I like the art of Picasso, I like the city of Paris, and I like the books of Dave Haslam.
I was therefore pleased to hear of the release of this book which studies the life and art of famous Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso, in particular his séjour in the vibrant cultural capital of France, Paris, during the Belle Époque, where the artist was free to explore exciting new art styles such as ‘Cubism’ and could revolutionize the world of art in a society of changing cultural values. There was a shift in the world of Art and modern artists no longer sat cosy in the courts of Kings such as Velásquez who came before Picasso as a heavyweight in Spanish Art. The new artist got down with the people and Picasso likes it rough and ready, his work in Paris focussed on the seedy side of life in Pigalles – the SoHo of Paris , with paintings of prostitutes, hedonistic bars and the paintings helped to pay off his lengthy tabs in the quintessential Montmartre cafés. The rapid growth of Parisian café culture helped in the empowerment of women with traditional waiters giving way to the mass employment of waitresses due to the sheer volume of employment available. Often women in cafés were featured in Picasso’s art, sometimes often quite controversially considering the rather chauvinistic attitudes of the age. It is noted that Picasso was conforming as an artist to the concepts of Baudelaire’s theory a of a new style of art.
I know the Montmartre and Pigalles area well, in particular the nightclubs and I believe that the Sacré-Coeur is the most beautiful of all of Paris’ great tourist attractions. I could relate to the geography and Haslam is interesting in the manner in which he develops the local detail as he traces a lot of the sites from the Picasso era through to the present day documenting the change of building use, often central cultural locations disappointingly becoming modern supermarkets. You can tell from Picasso’s art that he’s likely to be quite an interesting bloke and I think perhaps based on what I have read it seems his art is actually quite conservative compared with his total hedonistic lifestyle. I’m surprised he managed to do any painting at all considering his rather tumultuous and very active love life. It seems old Pablo had quite a habit of keeping several women on the go at once, preparing his next relationship well in advance and sometimes event with the women involved openly knowing of their competition. He had a casual and regular opium-smoking habit and liked the odd Absinthe but claimed that toxins didn’t inspire his art at all. Possible to agree or disagree with this statement. The Cirque Medrano seemed a very interesting place and Picasso was a patron. Also, the Ballets Russes emerged during this period, bringing great characters such as Nijinsky to the area. Indeed Paris, during the Belle Époque gathered together many famous faces from across global cultural industries and Picasso was a central figure that bound many of these luminaries together.
The whole Belle Époque period was drawn to a close with the onset of World War I, although the Montmartre area in Paris continues to this day to be a central hub for art and culture folk.I enjoyed hearing about his friendship with Apollinaire. The book is quite brief but is very eloquently written, by an author who is obviously no stranger to nightlife, being a former Haçienda resident DJ in Manchester This gives this book a nice little entertainer’s inside touch. I really appreciated learning more about a famous artist that I already liked and I intend to consult the references to find a more detailed biographic account of Pablo Picasso’s life. I think it would also be worth investing in some of the other available titles in the Configo Publishing Art Decades series.