Picasso and the Surrealist Summer (from Witness History)

Available for 18 days

In the summer of 1937, some of the 20th Century's most famous artists, writers and photographers were holidaying in the south of France. They included artist Pablo Picasso, photographer Lee Miller, poet Paul Éluard and the painter Man Ray. The group were part of the Surrealist movement – a style of art inspired by dreams and hidden thoughts that can look strange and bizarre - and one of their most recent converts was artist Eileen Agar. Through a 1985 BBC interview with Agar, digital archivist Jonathan Charlton tells the story of that summer. This episode comes from the BBC podcast Witness History, where, for nine minutes every day, eye-witness accounts are brought to life by archive. For those fascinated by and curious about the past, Witness History takes listeners to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. There are thousands of Witness History episodes to discover on BBC Sounds. To discover, search for ‘Witness History’ on BBC Sounds and subscribe for new episodes every week.