Picasso and the Nazis

Introduction

By the middle of the 1930's Picasso was the most popular living artist in the entire world.  If you didn't know his work you certainly had heard his name.  Picasso had his way with women, the art world, intellectuals, investors who wanted to purchase his art and most of all with the spirit of Modern Art.  Picasso had the perspective.

            The Nazis had a different perspective.  They despised modern art and wanted to eradicate modern art and modern artists in order to create space for their idealized vision of romantic art to flourish.  Hitler gave an important speech in 1937 where he basically said there were only two reasons why artist's painted abstract paintings.  Either the artists were mentally ill and needed to be castrated so they wouldn't reproduce or that the modern artist was a devious terrorist who needed to be exterminated.  There are not too many good choices out there for you, if you are a modern artist, and if Hitler should be driving his army over the borders of your country and into your neighborhood.

Charles Grimes

(Ed. -- This is the intro to a fun, fanciful and factual book on 'Picasso and the Nazis' that Charles has been working on.  So far, he has about 8 out of 9 chapters roughed out.)