was restored.
4. What was Picasso's 'Blue Period' characterised by?
- Abstract geometric patterns in blue tones
- Paintings using only blue paint on blue canvas
- Seascapes and ocean scenes
- Sombre works in shades of blue and blue-green depicting poverty and isolation
The Blue Period (1901-1904) was triggered by the suicide of Picasso's close friend Carlos Casagemas. Paintings from this era, once nearly unsellable, now fetch hundreds of millions at auction.
5. Approximately how many artworks did Picasso create during his lifetime?
- About 100,000
- About 50,000
- About 5,000
- About 15,000
Picasso's output included roughly 13,500 paintings, 100,000 prints and engravings, 34,000 book illustrations, and 300 sculptures and ceramics. He holds the Guinness World Record for the most prolific artist.
6. Which painting is considered the first major work of the Cubist movement?
- Starry Night
- Guernica
- The Persistence of Memory
- Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
Painted in 1907, this depiction of five women in a brothel shocked even Picasso's friends with its distorted forms and African mask-inspired faces. Henri Matisse thought it was a deliberate mockery of modern art.
7. Which artist is famous for his melting clocks in 'The Persistence of Memory'?
- Pablo Picasso
- Joan Miro
- Rene Magritte
- Salvador Dali
Dali said the melting watches were inspired by Camembert cheese melting in the sun. The tiny painting (24cm x 33cm) is one of the most recognised artworks in the world and hangs in MoMA, New York.
8. What art movement sought to unlock the creative potential of the unconscious mind through dreamlike imagery?
- Dadaism
- Expressionism
- Surrealism
- Pop Art
Andre Breton published the Surrealist Manifesto in 1924, drawing on Freud's psychoanalysis. Surrealists used techniques like automatic drawing (drawing without conscious thought) and exquisite corpse (collaborative folding drawings).
9. Which modern artist is known for wrapping large structures, including the Reichstag building in Berlin?
- Christo and Jeanne-Claude
- Jeff Koons
- Banksy
- Damien Hirst
Wrapping the Reichstag in 1995 used 100,000 square metres of silvery fabric and 15.6 km of rope. Five million people visited during the two weeks it was displayed. The couple self-funded their projects by selling preparatory artwork.
10. What is the name of the art movement that used mass-produced imagery, championed by Andy Warhol?
- Abstract Expressionism
- Minimalism
- Pop Art
- Constructivism
Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans (1962) consisted of 32 canvases, one for each flavour. He chose soup because he had it for lunch every day for 20 years. The work blurred the boundary between commercial and fine art.
11. Which artist cut off part of his own ear and later became one of the most famous painters in history?
- Vincent van Gogh
- Edvard Munch
- Claude Monet
- Paul Cezanne
Van Gogh sold only one painting during his lifetime ('The Red Vineyard' for 400 francs). Today his works sell for tens of millions. He created about 2,100 artworks in just over a decade, including 860 oil paintings.
12. Which modern art technique involves dripping and pouring paint onto a canvas laid on the floor?
- Impasto
- Pointillism
- Action painting / drip painting
- Fresco
Jackson Pollock pioneered this technique in the late 1940s, using sticks, trowels, and even basting syringes instead of brushes. His painting 'No. 5, 1948' sold for a reported $140 million in 2006.
13. What was Picasso's full baptismal name famous for?
- Being 23 words long
- Being only two words long
- Containing no vowels
- Being in three different languages
His full name was Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Maria de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso. Each name honoured a saint or relative. He went by his mother's surname, Picasso.
14. Which art movement, beginning in the 1860s, used visible brushstrokes and light to capture fleeting moments?
- Romanticism
- Impressionism
- Baroque
- Realism
The name 'Impressionism' was coined as an insult by critic Louis Leroy after seeing Monet's 'Impression, Sunrise' in 1874. He used it to mock the unfinished appearance of the paintings. The artists proudly adopted the term.
15. Which Picasso painting became the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction in 2015?
- Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
- Guernica
- The Old Guitarist
- Les Femmes d'Alger (Version O)
The painting sold for $179.4 million at Christie's New York. It was part of a series of 15 paintings Picasso created in 1954-55, each labelled A through O, reinterpreting a work by Eugene Delacroix.