Tag Archives: Alan Riding

human oh too human

A funny and peculiar war it was. Especially in wartime Vichy Paris which stretched the lexicon of all the imaginative permutations that plumbed the bottom of French culture. The complexities of that particular context were splendidly shrewd and also quite … Continue reading

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PICASSO & IDEALS OF PEACE: Better Red than Fed

Pablo Picasso found himself in Paris during World War II. Stranded……. Overall, reading through Matisse’s correspondence with Camoin in La Revue de l’Art (12, 1971) makes me suspect that Matisse’s behavior during Vichy had little to do directly with the … Continue reading

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PICASSO’S REFLEX ANXIETY :2 1/2 Men & Close Encounter of the 3 1/2 Kind

Perhaps more than any other artist, Pablo Picasso depicted the dark side; the Darth Vader of the human psyche, as well as the positive and the beautiful…This departure by Picasso from the so-called “civilized” and classical influences of Western art … Continue reading

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MATISSE: War Years and the Morals of Color

Certainly, the war years seems to bring out some ambiguous behavior on the part of French artists in occupied France. On the one hand, it greatly reduced the competition from foreign sources and citizens not of the “vieux souche” , … Continue reading

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MATISSE:Supreme Indifference to Context

During the war years, Matisse lived first in his apartment in Nice and later in a rented villa in the ancient hilltown of Vence, recovering slowly from the abdominal operation of March, 1941, that left him a semi-invalid for the … Continue reading

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PICASSO HO HUM:The Banality of Evil?

The story of Picasso’s Guernica is in itself a study of myth and of enduring magic….Even Picasso could not a foreseen the impact of Guernica and his own struggles living in occupied France. The political situation forced Picasso into isolation. … Continue reading

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