French Artist Francis Picabia's Works at MoMA Will Have Your Head Spinning

The recently opened Francis Picabia (French 1879-1953) exhibit at MoMA:  "Our Heads Are Round so Our Thoughts Can Change Direction."  This wonderfully wry title shows a large photo of the artist riding a tiny schwinn with an inviting grin.  A self-proclaimed funny guy, he's the guy with enormous  talent, curiosity and the endless ability to reinvent himself.  Picabia was a zeitgeist of multiple eras with an constantly changing aesthetic & perspective.  This is a show that is hard to pass up and harder still to codify.  Picabia's work runs the gambit of artistic styles:  impressionism, radical abstraction, Dadaist provocation, pseudo-classicism and photographic based realism to art informel.   Picabia is a provocateur in multi-artistic expressions.  In addition to his paintings, he was a poet, performance artist, illustrator and filmmaker.  Be sure to watch his whimsicial Dadaist film, listen to the background audio about the artist and the poetry readings best heard in the last gallery.  Living through both WWI & WWII, perhaps Picabia's developed a wry sense of humor and a penchant for a chameleon sensibility in his work.  Some of the artists whose styles he tried on were:  Picasso, Matisse, Seurat, Monet and Magritte. Magritte & Picabia seem to share a trickster psyche.  The earliest works (1912-1914) saw works in an impressionist style, focusing on landscapes & architecture and cubist paintings.  Also note the titles he uses which add hum  "Comic Wedlock" & "She Corrects Manners While Laughing."  Picabia interest in machinery are seen in his mechanomorphic images.   Trying to find common threads throughout will remain enigmatic.  There are recurring Adam & Eve subjects and Spanish Women portraits.  But, these are all done with varying styles & techniques.  I was most intrigued with his later "transparency" paintings with multilayered figures & motiffs.  Picabia incorporates a plethora of techniques & materials in his works with winsome results; matches, hairpins, coins, feathers & nails.  Picabia is a genius extraordinaire on par with Picasso.  Unlike Picasso, Picabia's constantly evolving art make identifying his oeuvre elusive.  "Our Heads Are Round so Our Thought Can Change Direction" is a whirlwind of an exhibit that is endlessly exciting & fun.