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Picasso and the Painting That Shocked the World
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 15 hrs and 28 mins
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Picasso and the Painting That Shocked the World
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Summary
When Picasso became Picasso: the story of how an obscure young painter from Barcelona came to Paris and made himself into the most influential artist of the 20th century
In 1900, an 18-year-old Spaniard named Pablo Picasso made his first trip to Paris. It was in this glittering capital of the international art world that, after suffering years of poverty and neglect, he emerged as the leader of a bohemian band of painters, sculptors, and poets. Fueled by opium and alcohol, inspired by raucous late-night conversations at the Lapin Agile cabaret, Picasso and his friends resolved to shake up the world.
For most of these years Picasso lived and worked in a squalid tenement known as the Bateau Lavoir, in the heart of picturesque Montmartre. Here he met his first true love, Fernande Olivier, a muse whom he would transform in his art from Symbolist goddess to Cubist monster. These were years of struggle, often of desperation, but Picasso later looked back on them as the happiest of his long life.
Recognition came slowly: first in the avant-garde circles in which he traveled, and later among a small group of daring collectors, including the Americans Leo and Gertrude Stein. In 1906, Picasso began the vast, disturbing masterpiece known as Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Inspired by the groundbreaking painting of Paul Cezanne and the startling inventiveness of African and tribal sculpture, Picasso created a work that captured and defined the disorienting experience of modernity itself. The painting proved so shocking that even his friends assumed he'd gone mad. Only his colleague George Braque understood what Picasso was trying to do. Over the next few years they teamed up to create Cubism, the most revolutionary and influential movement in 20th-century art.
This is the story of an artistic genius with a singular creative gift. It is filled with heartbreak and triumph, despair and delirium, all of it played out against the backdrop of the world's most captivating city.
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What listeners say about Picasso and the Painting That Shocked the World
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- RWL
- 14-05-19
Informative without being dry
The author clearly describes the context (e.g. bohemian Paris, the people, the politics of the art scene) for how the painting came about, rather than just describing why it's so important
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- W J Smith-Bowers
- 08-01-24
The Painting that thought the future ?
Great audio book - important ways to think the Picasso painting - recommend this book needs a PDF of pictures
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Peader O Broin
- 03-01-24
No sabía nada de Picasso
Una historia detallada. Terminé sin admiración para el artista pero muy bien informado sobre su arte y el tiempo de su creación.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JT
- 03-09-19
Invaluable
Invaluable, a must read for all artists whatever your background. I find Picasso intriguing, even more so after reading this.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- diana lowe
- 27-11-21
Really informative
I love cubism and this audio goes into great detail about the process that Picasso and his friends went through to shock the world with cubism.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- K. Sewell
- 11-08-19
The self-indulgence of it all
I was looking forward to reading this biography of Picasso... I live an hour from his home city and have immersed myself in his art, which I consider brilliant at times, and utter ridiculous at other times.
This story confirmed what I suspected, that the man was an arrogant, selfish, self-absorbed, ego maniac. It made it difficult to read about him with any kind of pleasure. The story was also bogged down with so much detail. Two thirds through, I gave up. He is one of the world most renowned artist, but as a man.... Sadly I lost all respect for him.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Ian
- 17-10-22
Bad writing
This story is so cheesy. Very bad writing. Full of hyperboly, presumptions and cringeworty descriptions. "whilst he, that high priest of the religion that is modernism, writhing in his tortured soul whilst creating, godlike, the world of the future" Say no more. 15 min in and im done here. The narrator is good though. No doubt in private he cringed also.
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