In the 1930's several Spanish artists were worried about the growing threat of Fascism, as the future of Spain didn't look too promising. Jose Louis Sert approached Picasso about contributing, and he agreed, painting in Paris and eventually producing the Guernica, a mural of the city that had been destroyed by German bombings during the Spanish Civil War. It was displayed in the Paris World Fair with a poem by Paul Eluard, and financed by the Spanish Republican government; displayed to reflect the government's fight for continuation at a time when Spanish Nationalist Forces controlled half the country, backed by Fascist and Nazi forces. This theme was promoted in opposition to the Exposition's technological theme, focusing on the horror of war. In fact, the Spanish pavilion barely received any attention as the German and Soviet pavilions towered above the others. Those who did discover the mural were repulsed. As put by one attendant, "If you can't in a political painting very clearly point out the good guys and the bad guys, or very clearly identify the characters in symbolic terms, this is something that's difficult for people who have expectations based on earlier concepts of political paintings."
At its original showing, the mural gained little notice. It wasn't until the painting went on tour that it fully caught the public eye. It was sent on tour by the government to raise awareness about the suffering of its people, and since it was painted by Picasso, it was hoped that it would catch people's attention and raise awareness about the suffering of the Spanish people, serving as propaganda and education for the rest of the world. The Spanish Civil War continued as the painting was first sent to Scandinavian capitals, and from there to London. It is at this point that the Nationalist forces overtook Madrid, and Picasso rejected the return of the piece to Spain while General Franco ruled. The painting was now in exile.