[wagglebee]

Every art movement in history has emerges BECAUSE various artists copied the styles of others.

[tallhappy]

Jonathan Richman was certainly wrong.

[Popman]

Every original thought and concept first came out of Africa.

Didn't you get the memo?

[Joe Boucher]

After his death they took all the stuff around his home and had a world tour. The 1st place the show appeaered was Seoul Korea of all places. I was fortunate enough to see it there. More recently I witnessed another very large collection of his work in South east Florida. In between at the Smithsonian, Norton in Pasadena and W. Palm Beach. Getty in Santa Monica N.Y.s met and others.Prolific isn't the word.
He didn't copy or steel. He was a genius of creativity.

Learn from others style? Yes of course but copy or steel. No way.

[1rudeboy]

Al Gore stole my Internet idea. There you have it . . . I just had to get it off my chest.

[mc6809e]

He is a thief!

And while we're on the subject of cultures stealing from other cultures, let me suggest that you read Shakespeare in the original Klingon. Some things just don't translate well into English.

[Steamburg]

I thought we didn't post racist articles. LOL

[Richard Axtell]

Illiteracy has its penalties, one of which is reactionary cultural bigotry, as reflected by the influence of leftist "Multiculturalism" which is nothing more than anti-Western curltural chauvinism. Even when artistic inspiration is well attributed, anti-Western critics feel the need to spout venom. They are as enlightened as the Taliban were, when then destroyed the Buddhas of Bamiyan.

[Lizavetta]

I'll never forget this show I saw 6 or so years ago that appeared to be basically about black achievement or some such theme. Much of the audience was in traditional African dress complete with the robes and hats, and the only host i remember was the guy who played Jordy on Star Trek.

Well, it turns out that basically everything orginated in Africa, including the martial arts. Oh yes, it did. The Asian dudes in the audience were looking at each other like, What the ....

I guess it makes blacks feel better to 'claim' everything. Call it AlGore-itis.

[mylife]

Whaaaaa! Whaaaa!
Were so great! Whaaaa! look at us everbody! Whaaaa

[hosepipe]

[ Picasso 'stole the work of African artists' ]

AH! HA!.. sooo thats why his work looks like it does..
Scratching head.. never could figure what people saw in it..

Picasso the psuedo-RAP artist.. now that expains it..

[Ramius]

His letter has prompted a furious response, with one correspondent comparing his attitude to the "black fascists who were critical of Paul Simon when he collaborated with Ladysmith Black Mambazo". Simon worked with the group on his Gracelands album in 1986 and was accused of exploiting them for commercial ends. Picasso and Simon are not the only artists to have been accused of appropriating African art without giving full credit.

Huh? Paul Simon certainly *did* give full credit to Ladysmith Black Mambazo for the Graceland work. He also featured them on his tour. They got wide and heavy publicity, and they became stars overnight. Who's exploiting who?

[Bonaparte]

This will inhibit other pretigious exhibits from being brought to SA. Then Memela will whine that Africans are now being slighted and discriminated against.

Perhaps he can be mollified by sending an art exhibition that vividly depicts events in African history.

Suggested themes might include, "Africans selling their people to Dutch slavers," "Sudanese slavery today," "Screaming girl being clitorectomized," "Rape and massacre of the Christians," "Raped infant with AIDS," "Burning tire man in agony," "Murder and robbery of the white farmers" and "Night of the Hutu machete."

[pabianice]

Of course. Everyone knows Africans invented painting. And music. And mathematics. And modern chemistry and physics. And astronomy. And the Space Shuttle. And the iPod. And they all were stolen by European and Jewish thieves. I am the walrus! Koo-Koo Kachoo!

[Publius6961]

He added: "There were four artists - Picasso, Braque, Matisse and Derain - who put tribal art on the map. It was regarded as of no cultural importance but then they started buying it at junk shops and they elevated it to the same importance as Renaissance art."

That's the irony of this whole discussion. Had it not been for Picasso, Braque, Matisse and Derain - that primitive art would still be of no cultural importance in civilized countries.
As it remains for me, as does Picasso's most famous works.

I would love to have some of Picasso's earlier works, before he became famous and rich, and African.

[ozzymandus]

Lest we forget, blacks also built the pyramids, and black people could fly until the cruel white devils pulled their wings off. So sez calypso louie.

[durasell]

I don't see the controversy here...African art is terrific. Picasso is great. If he incorporated some of the stylistic aspects of African art into his works, then he did so because they moved him. What's the big deal?

[RightWhale]

The African styles in some of Picasso's work have been known since they first appeared. Picasso was capable of highly realistic portrait drawings, as well as having the idea of incorporating time into static pieces. The various styles used to express his aesthetics are mere instruments.

[Pharmboy]

Hmmm...I don't see the African influence.

[libstripper]

Absolutely. Take a look at English literature and fiction since the time of Shakespeare. Much of it is inspired by his plots, including the current season of "The Sopranos" where it's predicted that we'll see a Soprano family meltdown much like the familial meltdown that befell King Lear. Now we should all go out and accuse the "Sopranos" writers of stealing "King Lear" from Shakespeare.

[nickcarraway]

They are now blaming Africans for his crappy art?