She said that her mother was an inspiration to her grandfather and that is why she had a strong presence in his work
Diana Wiedmayr Picasso, granddaughter of one of the world’s most famous artists (Pablo Picasso), reveals in her latest publications an unknown side of the life of her grandfather, who founded the Cubist movement. In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, the researcher specializing in art history acknowledges the role of her family in her research path, and says: “I consider myself lucky to have grown up in a medium that loves art, and in a house that includes masterpieces from my grandfather’s works.”
In her latest edition, “The Magician Picasso,” the granddaughter talks regarding an aspect of the grandfather’s personality that was not known, namely his belief in superstitions. She says: “I found several items, which my grandfather kept secretly in his house, then my grandmother, and my mother following him; Clothes, tufts of hair and nails, laid in pieces of silk, with specific dates, I was fascinated by the discovery of these items, which shed light on an aspect of the personality of my grandfather, who was a strong believer in ancient beliefs, and I remember what my mother used to tell regarding bread that should not be placed upside down on the table, Or the umbrella that should not be opened inside the house, or the will he refused to write, because he thought it would bring death.”
And regarding the strong presence of her mother, Maya, in Picasso’s works and the latter’s interest in childhood themes in his paintings, she says: “My mother was born in 1935, and she was the most representative child in Picasso’s works, and she served as an inspiration to him, just as my grandmother Marie-Therese was before her.” .
And she adds: “Picasso himself used to draw a lot with his children, but also involved them in his works, and he was implicating himself in a dual paternalistic movement, on the one hand reviving the role of (the first teacher) that his father played with him, and on the other hand the role of (the pupil) with his children. The works that were the epitome of these moments inspired Picasso’s new aesthetics, matching the artistic experiments he led throughout his life. Freedom from the constraints of subordination and a return to a kind of primitive representation, simplicity and spontaneity, all this was possible for Picasso by returning to childhood and its aesthetic symbols.
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