Picasso and the Surrealist summer
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 Pablo Picasso and Lee Miller.
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 Âé¶¹Éç interview with Eileen, digital archivist Jonathan Charlton tells the story of that summer in an episode produced by Jane Wilkinson.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
On radio
More episodes
Broadcasts
- Wed 10 Jun 2026 07:50GMTÂé¶¹Éç World Service
- Wed 10 Jun 2026 11:50GMTÂé¶¹Éç World Service
- Wed 10 Jun 2026 17:50GMTÂé¶¹Éç World Service except East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa
- Wed 10 Jun 2026 21:50GMTÂé¶¹Éç World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
- Thu 11 Jun 2026 02:50GMTÂé¶¹Éç World Service except East and Southern Africa, East Asia, South Asia & West and Central Africa
Podcast
-
Witness History
The story of our times, told by the people who were there