Picasso's War

by Russell Martin

On April 26, 1937, in the late afternoon of a busy market day in the Basque town of Gernika in northern Spain, the German Luftwaffe began the relentless bombing and machine-gunning of buildings and villagers. Three-and-a-half hours later, the village lay in ruins, its population decimated. This act of terror and unspeakable cruelty outraged the world and one man in particular, Pablo Picasso. The renowned artist, an expatriate living in Paris, reacted immediately to the devastation in his homeland by creating the canvas that would become widely considered one of the greatest artworks of the twentieth century-- Guernica . Weaving themes of conflict and redemption, of the horors of war and of the power of art to transfigure tragedy, Russell Martin follows this monumental work from its fevered creation through its
journey across decades and continents. "Absorbing . . . Picasso's War is a fetching and well-crafted account of Pablo Picasso's huge and astounding painting, Guernica."
-- Los Angeles Times
"Refreshingly original . . . Martin is above all a first-rate investigator [who] deftly weaves together world and art history."
-- The Boston Globe
"A fascinating and lively read."
-- The Denver Post
"An engrossing story of a landmark work of art . . . Martin is, first and foremost, a consummate storyteller."
-- Kirkus Reviews

304 pages, Paperback

Published March 1, 2023

Reviews

[Avery Sinclair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picasso’s War is one of those nonfiction books that pulls you in slowly and then refuses to let go. Russell Martin doesn’t just tell the story of Guernica he brings you into the world that made its creation necessary.

What I loved most is how the book balances history with storytelling. The sections describing the bombing of Guernica are devastating but essential, and you can feel exactly why Picasso was driven to respond with such urgency and anger. The way Martin traces the painting’s journey politically, culturally, and physically is fascinating and surprisingly emotional.

Martin also gives space to the people around Picasso, the political climate, and the tension in Europe at the time. It never feels like dry history. Instead, it reads like a human story about how art becomes a weapon of truth

[Happy Booker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A concise and compelling narrative as Russell Martin explores the creation of Picasso's monumental Guernica reflecting the bombing of the Basque town and the painting's symbolic journey across decades from a tense world fair debut to its exile in New York, and finally its triumphant rturn to Spain. Martin's meticulous research and well-crafted story telling makes an ideal balance of history through the eyes of Picasso and the painting's journey making history and art accessible. The painting has its home on the Rena Sophia museum located in Madrid-not in the Basque country where the Guggenheim has a solid place dedicated for placement of the precious painting when the museum was being built. It is also not located in Guernica where the devastating bombing occurred.