Cubist Braque

Overview

Symmetry and convention can be ignored, as shown by my ‘Braque’ guitar, which emerged from my fascination with the intriguing musical instruments of the Cubist artists including Picasso and Gris. My interest and activity as a painter led me to bring the instruments in the paintings of the Cubist masters to life. Many artists around this period were musicians and Braque himself was an accomplished player. This explains why so many instruments appeared in their paintings. I intend to make more of these unusual instruments and have several Cubist masterpieces in mind to transform.

This instrument was lifted from the painting ‘Bottle of Marc’ by George Braque 1930 which features a good front elevation of the guitar. I have ‘wrapped’ the rest of the painting around the back and the sides. The Braque guitar has a short scale 18 7/8th in (480mm) and is tuned to ‘G’. It has a top made from Western Red Cedar, back and sides Mahogany, and the painted finish is acrylic.