The Art of Rivalry: Four Friendships, Betrayals, and Breakthroughs in Modern Art
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.92 (632 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B01LY7U74D |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 229 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-08-29 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Beyond Rivalry At first I thought the conceit behind this book was pretty thin but on reading it is extremely well done and a must read for those seriously interested in ideas around art making. Smee is undoubtedly an excellent writer it was the concept that I thought was worrying. The book flows, is engaging and indeed in some sections a page turner, not something you might easily apply to a book of art history. Well done.. and I felt like I was on the train privy to Sebastian Smee's This book was written really well, and most interesting! Right out of the gate it grabbed me. I never knew there was a Degas that Manet messed up, and I felt like I was on the train privy to Sebastian Smee's thoughts about the expectation of seeing a work of art. I never knew much about Bacon and Freud. I think I enjoyed the De Kooning/Pollack portion the best. I found the whole thing very interesting though, the angst involved in trying to push the envelope, and . Dramatic stories, dazzling prose This book is both art criticism and literature, with an admixture of biography. I was carried away by the virtuosity of the prose. The artists and the relationships Sebastian Smee writes about come alive in these pages.The theme of challenging friendships among the greats is an inspired vehicle for discussing the new philosophies of art that emerged in the era of modernism. These artists had to think their way out of the conventions of traditional Western art. The
Jackson Pollock's uninhibited style of "action painting" triggered a breakthrough in the work of his older rival, Willem de Kooning. All eight are household names today. The Art of Rivalry follows eight celebrated artists, each linked to a counterpart by friendship, admiration, envy, and ambition. But to achieve what they did, each needed the influence of a contemporary - one who was equally ambitious but who possessed sharply contrasting strengths and weaknesses. Edouard Manet and Edgar Degas were close associates whose personal bond frayed after Degas painted a portrait of Manet and his wife. Their intense but asymmetrical friendship came to a head when Freud painted a portrait of Bacon, which was later stolen.. Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon met in the early 1950s, when Bacon was being hailed as Britain's most exciting new painter and Freud was working in relative obscurity. Rivalry is at the heart of some of the most famous and fruitful relationships in history. Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso swapped paintings, ideas, and influences as they jostled for the support of collectors like Leo and Gertrude Stein and vied for the leadership of a new avant-garde