Indiana University Indiana University IU

Browse the collection

Dream and Lie of Franco II

Artist Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973)
Title Dream and Lie of Franco II (El sueño y mentira de Franco | Songe et Mensonge de Franco II)
Series The Dream and Lie of Franco
Date 1937
Medium Etching and aquatint on paper
Dimensions Image: 12 1/16 x 16 1/4 in. (30.6 x 41.3 cm)
Plate: 12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in. (31.8 x 41.9 cm)
Sheet: 15 1/16 x 22 5/16 in. (38.3 x 56.7 cm)
Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 00.5.1

Share this artwork!

About this Work

Picasso's two-page suite of images responds to the horrors of the Spanish Civil War. The Spanish army--led by General Francisco Franco, who enlisted the aid of the Nazi parties in Germany and Italy--moved to establish a military dictatorship in Spain in 1936. From Paris, Picasso expressed his sympathy for the "freedom fighters" who opposed Franco's regime. Picasso composed a poem and two pages of cartoon-like etchings that were sold to aid the relief of Spaniards victimized by the war.

Franco appears throughout these vignettes as an arrogant, ridiculous, and loathsome figure dressed in a costume that symbolizes his pretense as a military and religious "savior" of the country. Women and children flee in horror; only the bull--representing the strength and innocence of Spain--can vanquish this grotesque monster.


Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

Series Title The Dream and Lie of Franco
Foreign Language Series Title El sueño y mentira de Franco | Songe et Mensonge de Franco

Viewing Information
This artwork is currently off display. You may be able to see this artwork by filling out an art viewing room request.

 

Request this Image
The Eskenazi Museum of Art provides images of its collection, free of charge, upon request. This artwork is under copyright protection. You can request the image and it will be emailed to you when the request is complete.

Cite this Page
"Dream and Lie of Franco II | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2024. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=00.5.1