1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:13,960 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Holly 3 00:00:14,000 --> 00:00:18,160 Speaker 1: Frye and I'm Tracy V. Wilson, and today we're going 4 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:20,560 Speaker 1: to talk about an artist who has kind of been 5 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: on my radar for a while, but definitely as a 6 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: bit of a backgrounder. And then one of my very 7 00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:29,720 Speaker 1: dearest friends suggested her because there is a really fabulous 8 00:00:29,840 --> 00:00:32,720 Speaker 1: exhibit of her work going on at the DeYoung Museum 9 00:00:33,080 --> 00:00:35,800 Speaker 1: in San Francisco right now, not for a whole lot longer, 10 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:39,440 Speaker 1: It's up until February ninth, and I one hundred percent 11 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:41,440 Speaker 1: scrambled for a minute to see if I can make 12 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: it out there, but my schedule is not being cooperative 13 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:48,879 Speaker 1: with that plan, so I ordered a bunch of books 14 00:00:49,080 --> 00:00:53,800 Speaker 1: and spent a ton of time researching her instead. So 15 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:56,600 Speaker 1: many thanks to my dear friend Kristen, who I adore, 16 00:00:56,840 --> 00:01:01,160 Speaker 1: for setting this idea in motion tomorrow. The Olimpica was 17 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:05,639 Speaker 1: a trailblazer with an incredible, very fresh style that really 18 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:10,200 Speaker 1: defined and influenced the Art Deco movement. She lived a 19 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 1: life that was focused on originality, both artistic and personally. 20 00:01:15,080 --> 00:01:18,840 Speaker 1: She is a lot of personality heads up as we 21 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:21,560 Speaker 1: talk about her that there is very brief mention of 22 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:26,280 Speaker 1: domestic violence in this episode. Tamara Gerwick Gorshka was born, 23 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 1: according to her own account, on May sixteenth, eighteen ninety eight, 24 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:36,560 Speaker 1: probably in Warsaw, Poland. Her parents were Boris Gerwick Gorshki, 25 00:01:36,640 --> 00:01:41,080 Speaker 1: who was a lawyer, and Malvina Gurick Gorshka. As she 26 00:01:41,120 --> 00:01:44,920 Speaker 1: always told her personal story, her family moved to Moscow 27 00:01:44,959 --> 00:01:47,559 Speaker 1: and she was still very, very tiny, but there's really 28 00:01:47,600 --> 00:01:49,880 Speaker 1: been a lot of debate about whether that was the 29 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:53,720 Speaker 1: case or whether she was actually born there after the 30 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 1: family moved. The timing of that move also suggests that 31 00:01:57,880 --> 00:02:00,640 Speaker 1: she would have been born several years ear earlier than 32 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:04,080 Speaker 1: she actually claimed, so it's now believed that she was 33 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:08,160 Speaker 1: actually born in eighteen ninety four. To add even more 34 00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:11,040 Speaker 1: confusion to the story of her entry into the world, 35 00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:15,440 Speaker 1: her first name appears in three different ways in addition 36 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:19,560 Speaker 1: to Tamara. Sometimes this is recorded as Maria and other 37 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: times as Rosalia. There are also recorded entries where the 38 00:02:24,280 --> 00:02:28,360 Speaker 1: name is some combination of two or those three possible 39 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:32,720 Speaker 1: first names. She had an older brother named Stanzik and 40 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:37,600 Speaker 1: eventually a baby sister named Adrian. There are additional question 41 00:02:37,680 --> 00:02:43,000 Speaker 1: marks in Tamora's childhood, some of them quite tragic. Her father, Boris, 42 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:46,799 Speaker 1: possibly died by suicide, although Tomorrow always stated that her 43 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:49,760 Speaker 1: parents had divorced while she was still young. If you're 44 00:02:49,800 --> 00:02:51,960 Speaker 1: starting to think, wow, she told a lot of stories 45 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: that don't really always connect with what's verifiable that is accurate, 46 00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 1: and you might want to just be accustomed to that. 47 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:01,120 Speaker 1: Boris was not part of her life though. After her 48 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:05,160 Speaker 1: very earliest years, regardless of the nature of the end 49 00:03:05,240 --> 00:03:08,080 Speaker 1: of the marriage, Malvina took her children and moved back 50 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:11,040 Speaker 1: to Warsaw, where she had grown up and where her family, 51 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: which was quite wealthy, assisted in raising the children. As 52 00:03:15,240 --> 00:03:20,040 Speaker 1: a teenager, Tamara benefited from her relationship with her grandmother, Clementina, 53 00:03:20,600 --> 00:03:23,880 Speaker 1: in that the two of them traveled extensively together. Tamara 54 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:27,040 Speaker 1: got a lot of exposure to arts and culture, and 55 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:29,600 Speaker 1: because of her family's wealth, she was also able to 56 00:03:29,639 --> 00:03:34,120 Speaker 1: attend a Swiss finishing school while staying with relatives in 57 00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:38,120 Speaker 1: Saint Petersburg. Sometime between the ages of eighteen and twenty one, 58 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:42,680 Speaker 1: Tomorrow met a young man named Todayus Lempiqui, and today 59 00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 1: Us was handsome. He was a lawyer. He was very 60 00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:50,040 Speaker 1: prominent in the Saint Petersburg social scene, and the pair 61 00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:54,360 Speaker 1: quickly fell in love and got married. Things seemed perfect 62 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:57,200 Speaker 1: at this point. The couple ran in very stylish and 63 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:00,120 Speaker 1: wealthy circles, and today Us was on track together had 64 00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: an appointment as a lawyer for the czar. But that 65 00:04:03,920 --> 00:04:07,720 Speaker 1: meant that when the Russian Revolution started in nineteen seventeen 66 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:10,720 Speaker 1: and the Bolsheviks came to power, Today's was on the 67 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:14,480 Speaker 1: wrong side of the revolution and he was arrested. The 68 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:17,760 Speaker 1: exact reason is a little unclear. He was arrested in 69 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:20,960 Speaker 1: the middle of the night, and Tomorrow was not told why. 70 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:25,279 Speaker 1: Tomorrow's family had already left Poland, which was occupied, and 71 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:28,840 Speaker 1: they had headed to Copenhagen, but Tomorrow's stayed in Saint Petersburg, 72 00:04:28,880 --> 00:04:31,279 Speaker 1: where the couple had been living, and looked for him. 73 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 1: She even visited prisons to see if he was there. 74 00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 1: That didn't turn up anything, so she started asking anybody 75 00:04:38,279 --> 00:04:41,240 Speaker 1: she could for help, and finally got some assistance from 76 00:04:41,279 --> 00:04:45,599 Speaker 1: the Swedish consul. It's not really spelled out anywhere, but 77 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:47,960 Speaker 1: it seems like she may have had an affair with 78 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 1: the consul. He promised that he was working on Today's case, 79 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:55,400 Speaker 1: but also urged her to get out of Russia, which 80 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:59,200 Speaker 1: she eventually agreed to. He got her to Finland and 81 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:02,359 Speaker 1: then the Console returns to Russia with the promise that 82 00:05:02,440 --> 00:05:06,280 Speaker 1: he would keep working on freeing her husband. Tomorrow went 83 00:05:06,360 --> 00:05:09,679 Speaker 1: to Copenhagen and eventually the Console was able to secure 84 00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:12,960 Speaker 1: Todais's release. He was able to join his wife, and 85 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:16,920 Speaker 1: from there they moved to Paris and sort of resettled there. 86 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 1: They had their daughter, Maria Christina. She was born in 87 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:23,920 Speaker 1: Paris shortly after the move, and they called her Casette. 88 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:27,440 Speaker 1: She would become a huge part not just of Tomorrow's life, 89 00:05:27,480 --> 00:05:31,799 Speaker 1: but also of her art. Yeah, there is some insinuation 90 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:35,640 Speaker 1: in most biographies that that Console kind of was like, hey, 91 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:41,280 Speaker 1: I will help you if you help me by sexual favors. 92 00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:47,640 Speaker 1: So Tracy just referenced Tamara's art career, and that art 93 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: career began in Paris. At this point, the family had nothing, 94 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 1: and it seems that Todayo's was really struggling regarding a job. 95 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: Tomorrow's sister Adrianne is often credited with advising her sibling. 96 00:06:03,440 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 1: This is written different ways, but basically, get a career 97 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:10,479 Speaker 1: and you won't have to depend on your husband. And 98 00:06:10,560 --> 00:06:12,719 Speaker 1: this sort of makes it sound like today Is was 99 00:06:12,800 --> 00:06:15,160 Speaker 1: just kind of kicking around like a deadbeat, but it 100 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:18,760 Speaker 1: is a lot more complicated than that. He had just 101 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,240 Speaker 1: spent six weeks as a political prisoner, and he was 102 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:24,760 Speaker 1: very changed by that experience. He was not the happy, 103 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:27,360 Speaker 1: go lucky playboy that he had been when the couple met. 104 00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:31,640 Speaker 1: But Tamorrow also didn't have any patience for this change 105 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:36,120 Speaker 1: in personality. Although she did step up to financially support 106 00:06:36,120 --> 00:06:40,600 Speaker 1: the family, Today's, for his part, was not kind to 107 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:44,240 Speaker 1: her either. He turned down jobs that he was offered 108 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:46,800 Speaker 1: because he felt they were beneath him, and this led 109 00:06:46,839 --> 00:06:49,960 Speaker 1: to arguing, and that arguing escalated to the point where 110 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:54,360 Speaker 1: Today's became physically abusive. Both of these people were miserable 111 00:06:55,200 --> 00:06:57,360 Speaker 1: as she was looking for ways to bring in an 112 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:01,279 Speaker 1: income through art. She was incredibly sad about doing so. 113 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:03,800 Speaker 1: One of the things she did at this time was 114 00:07:03,839 --> 00:07:07,000 Speaker 1: to add the DA to her name to become Tamora Olimpica. 115 00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:10,520 Speaker 1: She had a strong knowledge of art from her travels 116 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:13,640 Speaker 1: to museums around the world with her grandmother, but in 117 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:17,800 Speaker 1: Paris she started studying art formally with Maurice Deni and 118 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:22,800 Speaker 1: andrelt Lot was particularly influential on her, although she did 119 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:26,520 Speaker 1: soon go past him in skill. According to an interview 120 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:30,120 Speaker 1: with Tamara's great granddaughter and a state manager, Marisa d'limpica, 121 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:33,200 Speaker 1: that was part of a short documentary prepared by the 122 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:36,440 Speaker 1: Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco in connection with that 123 00:07:36,520 --> 00:07:39,560 Speaker 1: exhibit we mentioned at the top of the show, Tomorrow 124 00:07:39,560 --> 00:07:42,320 Speaker 1: once told her quote, you know, Marissa, when we left 125 00:07:42,320 --> 00:07:45,440 Speaker 1: Saint Petersburg, we had to flee. We lost our house, 126 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:48,240 Speaker 1: we lost many of our friends, we lost all of 127 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:53,560 Speaker 1: our possessions. We arrived in Paris with nothing. I decided 128 00:07:53,640 --> 00:07:56,800 Speaker 1: I was going to become the most important painter in Paris. 129 00:07:57,160 --> 00:07:59,840 Speaker 1: And after every painting I would sell, I would buy 130 00:07:59,840 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 1: myself a diamond bracelet. So that may sound like a 131 00:08:04,080 --> 00:08:09,920 Speaker 1: frivolous move, and certainly Tomorrow was a very showy human being. 132 00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:13,280 Speaker 1: She was like such a peacock in all the great ways. 133 00:08:13,800 --> 00:08:16,440 Speaker 1: But as her great granddaughter Marissa goes on to explain, 134 00:08:17,040 --> 00:08:21,800 Speaker 1: those purchases actually achieved two things. So one, that stack 135 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:25,760 Speaker 1: of bracelets that did grow on her forearm telegraphed how 136 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 1: successful she was. And two those valuable pieces of jewelry 137 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:34,440 Speaker 1: served as a sort of insurance policy. Tomorrow knew that 138 00:08:34,520 --> 00:08:37,120 Speaker 1: if her life once again turned on a dime like 139 00:08:37,160 --> 00:08:39,559 Speaker 1: it had in Russia and she was left with nothing, 140 00:08:40,120 --> 00:08:43,600 Speaker 1: she could use those bracelets as a potential financial cushion, 141 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:46,840 Speaker 1: basically selling them off to live. After we take a 142 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:49,440 Speaker 1: quick sponsor break, we'll talk about the way her career 143 00:08:49,600 --> 00:09:02,840 Speaker 1: really took off. By nineteen twenty two, Dlimpica was ready 144 00:09:02,880 --> 00:09:06,240 Speaker 1: to start showing her work. The first painting that she 145 00:09:06,320 --> 00:09:09,560 Speaker 1: became known for in Paris was portrait of a young 146 00:09:09,640 --> 00:09:13,080 Speaker 1: Lady in a blue dress. This is an image of 147 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:16,600 Speaker 1: a woman named Ira Perrault, with whom Tamara had a 148 00:09:16,679 --> 00:09:23,040 Speaker 1: romantic relationship. This painting doesn't feature the very stylized appearance 149 00:09:23,080 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: that Dylmpica's work would eventually become known for. It shows 150 00:09:27,240 --> 00:09:30,120 Speaker 1: Ira from the waist up and she appears to be 151 00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:34,040 Speaker 1: sitting and wearing a very simple, drapy blue garment. It 152 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:36,120 Speaker 1: says it's a blue dress. Honestly, it looks like a 153 00:09:36,120 --> 00:09:40,199 Speaker 1: piece of fabric draped across her. Era's dark hair is wavy, 154 00:09:40,280 --> 00:09:43,880 Speaker 1: it looks slightly tozzled. It's framing her face, and her 155 00:09:43,920 --> 00:09:47,040 Speaker 1: face has an orange red lip, and her dark eyes 156 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:51,160 Speaker 1: are outlined with coal. Compared to Dlmpica's later work, it 157 00:09:51,200 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: looks quite naturalist. Another painting, portrait of a polo player, 158 00:09:56,600 --> 00:10:00,320 Speaker 1: is most likely a painting of her husband, Todaus. This 159 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:04,120 Speaker 1: image is also a pretty straightforward portrait. The man that 160 00:10:04,160 --> 00:10:07,120 Speaker 1: it features is facing slightly down and away from the viewer, 161 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:11,199 Speaker 1: so his eyes are shadowed and his expression is fairly neutral. 162 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:16,880 Speaker 1: His clothes are shades of beijas, tans, and browns. Another 163 00:10:16,960 --> 00:10:20,600 Speaker 1: painting from her early showings once again shows a person 164 00:10:21,040 --> 00:10:25,560 Speaker 1: close to her life, this time her daughter Cosette. This 165 00:10:25,640 --> 00:10:27,960 Speaker 1: painting is called Portrait of a Little Girl with her 166 00:10:28,000 --> 00:10:30,720 Speaker 1: Teddy Bear, and it shows Cosette sitting down with her 167 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:33,640 Speaker 1: teddy Bear seated next to her. One of her arms 168 00:10:33,720 --> 00:10:36,400 Speaker 1: is draped around the bear's shoulders. They kind of look 169 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:40,040 Speaker 1: like they're sitting on a stupora set of stairs. This 170 00:10:40,160 --> 00:10:42,680 Speaker 1: painting is a little less detailed than the other two 171 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:46,760 Speaker 1: we've mentioned, with more expressive brushstrokes that are still dramatic 172 00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:49,600 Speaker 1: in contrast, but they're often softer than in the era 173 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:53,440 Speaker 1: in today's portraits. She doesn't use outlines in this one, 174 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:57,840 Speaker 1: so all of the vibes are very soft on it. Overall, 175 00:10:58,000 --> 00:11:02,000 Speaker 1: Dlimpica's early works reflect the development of her personal style 176 00:11:02,480 --> 00:11:05,679 Speaker 1: after her studies with Denie who was a symbolist at 177 00:11:05,800 --> 00:11:10,120 Speaker 1: Loote who combined Cubism with more natural styles, and her 178 00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:13,520 Speaker 1: early art shows that she is working towards becoming a 179 00:11:13,640 --> 00:11:17,559 Speaker 1: unique voice in the Paris art scene. She later noted, 180 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:20,400 Speaker 1: and she said this many times in a variety of ways, 181 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:24,320 Speaker 1: my goal is never to copy, create a new style, 182 00:11:24,640 --> 00:11:29,120 Speaker 1: clear luminous colors and feel the elegance of the models. 183 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:33,760 Speaker 1: Over the next several years, Stylmpica's singular style started to 184 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:37,120 Speaker 1: really coll less in her work. Throughout the years from 185 00:11:37,160 --> 00:11:40,360 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty two to nineteen twenty four, she was showing 186 00:11:40,400 --> 00:11:44,320 Speaker 1: her work alongside other artists in salons, but just a 187 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 1: few years into her career, she also had her first 188 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:52,560 Speaker 1: solo show that was in Milan. After the Milan exhibit, 189 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:56,040 Speaker 1: Tamara's rise to fame as an artist was quite rapid. 190 00:11:56,559 --> 00:12:00,839 Speaker 1: She later attributed this speedy career progress to her technique 191 00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:04,560 Speaker 1: and style, noting quote, I was the first woman to 192 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:07,760 Speaker 1: paint cleanly, and that was the basis of my success. 193 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:11,560 Speaker 1: From one hundred pictures, mine will always stand out, and 194 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:14,360 Speaker 1: so the galleries began to hang my work in their 195 00:12:14,400 --> 00:12:18,600 Speaker 1: best rooms, always in the middle, because my painting was attractive, 196 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:23,480 Speaker 1: it was precise, it was finished. So she wasn't wrong 197 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:28,560 Speaker 1: about aspects of this. Her work is very distinctive. I 198 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:30,680 Speaker 1: will say, if I could just travel back in time 199 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:33,600 Speaker 1: and bottle like a tenth of her confidence, that would 200 00:12:33,640 --> 00:12:36,600 Speaker 1: be spectacular. Yeah, that must be a great headspace to 201 00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:40,920 Speaker 1: live in. By the late nineteen twenties, she was making 202 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:44,280 Speaker 1: enough money to purchase a home on Paris's Left Bank 203 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:48,319 Speaker 1: and to have it renovated in very luxurious Art Deco style. 204 00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:52,800 Speaker 1: A big factor in that financial success and stability was 205 00:12:52,800 --> 00:12:55,840 Speaker 1: the patronage of doctor Pierre Bouchard, who had made a 206 00:12:55,880 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 1: fortune by inventing an indigestion cure, and he had purchased 207 00:13:00,120 --> 00:13:02,839 Speaker 1: some of Dlimpica's work before he offered her a two 208 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:06,240 Speaker 1: year contract for a series of portraits of his family, 209 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:08,880 Speaker 1: and she used the money from that deal to set 210 00:13:08,880 --> 00:13:13,160 Speaker 1: herself up in her home, including creating a very beautiful 211 00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:17,679 Speaker 1: studio to work in. Her lavish tastes were not isolated 212 00:13:17,800 --> 00:13:21,439 Speaker 1: to art and design, though Dlimpica became well known as 213 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:25,120 Speaker 1: a party fixture, on the Paris social scene, and she 214 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,440 Speaker 1: definitely engaged in a really sex, drugs and alcohol lifestyle. 215 00:13:30,240 --> 00:13:32,680 Speaker 1: She was a work hard, play hard kind of woman 216 00:13:32,720 --> 00:13:35,800 Speaker 1: who had an intense work ethic that meant she would 217 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:38,960 Speaker 1: paint for nine to ten hours at a time and 218 00:13:39,000 --> 00:13:42,480 Speaker 1: then would unwind with some champagne in a massage before 219 00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:45,959 Speaker 1: heading out for the evening. She had affairs with both 220 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:48,880 Speaker 1: women and men, and a lot of them became subjects 221 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:53,600 Speaker 1: of her work. That work was inherently sexy. The subjects 222 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:57,199 Speaker 1: always looked really glamorous. Her portraits of women show them 223 00:13:57,200 --> 00:14:00,480 Speaker 1: in very clingy, satiny garments, so they're by bodies are 224 00:14:00,480 --> 00:14:04,520 Speaker 1: really evident beneath their clothing. A lot of her paintings 225 00:14:04,600 --> 00:14:07,960 Speaker 1: are nudes, where she depicts women's bodies without making it 226 00:14:08,040 --> 00:14:11,160 Speaker 1: about the gaze of the viewer. These scenes are really 227 00:14:11,320 --> 00:14:15,160 Speaker 1: self contained, with the subjects looking anywhere but out from 228 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:21,560 Speaker 1: the canvas. Yeah, even when her subjects were dressed, often 229 00:14:21,600 --> 00:14:24,920 Speaker 1: there would be like one breast peeking out, or you know, 230 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:27,960 Speaker 1: you could totally see everything about their body in them. 231 00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:32,920 Speaker 1: Tamara had never been faithful to her husband. She told 232 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:35,680 Speaker 1: friends a story of meeting a handsome man at a 233 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:39,040 Speaker 1: reception just before her wedding, and then running into him 234 00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:42,760 Speaker 1: again shortly after she and Today's returned from their honeymoon 235 00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:45,400 Speaker 1: and starting an affair with him. That affair went on 236 00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:49,040 Speaker 1: for quite some time, and that was merely the beginning 237 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:52,800 Speaker 1: of a long line of affairs and lovers. In a 238 00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:56,080 Speaker 1: lot of these cases, these were sort of long term affairs, 239 00:14:56,160 --> 00:14:59,680 Speaker 1: many of which seemed to go on sort of simultaneously. 240 00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:03,440 Speaker 1: One of her frequent painting subjects Ida Perrot, who we 241 00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 1: mentioned earlier, was her girlfriend for years and years, but 242 00:15:07,920 --> 00:15:10,120 Speaker 1: she would have sort of intense periods where she saw 243 00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:12,160 Speaker 1: one person a whole lot, and then a different person 244 00:15:12,200 --> 00:15:14,480 Speaker 1: a whole lot, and kind of moves through all of 245 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:18,160 Speaker 1: these people that were part of her circle. This unconventional 246 00:15:18,160 --> 00:15:20,640 Speaker 1: way of life is reflected in a quote of hers 247 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:23,920 Speaker 1: that is often cited, quote, I live life in the 248 00:15:23,960 --> 00:15:28,520 Speaker 1: margins of society, and the rules of normal society don't apply. 249 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:33,280 Speaker 1: In the margins. She often would just approach beautiful women 250 00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:35,680 Speaker 1: in the street and ask them to model for her, 251 00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:38,880 Speaker 1: and it was then not unusual for her to begin 252 00:15:39,040 --> 00:15:43,120 Speaker 1: sexual affairs with those models. But Today's was a lot 253 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:46,280 Speaker 1: more socially conservative than his wife. He seems to have 254 00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:49,840 Speaker 1: tolerated all of Tomorrow's affairs for a while, although he 255 00:15:50,040 --> 00:15:53,480 Speaker 1: really didn't like them, but friction between the two of 256 00:15:53,520 --> 00:15:57,240 Speaker 1: them ultimately escalated to a point where the marriage ended. 257 00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:01,680 Speaker 1: This actually evidence is a double stated. In Tomorrow's life, 258 00:16:01,760 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 1: she had a lot of affairs but never left the marriage. Today's, 259 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:08,480 Speaker 1: in contrast, met another woman, fell in love with her, 260 00:16:08,760 --> 00:16:12,560 Speaker 1: and then left Tomorrow. Tomorrow was really devastated and felt 261 00:16:12,560 --> 00:16:16,680 Speaker 1: completely betrayed. She begged him to reconcile, and eventually he 262 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:20,000 Speaker 1: did agree and they tried again. The family went to 263 00:16:20,040 --> 00:16:23,720 Speaker 1: Monte Carlo, where Tomorrow often traveled with Casette, to see 264 00:16:23,720 --> 00:16:26,960 Speaker 1: if they could work things out, but instead they had 265 00:16:27,160 --> 00:16:30,560 Speaker 1: just a colossally huge fight in front of their daughter. 266 00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:36,760 Speaker 1: In that fight, he listed every infidelity that Tomorrow had 267 00:16:36,800 --> 00:16:39,600 Speaker 1: ever had in their marriage. She told him it was 268 00:16:39,680 --> 00:16:42,760 Speaker 1: just because he was weak and not enough, and that 269 00:16:42,880 --> 00:16:45,760 Speaker 1: was the end of that. A portrait of Today's that 270 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:49,280 Speaker 1: Daylimpica had started working on in the late nineteen twenties 271 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:52,040 Speaker 1: near the end of their marriage, includes one sad and 272 00:16:52,120 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 1: pretty telltale detail. The left hand, where his wedding ring 273 00:16:57,120 --> 00:17:02,040 Speaker 1: should have been is unfinished. Tomorrow's relationship with her daughter 274 00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:06,639 Speaker 1: through all of this was not great. Although she used 275 00:17:06,720 --> 00:17:09,080 Speaker 1: Cosette as a model for a lot of her paintings, 276 00:17:09,119 --> 00:17:12,160 Speaker 1: she wasn't exactly what you would call a loving mother. 277 00:17:13,200 --> 00:17:16,320 Speaker 1: She sometimes used her daughter almost as a prop in 278 00:17:16,359 --> 00:17:20,200 Speaker 1: her fabulous lifestyle, but then she wouldn't always acknowledge her 279 00:17:20,320 --> 00:17:23,719 Speaker 1: as her daughter publicly. She often told people while they 280 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:27,600 Speaker 1: were out that Casette was her younger sister. In the 281 00:17:27,680 --> 00:17:30,879 Speaker 1: preface of a biography of Tomorrow that Casette worked on 282 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:34,560 Speaker 1: with a co author named Charles Phillips, Phillips writes, quote, 283 00:17:34,720 --> 00:17:37,680 Speaker 1: as anyone who knew both Cosette and her mother will 284 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:40,480 Speaker 1: tell you the two of them spent oft and on 285 00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:45,040 Speaker 1: a difficult half century together. Tamara was an artist and 286 00:17:45,119 --> 00:17:48,119 Speaker 1: a mother in that order, and her daughter's life, like 287 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,280 Speaker 1: her own, was ruled by the dictum of what we 288 00:17:51,359 --> 00:17:57,280 Speaker 1: call below the artist's hunger work. Before all, although Dlimpica 289 00:17:57,320 --> 00:18:00,640 Speaker 1: had risen to fame in Europe, she was also quickly 290 00:18:00,720 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 1: sought after by clients in the United States, and at 291 00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:06,760 Speaker 1: the end of the nineteen twenties she traveled to New 292 00:18:06,880 --> 00:18:10,840 Speaker 1: York to work on several commissions. One of these commissions 293 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:14,200 Speaker 1: was a wedding portrait of Joan Jeffrey, who was marrying 294 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:18,720 Speaker 1: Rufus T. Bush. Both Joan and Rufus were from extremely 295 00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:22,800 Speaker 1: wealthy families. Joan's grandfather had made a fortune in the 296 00:18:22,800 --> 00:18:26,600 Speaker 1: early automobile industry, and Rufus's family made their money in 297 00:18:26,800 --> 00:18:31,679 Speaker 1: railway yards. The portrait, though, had a strange life. The 298 00:18:31,680 --> 00:18:34,679 Speaker 1: Bush marriage did not work out, and it ended in 299 00:18:34,720 --> 00:18:38,880 Speaker 1: divorce after only a few years. Dylympicus's painting went into 300 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:42,359 Speaker 1: storage and it was forgotten. But hang on to that thread, 301 00:18:42,400 --> 00:18:46,880 Speaker 1: it will come back. Yes. Dlimpico was in New York 302 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,560 Speaker 1: on October twenty eighth, nineteen twenty nine, Black Monday, when 303 00:18:50,560 --> 00:18:53,640 Speaker 1: the stock market crashed and sent the US headlong into 304 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:57,480 Speaker 1: the Great Depression. The Depression happened at the same time 305 00:18:57,520 --> 00:19:00,640 Speaker 1: that a lot of European nations were also ex experiencing 306 00:19:00,680 --> 00:19:04,159 Speaker 1: economic strife. So the world that Tamorrow lived in, and 307 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:09,280 Speaker 1: specifically the wealthy circles of luxurious partying, had again changed. 308 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:13,160 Speaker 1: But unlike her experience in having to leave Saint Petersburg 309 00:19:13,240 --> 00:19:16,800 Speaker 1: with nothing, d Olimpica was able to weather the depression 310 00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:19,880 Speaker 1: and continued to paint and make a living as an artist. 311 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:24,000 Speaker 1: In a moment, we'll talk about a few paintings from 312 00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:28,160 Speaker 1: Olympica's huge body of work. First, though, we'll hear from 313 00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:41,160 Speaker 1: the sponsors that keeps stuffiness in history class going. One 314 00:19:41,160 --> 00:19:44,720 Speaker 1: of the Olympica's most famous paintings is her Self Portrait 315 00:19:44,800 --> 00:19:49,040 Speaker 1: in a green Bugatti, created in nineteen twenty nine. This 316 00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:52,560 Speaker 1: painting is often regarded as an iconic piece of imagery 317 00:19:52,600 --> 00:19:55,320 Speaker 1: that shows a woman who is in charge of herself 318 00:19:55,359 --> 00:19:59,359 Speaker 1: and her future self possessed. It's a close up on 319 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:02,600 Speaker 1: the artist from the point of view just outside the 320 00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:05,040 Speaker 1: driver's side door and a little in front of it. 321 00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:08,679 Speaker 1: She wears a sleek driving cap with a blonde curl 322 00:20:08,800 --> 00:20:12,919 Speaker 1: just emerging from it on each side. Her eyes look sly, 323 00:20:13,200 --> 00:20:16,159 Speaker 1: and her skin is a creamy white, and her pale 324 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:20,160 Speaker 1: gray clothing is sort of piled around her. Aside from 325 00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:22,840 Speaker 1: the light green of the car body, the main pop 326 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:26,119 Speaker 1: of color is the deep red of her lips. This 327 00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:28,840 Speaker 1: painting is a little bit claustrophobic in terms of it 328 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:31,240 Speaker 1: feeling like a very small space, but it is also 329 00:20:31,320 --> 00:20:36,280 Speaker 1: incredibly striking. But it is very artificial in terms of 330 00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:40,439 Speaker 1: its subject matter. That Self Portrait was a commission for 331 00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:45,000 Speaker 1: the magazine Didama, a German women's magazine. It featured the 332 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:49,240 Speaker 1: most modern of women and ideas. Dlimpica had met the 333 00:20:49,280 --> 00:20:52,520 Speaker 1: magazine's editor in Monte Carlo while she was on vacation, 334 00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:56,800 Speaker 1: and the commission was born of that meeting. But this 335 00:20:57,080 --> 00:21:01,040 Speaker 1: was not a version of Dlimpica that actually existed. She 336 00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:03,760 Speaker 1: didn't own a Bugatti. She drove her a know her 337 00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:08,119 Speaker 1: car was yellow, not green. She changed up these details 338 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:10,160 Speaker 1: to create a piece of art that she thought would 339 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:14,320 Speaker 1: be more alluring, but would also carefully portray her in 340 00:21:14,359 --> 00:21:18,200 Speaker 1: a way that was sort of personality propaganda. It made 341 00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:22,640 Speaker 1: her look wealthier than she really was, and colder portrait 342 00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:25,120 Speaker 1: makes her look like a woman that's really fully in 343 00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:28,600 Speaker 1: control of her life and her world, which is a 344 00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:33,120 Speaker 1: contrast to anybody's reality, really. But this was definitely true 345 00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:35,680 Speaker 1: of Dlimpica, who had created a life that was very 346 00:21:35,720 --> 00:21:39,720 Speaker 1: glittery and very glamorous, but also kind of primed for 347 00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:42,800 Speaker 1: turbulence because of all the drugs and alcohol in the 348 00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:46,879 Speaker 1: stream of lovers that she engaged with. This kind of 349 00:21:46,920 --> 00:21:49,280 Speaker 1: reminds me of we all have that friend who is 350 00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:55,120 Speaker 1: just always embroiled in a million dramas and they will 351 00:21:55,320 --> 00:21:57,200 Speaker 1: swear to you that they hate drama and they don't 352 00:21:57,200 --> 00:21:59,800 Speaker 1: tolerate it, and I'm like, but there's so much though 353 00:22:00,200 --> 00:22:07,600 Speaker 1: you cultivated. Another important painting in her ouvra is portrait 354 00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:12,040 Speaker 1: of Irra Pee, which she completed in nineteen thirty. This 355 00:22:12,119 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: one's really really striking because, aside from the subject's skin, 356 00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:19,720 Speaker 1: which has, you know, a faint kind of peachy cream tone, 357 00:22:19,800 --> 00:22:23,399 Speaker 1: the dominant tones of the painting are white, black, and red. 358 00:22:24,280 --> 00:22:27,320 Speaker 1: Ira is wearing a white clingy dress and she's holding 359 00:22:27,359 --> 00:22:32,400 Speaker 1: white caliiies, all of which is sharply contrasted with black shadowing. 360 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:36,000 Speaker 1: But then there is a bright red scarf woven through 361 00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:39,520 Speaker 1: the image, and IRA's fingernails and lips are that same 362 00:22:39,600 --> 00:22:44,760 Speaker 1: color red. Dilipica created portrait of Marjorie Fairy in nineteen 363 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:48,720 Speaker 1: thirty two. Like the portrait of Era we just mentioned, 364 00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:52,000 Speaker 1: the model is clad and white, but this image feels 365 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,040 Speaker 1: more intimate and that the white is not clothing but 366 00:22:55,119 --> 00:22:59,439 Speaker 1: simply a cloth that's draped around the subject. Her body 367 00:22:59,520 --> 00:23:02,360 Speaker 1: is turned away from the viewer and she looks back 368 00:23:02,400 --> 00:23:05,439 Speaker 1: over her shoulder. Her blue eyes really jump off the 369 00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:09,400 Speaker 1: canvas in an icy stare. She has blonde hair, which 370 00:23:09,440 --> 00:23:13,760 Speaker 1: reflects the cubist influence of Tomorrow's early art education, because 371 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:17,200 Speaker 1: it looks like it's almost made out of ribbon. There 372 00:23:17,280 --> 00:23:20,800 Speaker 1: is another interesting story of how Tamara ended up married 373 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:23,640 Speaker 1: a second time, and it is actually tied to one 374 00:23:23,680 --> 00:23:28,000 Speaker 1: of her paintings. She had met the Hungarian baron Raoul 375 00:23:28,119 --> 00:23:31,760 Speaker 1: Kufner in her heyday. He was a fan and a patron, 376 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:34,280 Speaker 1: and he had purchased a lot of her works before 377 00:23:34,320 --> 00:23:38,199 Speaker 1: they met. In the late nineteen twenties, Tamara painted a 378 00:23:38,240 --> 00:23:42,480 Speaker 1: portrait of the baron's then mistress, Nana de Herrera, as 379 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:47,040 Speaker 1: a commission for the baron. This portrait was not especially flattering. 380 00:23:48,000 --> 00:23:51,640 Speaker 1: Delipica described not having been very inspired by her subject, 381 00:23:51,640 --> 00:23:54,600 Speaker 1: writing quote, when she came to my studio, she was 382 00:23:54,680 --> 00:23:58,160 Speaker 1: badly dressed. She was not elegant, she was not chiekh. 383 00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:00,359 Speaker 1: I thought, oh no, I don't want to paint her. 384 00:24:00,720 --> 00:24:05,560 Speaker 1: I can't believe that's the famous Nana de Herrera. In 385 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:09,400 Speaker 1: her account, Tamoraw resolved to try to do the painting anyway, 386 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:14,119 Speaker 1: and she details getting Nana to undress, in which state 387 00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:16,960 Speaker 1: she was per the artist a little more interesting to 388 00:24:17,040 --> 00:24:20,679 Speaker 1: look at. You can tell looking at this painting that 389 00:24:20,720 --> 00:24:24,399 Speaker 1: she was not very inspired. The most beautiful aspects of 390 00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:27,520 Speaker 1: it are the flowers that dot the scene. But this 391 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:31,240 Speaker 1: painting is often referred to as an assassination on d 392 00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:34,919 Speaker 1: Lempica's part, because soon Nana was out of the picture 393 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:38,560 Speaker 1: and the artist was the one dating the baron Tomorrow 394 00:24:38,680 --> 00:24:41,720 Speaker 1: married Koufner a few years later in nineteen thirty four. 395 00:24:42,640 --> 00:24:45,919 Speaker 1: Not long into her second marriage, Tamara's work started to 396 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:49,600 Speaker 1: fall off. She showed some signs of depression and was 397 00:24:49,640 --> 00:24:53,119 Speaker 1: painting less and less as a result. The works she 398 00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:56,719 Speaker 1: did produce during this time were darker in tone and 399 00:24:56,880 --> 00:25:00,679 Speaker 1: less glamorous than her earlier paintings. It's as though the 400 00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:04,600 Speaker 1: indulgence of the Roaring twenties had really fueled her lifestyle, 401 00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:09,440 Speaker 1: and as that unsustainable lifestyle of constant parties and hedonism 402 00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:14,200 Speaker 1: faded in Paris, it took some of her spark with it. 403 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:18,639 Speaker 1: One of her post nineteen twenties paintings, Beggar with Mandolin, 404 00:25:18,720 --> 00:25:22,280 Speaker 1: which she created in nineteen thirty five, reflects this shift. 405 00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:26,520 Speaker 1: It depicts an older man with white hair playing his mandolin. 406 00:25:27,560 --> 00:25:30,080 Speaker 1: His face is a lot more realistic than most of 407 00:25:30,119 --> 00:25:33,320 Speaker 1: her glamorous paintings, and his eyes, which look up and 408 00:25:33,359 --> 00:25:36,400 Speaker 1: to the left of the painting are sorrowful, and they're 409 00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:39,600 Speaker 1: set into a face that is puffy and wrinkled. He 410 00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:43,640 Speaker 1: wears many layers of clothing, and while he doesn't actually look, 411 00:25:43,720 --> 00:25:47,960 Speaker 1: as the title suggests, like someone destitute, the overall effect 412 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:51,840 Speaker 1: is a sad one Gone is the glitzy verve of 413 00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:55,760 Speaker 1: her more famous works from the prior decade. I feel 414 00:25:55,800 --> 00:25:59,000 Speaker 1: like this is also all a reflection of the economic 415 00:25:59,280 --> 00:26:03,480 Speaker 1: crisis was happening global one hundred percent as World War 416 00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:06,720 Speaker 1: two looms tomorrow and the Baron decided to leave Europe 417 00:26:06,840 --> 00:26:09,600 Speaker 1: and moved to the United States. They bought a home 418 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:13,080 Speaker 1: in Connecticut. Although Dalyimpica was really all the time on 419 00:26:13,119 --> 00:26:16,960 Speaker 1: the go, bouncing from coast to coast, she was still 420 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:20,200 Speaker 1: very much in demand as an artist, and there were 421 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:23,840 Speaker 1: multiple exhibitions of her work in Los Angeles and New York. 422 00:26:24,440 --> 00:26:27,560 Speaker 1: But once the United States entered into World War Two, 423 00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:32,240 Speaker 1: the art exhibitions really dwindled. Yeah, it wasn't just her. 424 00:26:32,359 --> 00:26:35,200 Speaker 1: Everybody was kind of you know, galleries were not staging 425 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:38,440 Speaker 1: big exhibits anymore. It was not a time to worry 426 00:26:38,480 --> 00:26:40,959 Speaker 1: about that. Everybody was really focused on the war effort. 427 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:45,080 Speaker 1: But then after the war Dlimpica, who was hoping to 428 00:26:45,119 --> 00:26:49,480 Speaker 1: find a new voice to match this new era, really foundered. 429 00:26:49,920 --> 00:26:53,800 Speaker 1: Her work moved into abstract paintings that shared some of 430 00:26:53,840 --> 00:26:57,199 Speaker 1: the shapes and line forms of her portraiture, but they 431 00:26:57,240 --> 00:27:01,440 Speaker 1: didn't generally feature any sort of subject and these did 432 00:27:01,480 --> 00:27:04,879 Speaker 1: not go over especially well. Like if someone wanted an 433 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:08,520 Speaker 1: Olympica and they got this, it was not what they 434 00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:13,280 Speaker 1: were hoping for or anticipating, and her popularity really dwindled. 435 00:27:13,880 --> 00:27:17,280 Speaker 1: Earl died in nineteen sixty two after having a heart 436 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:20,920 Speaker 1: attack aboard a cruise ship, and Tomorrow was really devastated. 437 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:24,240 Speaker 1: The two of them had been married for thirty years 438 00:27:24,359 --> 00:27:27,840 Speaker 1: at that point. She really unmoored herself from the New 439 00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:31,159 Speaker 1: York scene completely. After he died, she sold all of 440 00:27:31,200 --> 00:27:35,760 Speaker 1: her things and started traveling constantly. She circled the globe 441 00:27:35,760 --> 00:27:39,880 Speaker 1: on a series of cruises three times actually, But if 442 00:27:39,920 --> 00:27:42,199 Speaker 1: she was looking for some sort of solace out in 443 00:27:42,200 --> 00:27:44,720 Speaker 1: the world, it does not seem like she found it. 444 00:27:45,640 --> 00:27:48,760 Speaker 1: After all of these cruises, she moved in with Cosette 445 00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:51,639 Speaker 1: and her husband and their two daughters. They were living 446 00:27:51,680 --> 00:27:56,480 Speaker 1: in Houston, Texas. She traded Casette pretty poorly while they 447 00:27:56,560 --> 00:27:59,960 Speaker 1: lived in Texas together. Tomorrow seemed to think that Casette 448 00:28:00,119 --> 00:28:03,520 Speaker 1: was her personal assistant and expected her to just handle 449 00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:07,920 Speaker 1: everything from her finances to her travel arrangements, while Tomorrow 450 00:28:07,960 --> 00:28:12,119 Speaker 1: tried to take over Casette's social circle. Even people who 451 00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:15,440 Speaker 1: were very close to Tomorrow during this time have acknowledged 452 00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:19,359 Speaker 1: that her behavior toward her daughter was hyper critical and 453 00:28:19,520 --> 00:28:23,960 Speaker 1: often really cruel. She dictated the way that Casette had 454 00:28:23,960 --> 00:28:26,560 Speaker 1: to dress and style her hair if she wanted to 455 00:28:26,560 --> 00:28:29,000 Speaker 1: be seen in public with her mother, and was just 456 00:28:29,720 --> 00:28:35,120 Speaker 1: generally very deeply controlling. Dalipica also seemed to go through 457 00:28:35,119 --> 00:28:38,160 Speaker 1: the kind of challenges that often befall people as they 458 00:28:38,200 --> 00:28:41,000 Speaker 1: age and struggle to find their way in an ever 459 00:28:41,120 --> 00:28:45,320 Speaker 1: changing world. She often bemoaned that her art was suffering 460 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:48,000 Speaker 1: because she couldn't get the same kinds of art supplies 461 00:28:48,280 --> 00:28:51,880 Speaker 1: that she could purchase years earlier in Paris. She even 462 00:28:51,920 --> 00:28:54,560 Speaker 1: made her son in law, who was a scientist, mix 463 00:28:54,680 --> 00:28:57,800 Speaker 1: paints for her, but she was never pleased with the outcome, 464 00:28:58,560 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 1: and she also often stated that people had changed so 465 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:03,480 Speaker 1: much from when she was young, and that they were 466 00:29:03,520 --> 00:29:07,160 Speaker 1: no longer stylish or educated, or that everyone was now 467 00:29:07,280 --> 00:29:10,920 Speaker 1: of poor breeding. In nineteen seventy two, there was a 468 00:29:10,960 --> 00:29:15,640 Speaker 1: retrospective exhibit of Tomorrow's works mounted in Paris, and this 469 00:29:15,760 --> 00:29:19,040 Speaker 1: breathed life into her career briefly, but it did not 470 00:29:19,200 --> 00:29:23,960 Speaker 1: garner the level of popularity that she probably hoped for. Then, 471 00:29:24,320 --> 00:29:27,360 Speaker 1: when there was a potential follow up exhibition in New York, 472 00:29:27,400 --> 00:29:30,320 Speaker 1: Tomorrow made a lot of demands about the gallery that 473 00:29:30,440 --> 00:29:34,120 Speaker 1: was interested in exhibiting her work, including that it would 474 00:29:34,120 --> 00:29:37,400 Speaker 1: have to knock through an exterior wall to put in 475 00:29:37,440 --> 00:29:41,800 Speaker 1: a new window. Her behavior really soured the gallery on 476 00:29:41,840 --> 00:29:46,720 Speaker 1: the deal. This New York exhibit never happened. In nineteen 477 00:29:46,760 --> 00:29:51,560 Speaker 1: seventy eight, Dilepica moved to Quernavaca, Mexico, to retire. She 478 00:29:51,680 --> 00:29:54,840 Speaker 1: had visited Quernavaca many times, and as her place in 479 00:29:54,880 --> 00:29:57,840 Speaker 1: the art worlds of New York, Paris and other cities 480 00:29:57,840 --> 00:30:01,880 Speaker 1: had dwindled, this had really begun where she went for solace. 481 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:04,680 Speaker 1: She lived there the rest of her life, in a 482 00:30:04,720 --> 00:30:09,280 Speaker 1: home called Tris Bamboo. She often harangued Cosette to come 483 00:30:09,320 --> 00:30:12,640 Speaker 1: and visit her, and told her daughter that she felt abandoned, 484 00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:17,160 Speaker 1: but Cosette was dealing with her own family situation. Her 485 00:30:17,240 --> 00:30:20,880 Speaker 1: husband had cancer, and in prioritizing him in his care 486 00:30:21,320 --> 00:30:27,000 Speaker 1: Cosette had, according to Tamara, betrayed her mother. Dlimpica frequently 487 00:30:27,080 --> 00:30:30,440 Speaker 1: rewrote her will during this time, often cutting Cosette out 488 00:30:30,480 --> 00:30:34,520 Speaker 1: completely and insisting that her friends would instead get everything 489 00:30:34,560 --> 00:30:38,440 Speaker 1: when she died. When Cozette's husband, Harold died in nineteen 490 00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:42,920 Speaker 1: seventy nine, Cosette, whose daughters were grown, moved to Cornovaca 491 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:44,959 Speaker 1: to be with her mother and take care of her 492 00:30:45,000 --> 00:30:48,600 Speaker 1: full time as her health was declining. It was just 493 00:30:48,680 --> 00:30:51,880 Speaker 1: a few months later, on March eighteenth, nineteen eighty, that 494 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:55,200 Speaker 1: Tomorrow Olympic had died in her sleep. She had already 495 00:30:55,240 --> 00:30:57,880 Speaker 1: made all of the arrangements for her funeral and paid 496 00:30:57,920 --> 00:31:00,800 Speaker 1: for everything, but her final wish was to have her 497 00:31:00,920 --> 00:31:05,120 Speaker 1: ashes spread at the volcano pubol Kotta Pedal, which her 498 00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:08,480 Speaker 1: daughter and several of her friends managed to do by helicopter. 499 00:31:09,760 --> 00:31:13,360 Speaker 1: There have been a number of fairly triumphant codas to 500 00:31:13,440 --> 00:31:17,880 Speaker 1: tamorawd Olimpica's life and career since her passing. We mentioned 501 00:31:17,920 --> 00:31:21,600 Speaker 1: earlier that portrait of Missus Joan Jeffrey Bush that was forgotten. 502 00:31:22,320 --> 00:31:26,640 Speaker 1: That painting stayed stored away, untouched for almost six decades. 503 00:31:27,600 --> 00:31:31,080 Speaker 1: After Tomorrow's daughter, Cazette, published the first edition of her 504 00:31:31,120 --> 00:31:35,000 Speaker 1: book about her mother, Passion by Design, in nineteen eighty seven. 505 00:31:35,680 --> 00:31:39,120 Speaker 1: Jones's daughter read it and realized that their family might 506 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:43,560 Speaker 1: still have that lost painting. That lost art, which wasn't 507 00:31:43,600 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: so much lost as just forgotten, was located and in 508 00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:51,200 Speaker 1: the intervening years commanded four point six million dollars at auction. 509 00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:54,520 Speaker 1: That auction took place more than twenty years ago, so 510 00:31:54,600 --> 00:31:58,040 Speaker 1: the value of the piece will have risen significantly. And 511 00:31:58,120 --> 00:32:01,560 Speaker 1: it is a very spectacular piece with the subject cladd 512 00:32:01,640 --> 00:32:04,080 Speaker 1: in red, and it almost looks like it could have 513 00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:06,680 Speaker 1: been painted in the nineteen eighties in the style of 514 00:32:06,720 --> 00:32:11,960 Speaker 1: Patrick Nagel. That story and another about a lost Olympica, 515 00:32:12,040 --> 00:32:16,080 Speaker 1: were shared by her great granddaughter, Marissa Olimpica in a 516 00:32:16,120 --> 00:32:20,080 Speaker 1: new forward to Casette's book when it was reissued in 517 00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:24,240 Speaker 1: twenty twenty. The second story of lost art is actually 518 00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:27,320 Speaker 1: one of a theft in two thousand and nine another 519 00:32:27,480 --> 00:32:30,440 Speaker 1: painting that Tamara made the same year as the portrait 520 00:32:30,520 --> 00:32:35,200 Speaker 1: of Missus Bush. This one, titled La Musicienne, was stolen 521 00:32:35,520 --> 00:32:39,360 Speaker 1: from the sharing a museum of realist art in the Netherlands. 522 00:32:40,200 --> 00:32:44,960 Speaker 1: That theft included another painting, which was Adolescence by Salvador Dali. 523 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:49,160 Speaker 1: In a remarkable twist, though these two artworks are in 524 00:32:49,240 --> 00:32:52,880 Speaker 1: the tiny single digit percentage of stolen art that's actually 525 00:32:52,920 --> 00:32:57,640 Speaker 1: successfully recovered. Both of them were found by private investigator 526 00:32:57,760 --> 00:33:01,280 Speaker 1: Arthur Brand, who specializes in art recovery, and was able 527 00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:03,600 Speaker 1: to locate the work in the hands of a criminal 528 00:33:03,680 --> 00:33:07,920 Speaker 1: organization and negotiate with them to get them back. I 529 00:33:08,080 --> 00:33:11,240 Speaker 1: really feel like we've talked about something that Arthur Brand 530 00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:15,440 Speaker 1: has recovered on Unearthed before, probably because his name pops 531 00:33:15,520 --> 00:33:18,240 Speaker 1: up everywhere when you talk about art. He did a 532 00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:20,719 Speaker 1: season on Criminalia of Art Heist and he came up 533 00:33:20,760 --> 00:33:23,479 Speaker 1: several times. Yeah. So this piece was also sold at 534 00:33:23,480 --> 00:33:28,400 Speaker 1: auction in twenty eighteen for a whopping nine million dollars. 535 00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:32,800 Speaker 1: In February twenty twenty, Christie's put Delympica's nineteen thirty two 536 00:33:32,880 --> 00:33:36,480 Speaker 1: painting portrait of Marjorie Ferry up for auction with an 537 00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:40,840 Speaker 1: expected range of eight million to twelve million pounds where 538 00:33:40,880 --> 00:33:43,760 Speaker 1: they thought it was going to sell, it sold for 539 00:33:43,880 --> 00:33:47,840 Speaker 1: sixteen million, three hundred and eighty thousand pounds equivalent to 540 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:52,040 Speaker 1: twenty one point two million dollars. The only other woman 541 00:33:52,160 --> 00:33:54,200 Speaker 1: artist who has sold a piece for more than that 542 00:33:54,360 --> 00:33:58,520 Speaker 1: is Georgio Keef, who's Jimson Weed slash White Flower Number 543 00:33:58,560 --> 00:34:01,160 Speaker 1: one sold her forty four zero point four million in 544 00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:05,400 Speaker 1: twenty fourteen. Not all the modern critics of her work 545 00:34:05,480 --> 00:34:09,480 Speaker 1: have been ebulliant, however, In two thousand and four, Fiona 546 00:34:09,560 --> 00:34:12,760 Speaker 1: McCarthy wrote in The Guardian quote Daylimpica was an artist 547 00:34:12,800 --> 00:34:17,040 Speaker 1: of the fascist superworld. Her portraits were allied to the 548 00:34:17,120 --> 00:34:21,239 Speaker 1: call to Order movement, the return to monumental realism in 549 00:34:21,280 --> 00:34:26,160 Speaker 1: European art. Her art exudes the dark and dubious glamour 550 00:34:26,320 --> 00:34:31,040 Speaker 1: of authoritarian discipline. When she paints the Duchess de la Salle, 551 00:34:31,320 --> 00:34:34,840 Speaker 1: the Duchess is in jack boots, one hand thrust in 552 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:38,000 Speaker 1: her pocket, in an attitude of menace. It is a 553 00:34:38,000 --> 00:34:42,920 Speaker 1: tremendous portrait painted with the sheer, theatrical enjoyment, the unerring 554 00:34:42,960 --> 00:34:47,680 Speaker 1: sense of decor of d Olympica's best work. Uh So, 555 00:34:47,960 --> 00:34:51,600 Speaker 1: even in the beauty some see a very clear dark note. 556 00:34:52,960 --> 00:34:58,960 Speaker 1: Dlimpica continues to captivate and inspire today. Uh Madonna has 557 00:34:59,040 --> 00:35:02,120 Speaker 1: used her art immuse videos and a stage decor in 558 00:35:02,160 --> 00:35:04,640 Speaker 1: live shows. So if you are a fan of Madonna, 559 00:35:05,000 --> 00:35:08,560 Speaker 1: you've seen Olympica's work for sure, but she has also 560 00:35:08,640 --> 00:35:12,480 Speaker 1: inspired fashion like the Giorgio Armani preve Fall Winter twenty 561 00:35:12,520 --> 00:35:15,960 Speaker 1: twenty two twenty twenty three collection, and there have been 562 00:35:16,040 --> 00:35:19,600 Speaker 1: stage adaptations of her life story, and last year a 563 00:35:19,640 --> 00:35:23,320 Speaker 1: documentary about her titled The True Story of Tamara d 564 00:35:23,320 --> 00:35:27,279 Speaker 1: Olimpica and the Art of Survival that is limited enough 565 00:35:27,280 --> 00:35:30,640 Speaker 1: availability that I have not been able to see it. Dlimpica, 566 00:35:31,520 --> 00:35:35,280 Speaker 1: while she is a very complicated character, remains very iconic, 567 00:35:35,680 --> 00:35:40,000 Speaker 1: and her work is instantly recognizable, and she has a 568 00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:43,400 Speaker 1: lot of very dedicated fans, all of which probably would 569 00:35:43,400 --> 00:35:46,400 Speaker 1: have delighted her. Do you also have some listener mail? 570 00:35:47,160 --> 00:35:52,839 Speaker 1: You know that I do. This listener mail is in 571 00:35:52,920 --> 00:35:57,759 Speaker 1: fact about Christmas. This is from our listener Kira. I 572 00:35:57,760 --> 00:36:00,600 Speaker 1: hope I am saying your name correctly. Who writes Hi? 573 00:36:00,800 --> 00:36:03,520 Speaker 1: Tracy and Holly, thank you for all the wonderful hours 574 00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:06,800 Speaker 1: of entertainment and knowledge. I just listened to your episode 575 00:36:06,840 --> 00:36:10,600 Speaker 1: on Christmas decorations. I have never had a Christmas Eve 576 00:36:10,680 --> 00:36:15,040 Speaker 1: without live candles on the tree. Live candles are still 577 00:36:15,160 --> 00:36:18,200 Speaker 1: very common in Denmark, with about forty percent of households 578 00:36:18,239 --> 00:36:21,560 Speaker 1: having live candles on the Christmas tree. While it is 579 00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:24,520 Speaker 1: more dangerous than electric lights, I want to share why 580 00:36:24,560 --> 00:36:27,960 Speaker 1: it is not as dangerous as it might seem. The 581 00:36:28,040 --> 00:36:31,520 Speaker 1: lights are special Christmas tree lights, slightly larger than a 582 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:35,840 Speaker 1: birthday cake light, with wings that stop about a centimeter 583 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,960 Speaker 1: before the end of the candle, thus preventing the candles 584 00:36:38,960 --> 00:36:42,359 Speaker 1: from burning down. We usually only put up our tree 585 00:36:42,360 --> 00:36:45,359 Speaker 1: on the twenty third so it is still fresh. We 586 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:48,560 Speaker 1: never leave a tree with lights on without observation and 587 00:36:48,719 --> 00:36:52,360 Speaker 1: always have a bucket of water, etc. Close by. Never 588 00:36:52,440 --> 00:36:54,880 Speaker 1: had to use it. For me, the lighting of the 589 00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:58,520 Speaker 1: Christmas tree is the most special part of Christmas. While 590 00:36:58,560 --> 00:37:00,680 Speaker 1: I see the tree during the day, in the evening, 591 00:37:00,800 --> 00:37:04,120 Speaker 1: everyone goes into a different room while one person lights 592 00:37:04,160 --> 00:37:06,239 Speaker 1: the tree. Then we all go in to look at 593 00:37:06,280 --> 00:37:08,640 Speaker 1: the tree and join hands. I'm choked up. This sounds 594 00:37:08,680 --> 00:37:12,400 Speaker 1: so sweet walking around the Christmas tree singing Christmas songs 595 00:37:12,400 --> 00:37:16,879 Speaker 1: and carols. Beautiful. Kira attached photos of her tree. There's 596 00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:21,120 Speaker 1: also a sparkler on top, which is, she says, a 597 00:37:21,200 --> 00:37:24,560 Speaker 1: tradition in her family, but less common in general. It's very, 598 00:37:24,680 --> 00:37:26,840 Speaker 1: very beautiful, I will say, and her kids look just 599 00:37:26,840 --> 00:37:31,919 Speaker 1: full of wonder. It also still terrifies me. I don't 600 00:37:31,920 --> 00:37:35,560 Speaker 1: know if I have just grown up in the the 601 00:37:35,920 --> 00:37:39,239 Speaker 1: US era of UL safety tags on everything that tell 602 00:37:39,320 --> 00:37:40,920 Speaker 1: me that it's all going to go up in flames 603 00:37:40,920 --> 00:37:44,200 Speaker 1: that I'm like, I don't know, but it's so beautiful. 604 00:37:44,200 --> 00:37:46,480 Speaker 1: I completely understand. And it is one of those things 605 00:37:46,480 --> 00:37:49,399 Speaker 1: where I bet if it is something that happens for 606 00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:52,680 Speaker 1: like an hour in the evening, it feels extra magical 607 00:37:52,719 --> 00:37:54,960 Speaker 1: and beautiful. So thank you, thank you, thank you so 608 00:37:55,040 --> 00:37:56,880 Speaker 1: much for sharing this with us. It got me choked up. 609 00:37:56,880 --> 00:38:00,680 Speaker 1: It's so sweet and it is quite quite beautiful. Even 610 00:38:00,719 --> 00:38:03,920 Speaker 1: if I'm scared, you can write to us and make 611 00:38:03,960 --> 00:38:06,879 Speaker 1: me cry. If you'd like a history podcast at iHeartRadio 612 00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,080 Speaker 1: dot com. You can also subscribe to the podcast on 613 00:38:10,120 --> 00:38:14,920 Speaker 1: the iHeartRadio app or anywhere you listen to your favorite shows. 614 00:38:18,760 --> 00:38:21,840 Speaker 1: Stuff you Missed in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 615 00:38:22,239 --> 00:38:26,839 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 616 00:38:26,960 --> 00:38:29,000 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.