As brilliant and beautiful as Picasso’s works are, it turns out he wasn’t actually the nicest of people when it came to his family. According to his granddaughter, Marina, who is now 65-years old, he was a “genius for cruelty”, had a “sadistic temper” and a “contempt for his lovers, wives, children and grandchildren”.

Marina doesn’t have the fondest memories of visits to his villa in Cannes, La Californie, when she was a little girl. She and her brother would have to witness horrible arguments between Pablo and their father, Paulo.

‘You’re incapable of supporting your children,’ Picasso would rage. ‘You’re incapable of making a living. You’re incapable of doing anything. You’re second-rate and will always be second-rate.’

And whilst Marina and her family would eat scraps for dinner, Pablo lived in luxury.

These unfond memories are the cause of her wanting to sell Picasso’s beautiful Cannes villa.

Marina inherited the building when she was 22-years old, and says she has “wished to be rid of it for years” because it “inspired such childhood dread”. So far she has received an offer for £110 million (*cough*). Sweet mother of… That’s roughly R2 billion. I hope Fiji water comes out the taps and that those taps are carved from solid diamond.

Talk about a rags to riches story.

[Source: The Daily Mail]