Picasso, R. A.?

Forty years ago, when crusty Augustus John first saw the works of young Pablo Picasso, he was "at once struck by his unusual gifts." Since then, John, 73, has become Britain's leading academic portraitist; Picasso, 70, the most brilliant and controversial figure in modern art. This week, writing in London's Sunday Times, Augustus John brought his original impression up to date:

"Omnivorous and insatiable, [Picasso] helps himself, without scruple, from every pot in turn. Such are his abnormal digestive powers, that after only partial mastication, he will regurgitate each exotic titbit in a form but slightly distorted in the process ... A wily gastronome, he knows what's good for him . . .

"Picasso, unlike some of his admirers, is steeped in the past . . . His explorations have led him to stylistic exercises which at first sight disturb, or even horrify, but which, on analysis, reveal elements derived from remote antiquity or the art-forms of primitive peoples . . . [His] ceaseless industry . . . may seem to some capricious and rootless, but it undoubtedly deserves its reward in the greatest snob-following of our time."

John was ready to suggest another reward. Considering Picasso's reputation with British artists and critics, "would it not be a gracious and timely gesture on the part of the Royal Academy if, with the consent of the Sovereign Senor Picasso were invited to accept Honorary Membership of that historic body?"

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