A Picasso pilgrimage
Too poor to pay for a model, Picasso sketched his girlfriend. He drew her body from every angle, then experimented with showing several different views on the same canvas. A hundred paintings later, Picasso gave birth to a canvas called "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" (1907) and a bold new style -- cubism.
The art world would never be the same. And neither would Picasso's artwork. A restless innovator, he just kept changing with the times. But even while Picasso explored multiple artistic "languages," he always kept a grip on reality. His favorite subject was people. The anatomy might be jumbled, but all the parts are there.
The comprehensive collection at Paris' Musee National Picasso is drawn from pieces Picasso loved so much that he couldn't bring himself to sell them -- many were still in his possession when he died. Picasso's heirs donated works they owned or inherited in a complicated gift to the French state to avoid taxes -- and voila! -- the museum was born. Housed in a grandiose 17th-century Marais building, it's one of the most popular museums in the city. Get a Paris Museum Pass (www.parismuseumpass.com) or a timed-entry reservation to skip the line (www.museepicassoparis.fr).
Musee Picasso, Antibes, France
Picasso left dreary Paris (and his first wife) after World War II for the south of France. By now an established artist, Picasso was enjoying worldwide fame, the company of women half his age, and a healthy bank account. His Riviera works set the tone for the rest of his life -- they're sunny, lighthearted, and uninhibited.
There are several small Picasso museums in southern France, but I recommend the one in Antibes. Picasso lived in the nearby countryside just after moving south, and for about two months he used the museum's medieval building, the former Chateau Grimaldi, as a studio.
Bursting with pent-up creativity and happiness (the war was over and he was in love), Picasso was prolific. In gratitude, he donated 23 paintings and 44 drawings to the town's museum, putting Antibes on the tourist map (www.antibes-juanlespins.com).
Picasso never returned to his homeland, keeping his vow never to set foot in Spain while the fascist dictator Francisco Franco was in power (Franco outlived him by two years). Pablo died in France, brush in hand. To the end, he continued exploring and loving life through his art.
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(Rick Steves (www.ricksteves.com) writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email him at rick@ricksteves.com and follow his blog on Facebook.)
(c)2015 RICK STEVES DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
