L'étranger...

Back in 2015 when my original novella came out, soon someone had the great idea to look up declassified files on Picasso of his dealings with the French state, similarly to Frances Stonor Saunders - who I acknowledged in my work. Interestingly I too quoted Camus, like this curator of a fascinating exhibit in France. Of course, much like the book written by H. Rothschild about an orphaned painting resonated with the premise of my story, it was purely happenstance, and had absolutely nothing to do with me sharing my draft with a writer named Robert Eringer, for his opinion…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/20/arts/pablo-picasso-france.html

It's an excellent survey, but one that curtails why Picasso was under such extraordinary surveillance by the state. My book explains why, and it's damning, considering the collusion between not one but three states during the Cold War, and how Picasso’s last wishes were ultimately steamrolled over. The curator is right: France owes Picasso a huge debt indeed.