An active matrix liquid crystal display device having a liquid crystal cell including an army substrate provided with a pixel electrode, a signal electrode line, and a gate electrode line and an opposing substrate provided with a common electrode, in which pretilt angles of liquid crystal at upper and lower interfaces of a liquid crystal layer disposed between the army substrate and the opposing substrate have opposite signs having splay alignment formed by parallel alignment process while no voltage is applied. The active matrix liquid crystal display device is subjected to an initialization process for transitioning the splay alignment to bend alignment by application of voltage before liquid crystal display driving and adapted to perform the liquid crystal display driving in the bend alignment. In addition the pixel electrode is provided with a protrusion at a periphery thereof in a plane parallel to a plane defined by an upper surface of the array substrate, and in a region where the protrusion does not overlap with the signal electrode line and the gate electrode line in a vertical direction relative to the, and voltage is applied continuously or intermittently applied to the pixel electrode and the common electrode.