Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 1625: Chapter 1609: Picasso’s Traits

Although Huo Sining doesn’t know much about Picasso, this person’s fame is globally renowned, so she knows a little bit about him.

Art auctions internationally often regard paintings as a major category.

Chinese paintings, with their freehand style, give people a mysterious and poetically imaginative sense of comfort and beauty; while European realistic oil paintings are cherished for their lifelike portrayals, winning the favor of many collectors.

Yet only Picasso’s abstract paintings remain incomprehensible.

In fact, Picasso initially followed a realistic style, but after a period of downturn, he ventured into a bizarre path, distorting the relationships between figures and perspectives, ultimately forming his unique Picasso style.

Previously, Huo Sining had only heard that Picasso’s paintings were hard to understand, but had no concept. Now, upon seeing the ink paintings and sketches on these scrolls drawn from the cylinder, Huo Sining finally arrived at a clear judgment, that is, the works of this famous artist are truly—bewildering!

These paintings before her eyes, neither resemble humans nor ghosts. Someone like Huo Sining, an outsider who doesn’t understand abstract art, couldn’t make out anything from them, but somehow, these peculiar works are sold at exorbitant prices at international auctions.

A few years ago, Sotheby’s Auction House auctioned a Picasso painting that marked the beginning of the Cubism era, named “Dora with Cat,” which sold for a final price of 95 million USD at the auction.

At the time, this painting was considered one of the world’s most expensive artworks, causing a huge sensation internationally. However, shortly afterward, this price was once again surpassed by Picasso himself.

Just a few months later, Christie’s New York auctioned another Picasso abstract painting titled “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust,” which sold for as much as 106.5 million USD, over 11 million more than “Dora with Cat.”

Huo Sining wasn’t interested in Picasso, but this man’s paintings are indeed extremely valuable.

So when Bai Yishan mentioned Picasso to Huo Sining, Huo Sining was truly shocked, looking at Bai Yishan in disbelief and asking with a very uncertain tone, “Sister Yishan, are you sure this is really… a Picasso painting?”

Bai Yishan shook her head, “I’m not sure, but if this is really a Picasso painting, then Ningning, this time you definitely got more than your money’s worth.”

That’s undeniably true, Huo Sining knows it well herself—a Picasso painting can sell for billions of RMB, and she acquired a dozen of them at once, that’s not just a good deal, it’s a massive profit!

“When I studied in France, my mentor was a bona fide Picasso enthusiast, obsessed with every work of Picasso. Whenever there’s an exhibition related to Picasso, she would tirelessly attend.”

“My first encounter with Picasso’s paintings left me with a similar reaction to yours. I foolishly asked my teacher, ‘Does this mess really count as art? Can Picasso actually draw?’”

At this point, Bai Yishan couldn’t help but laugh, seemingly recalling the scenario from when she first arrived in France:

“Then my teacher told me, Picasso’s paintings shouldn’t simply be viewed as a painting or a style, but rather as a world. The essence of art is actually fantastical madness. The more absurd, the closer it is to art.”

These words left Huo Sining and Su Qingqing deep in thought, “Like Van Gogh?”

Bai Yishan chuckled, “Perhaps, but even now I only have a superficial understanding and haven’t fully penetrated the realm. I feel that trying to analyze art apart from the artist themselves is quite nonsensical, because there really isn’t a standard answer to aesthetics and art—it’s not about good or bad, it’s simply like or dislike.”

Huo Sining agreed with this: “That’s just like antiques, some people see them as crafts, collectors view them as a way to gain wealth, while archaeologists see them as invaluable works of art. Domestic antiques are cherished by many experts, but when taken abroad, foreigners don’t necessarily recognize them. This could be the difference between like and dislike.”

Bai Yishan looked at these paintings in her hand again, nodded, and continued:

“But Picasso has many admirable qualities and traits that other artists definitely lack.”

Huo Sining was taken aback upon hearing this, couldn’t resist asking curiously: “What are those qualities and traits?”

Bai Yishan pursed her lips and grinned, “His name is long, he lived long, and he had lots of women.”

“Pfft—”

Just as Huo Sining took up a bottle of mineral water to drink, she spat it out upon hearing Bai Yishan’s words.

On the other side, Su Qingqing also showed a face saying “Are you kidding me?”

Even Gu Xu displayed a mixed expression, while Miss Yue laughed out loud, “Sis, does that count as qualities and traits?”

Bai Yishan retorted, “Sure, why not?”

Then, she seriously began to analyze for this group of outsiders, starting with a teasing tone:

“Picasso, I previously mentioned his name was Pablo Picasso, right? But actually, his name is Pablo Diego José Francisco… Picasso, with many bits omitted in between because I can’t fully remember them. If transcribed phonetically in Chinese, it exceeds 70 characters—isn’t the name very long?”

Everyone exchanged glances and all nodded in agreement.

Gosh, 70 characters, Huo Sining muttered in her mind, “With a name this long, forget Bai Yishan, Picasso himself might not even remember it!”

“And as for his long life, that’s definitely a merit. Famous painters internationally, including Van Gogh, including da Vinci, including Monet and Raphael—by the later years, most of them had more or less physical or psychological issues, but not Picasso.”

“You might think someone painting such distorted abstract artworks is insane, but not really—Picasso remained physically and mentally healthy, living from the early 1880s into the 1970s.”

“There were even jokes that had he lived a few more years, he might have witnessed Xiaoping’s southern tour and drawn a circle! This painter not only survived World War I, World War II, and the Spanish Civil War, but he also spanned both modern and contemporary eras, outliving any other painter.”

Huo Sining and the others exchanged glances, all tongue-tied and amazed.