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Book Review of Pablo Picasso: A Life from Beginning to End (Biographies of Painters)

Pablo Picasso: A Life from Beginning to End (Biographies of Painters)
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Helpful Score: 1


If you can believe it, Pablo was declared an art prodigy at the age of 2! Obviously, that went to his head because he didn't seem to think he could learn from anyone else. He spent more time out of school than in. Picasso comes across as a thoroughly unlikeable character, having an ego with no bounds. He was an atheist and a communist (because he saw it as the only workable antithesis to Fascism). Of the absolutely thousands of his paintings, Picasso stars in an incredible number.

One interesting insight was the fact that Picasso rarely took a commission; he assumed people would pay for whatever he painted. His granddaughter admitted that Picasso was difficult to be around because he 'demanded human sacrifices' (used people and overwhelmed them with his needs). His work includes over 13,000 paintings, 100,000 engravings,34,000 illustrations, 1228 sculptures, and 2880 ceramics. He left 45,000 pieces of art for his extended family to fight over, after his death.