“Bull (plate X)” is a lithograph on paper created by the renowned artist Pablo Picasso in 1946. As part of the Cubist movement, this artwork exemplifies the animal painting genre and belongs to the series “Eleven developments of a lithograph.” It is housed at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, NY, United States.
The artwork depicts the form of a bull, distilled down to its essential lines and shapes, showcasing Picasso’s mastery in conveying the power and essence of the creature with minimal detail. The picture is characterized by the interplay of geometric forms and the reduction of the bull’s figure to a series of elegant, fluid lines. The use of negative space is as critical as the presence of the lines themselves, defining the bull’s shape in a reductive manner that challenges the viewer’s perception and invites them to engage with the essence of the subject. The work exemplifies the principles of Cubism, in which objects are broken up, analyzed, and reassembled in an abstracted form—a radical departure from traditional representation.
