Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc [Paperback]

Arthur I. Miller (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 5, 2002

The most important scientist of the twentieth century and the most important artist had their periods of greatest creativity almost simultaneously and in remarkably similar circumstances. This fascinating parallel biography of Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso as young men examines their greatest creations-Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon and Einstein's special theory of relativity. Miller shows how these breakthroughs arose not only from within their respective fields but from larger currents in the intellectual culture of the times. Ultimately, Miller shows how Einstein and Picasso, in a deep and important sense, were both working on the same problem.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Intellectual historians widely acknowledge that Einstein's theory of relativity and Picasso's cubist paintings launched modernity. Although the physicist and painter never met, their creative geniuses developed simultaneously under similar social circumstances and during an unrivaled period of cultural ferment. Moreover, Miller, professor of history and philosophy of science at University College London, contends, both Einstein and Picasso were deeply influenced by mathematician and philosopher Henri Poincar‚'s treatise on non-Euclidean geometry, La Science et l'hypothŠse. Both Einstein and Picasso borrowed from Poincar‚ the idea of a temporal and spatial dimension beyond our own that could be captured in art and physics. Miller plunders previously unavailable sources as he narrates the parallel biographies of Einstein and Picasso. He traces in great detail the influences of photography, geometry and X-ray technology on Picasso's art as well as the influence of aesthetic theory on Einstein's science. Through close readings of the theory of relativity and Picasso's groundbreaking Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, Miller argues that these two men were working on the same problem: "how to represent space and time at just the moment in history when it became apparent that these entities are not what we intuitively perceive them to be." In the 21st century, it is old news that artists and scientists struggle with the best ways to represent space and time. But Miller's eloquent and wide-ranging interdisciplinary history of ideas returns us to the beginning of the 20th century when two brilliant minds challenged reigning understandings of space and time and fashioned revolutionary models that imbue contemporary culture's understandings of itself and the physical world. (Apr.)Forecast: There is probably not a huge readership for this title, but it will sell well to students of science, art and the history of ideas. The author will make appearances in Chicago and Cambridge, Mass., in late March, and such engagements should help him reach his audience

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

During the span of a few years shortly after the start of the 20th century, roughly from 1904 to 1908, two quiet revolutions in how we perceive the world were underway. In Switzerland, Einstein was working on the nature of time and space. In Paris, Picasso tackled a similar problem in the creation of the seminal Cubist work "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" (for a detailed history of this painting, see William Rubin and others' Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, LJ 2/1/95). Miller (history and philosophy of science, University Coll., London) examines the two men and the revolutions they initiated. Pulling together the lives of the physicist and the painter, as well as the band of friends, colleagues, influences, and lovers that surrounded them at that time. Miller creates a compelling argument for the confluence of aesthetics and science. Illustrated with scientific diagrams as well as work by Picasso and others, this is recommended for larger collections on modern art in public libraries and for most general academic collections. Martin R. Kalfatovic, Smithsonian Inst. Libs., Washington, DC
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (March 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465018602
• ISBN-13: 978-0465018604
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #405,547 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #40 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( E ) > Einstein, Albert

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Brilliant Point of View, June 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc (Hardcover)

In this intriguing new book, science historian Arthur I. Miller looks in parallel at the achievements of Einstein in physics and Picasso in art and explores the common origins of each. But first he asks the important question of why--what were they after? No less than the truth, it seems, and a representation of nature--space and time--that went deeper than the side of it we perceive through our senses. He shows how it was basically the same problem for both, and how they went about tackling it, with particular details given as the story unfolds.

The author's energetic writing style captures the spirit of that magic time at the beginning of the 20th century when dramatic changes were in the air--the discovery of X-rays, new developments in photography and filmmaking, breakthroughs in mathematics and psychology. The book shows how Einstein and Picasso responded to these changes, arriving on the scene poor but full of optimism and confidence, with a savvy in picking up on opportunities that Bill Gates would probably admire.

Chapters on Einstein alternate with those on Picasso; occasionally, one man makes an appearance in the other's space (in the form of an observation by the author, because, of course, the two never met). This gives a sense of events occurring at the same time. At one point we see them grappling with questions of simultaneity, framed in this technique. Harold Pinter couldn't have done better.

The stories of their personal lives, and how they influenced their work, are told in a very absorbing way--their poignant relationships with women that often ended in tragedy, the friends they spent time with, the opinions they listened to, the books and journals they read, and the cafes they frequented (especially when their early apartments didn't have kitchens).

A recent Sunday New York Times review aptly likens the book to "an intellectual thriller." The key to the mystery lies in the book by French mathematician Henri Poincare, "Science and Hypothesis," mentioned repeatedly. Picasso was intrigued by Poincare's discussion of the fourth dimension--motion in time--and the author describes how Picasso got wind of it and who explained it to him. Einstein had read a German translation of the book and was impressed with its brilliant mathematics and views on "aesthetic sensibility," and we read how notions of aesthetics were essential to his discovery of relativity.

The author gives due credit to Cezanne's influence on Picasso (After all, who can forget his famous aphorism that everything in nature is modeled on the sphere, the cone, and the cylinder?) Then he shows how Picasso took geometrization a step further, and then some, with a very well thought out analysis of the mathematical underpinnings of cubism that gives a fuller understanding of the paintings.

Arthur Miller draws on his background in physics to show how Einstein discovered relativity. (Math phobes shouldn't worry--there aren't any equations.) He especially goes into how Einstein, rather than relying completely on empirical data, used conceptual thought, which is often a difficult process. It's an approach that goes a long way to explaining why Einstein succeeded where others didn't.

The author supports his views with an abundance of carefully researched information and ties it all together, and doesn't overlook subtle clues. It could take some effort to get through certain parts of the book, but he gives you a great deal of help. He takes you along on the adventure, and in some of the pages on Einstein invites you to do your own thought experiment, using examples from everyday life, such as an elevator ride.

I imagine this book will fascinate a wide range of readers, both scholars and laypersons interested in the ideas that shaped our time, and will inspire lively discussions for years to come.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thinking Differently, May 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc (Hardcover)

Miller's book does a splendid job of examining the various influences leading to the conceptual breakthroughs of Einstein and Picasso. Their courage to think differently and to find new perspectives is inspiring and offers insights into the creative process. It is no "easy read" however. Where his book falls short is in the concluding chapter: there he attempts to formulate a theory of the creative process which was wholly unsatisfying and unconvincing to this reader. The first seven chapters were wonderful and make this book worth reading.

30 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars strains to equate two rather different lives, February 17, 2002

By 

Omar N. Ali (LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc (Hardcover)

The idea that there may be a connection between the appearance of relativity and cubism at the beginning of the twentieth century is not a new one. Though it has been shown quite convincingly that Picasso was not aware of Einstein's work when he and Braque invented cubism, it is still possible to say that BOTH Einstein and Picasso were influenced by some common elements that had appeared in western culture at that time. This, in itself, would be unremarkable; Both Einstein and Picasso lived in the same continent at the same time, it would be very surprising if they did NOT have some common influences. But professor Miller tries to stretch this comparison to the breaking point and well beyond. The result is a book in which excellent summaries of their early life and careers are marred by clichéd and overblown psychobabble and cultural theorizing.
The book is still interesting because it deals in detail with the lives of two such gifted and unique individuals. But the comparisons are frequently forced, and the author seems to have failed to take the advice of either of the masters. Picasso was dismissive of most attempts to retrospectively slot his art into some art historian's version of "influences and phases" and he would certainly have resisted any attempt to "explain" his genius in this manner. Einstein, too, was willing to leave the mystery of creativity unsolved. Mr. Miller would have done well to present us with two separate books about Einstein and Picasso, or one bigger book on the cultural ferment of the early nineteen hundreds. This attempt to find "the secret of creativity" fails to rise above the level of the self-help manuals that crowd our bookshops. Einstein loved music, so music is listed as one of the routes to creative "non-verbal" thought. But the fact that Picasso was never interested in music does not constitute a counter-example for Mr. Miller. Meanwhile, Picasso smoked hashish and took opium with great regularity through this period, but while the slightest hint that he might have heard of geometry is inflated beyond belief, this significant aspect of his life gets only two lines in the book.
Last, but not the least, while science and art are both human products, their natures are very different. Much of Modern art has moved beyond mere representation and become more like music (an esthetic experience which may or may not represent a particular "story") but science is nothing if it's not a coherent story. Einstein rebuilt the foundations of modern science by systematically and LOGICALLY questioning the basic assumptions of Newtonian physics and the discoveries of electro-magnetism. This achievement may have involved intuition and unconscious influences, but it would be useless if scientists could not eventually understand and agree on its meaning. Modern art may well deal with matters even more important than the physical structure of the universe (love, sex, death, loss, meaning, values, rebellion, rage...) but it would not be art if all artists were to agree on its significance and meaning.