The ten episode series Genius: Picasso premieres over National Geographic this weekend

FEW painters have been as awe-inspiringly prolific as Pablo Picasso. One of the most influential and celebrated artists of the 20th century, the Spanish painter's career spanned more than 80 years (he died in 1973 at the ripe old age of 91), during which time he produced an estimated 50,000 works.
His passionate nature and relentless creative drive were inextricably linked to his personal life, which included tumultuous marriages, numerous affairs and ever-shifting political and personal alliances.
Constantly reinventing himself, Picasso always strove to innovate and push the boundaries of artistic expression, leading to his worldwide renown as a genius.
Premiering with a feature-length episode this Sunday, April 22 at 10pm on National Geographic (Astro channel 553/ 573 HD) and unifi TV (Channel 508), the second season of National Geographic's Emmy nominated 10-part global event series (which started with Genius: Albert Einstein last year), Genius: Picasso, explores the Spanish expatriate's devotion to his craft, his contribution to modern art and his turbulent personal life.
Spanish actor Antonio Banderas brings to life the artistic career of the titular artist, whose full name was Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Crispiniano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso.
Playing the younger Pablo is Alex Rich, who rejects academic study and joins the circle of young bohemian artists and writers struggling to make it in early 20th century Spain and France.
Clémence Poésy portrays Françoise Gilot, a French painter and best-selling author whose decade-long affair with Picasso yielded two children, and who was his only lover strong enough to withstand his ferocious intensity and move on with her life.
Robert Sheehan plays Carles Casagemas, a Spanish art student and poet who was one of Picasso's closest friends; Poppy Delevingne portrays Marie-Thérèse Walter, a lover and muse of Picasso, who bore his first daughter; and Aisling Franciosi plays Fernande Olivier, a French artist and model, of whom Picasso painted more than 60 portraits.
 This series was filmed in many locations where Picasso himself once lived and worked. This included a three-day shoot in Málaga, Spain – birthplace of both Picasso and Banderas – where production filmed in the same house in which Picasso was born, the church where he was baptised and the bullring where he found much inspiration in his youth.
Intercutting between Pablo (Rich) as a young man determined to express his own point of view with his art, and the technical master and visionary creator known as Picasso (Banderas), Genius: Picasso opens in the Spanish coastal town of Málaga.
From his days as a child under the tutelage of his father, José Ruiz Blasco (David Wilmont) who is an art instructor at a provincial school to befriending Carles Casagemas (Robert Sheehan) at a tavern in Barcelona where free-thinkers gather.
Kindred spirits, the two travel to Paris in search of fame and fortune but are just two of many aspiring Spanish artists drawn to the French capital.
The series also follows Picasso's highs and lows, affairs, tragedies and how the inspiration behind some of his greatest works came about. Genius: Picasso also features a number of well-known personalities who crossed paths with Picasso, including Coco Chanel, Henri Matisse, Georges Braque and Jean Cocteau.
Genius: Picasso premieres globally in April on National Geographic in 172 countries and 43 languages.