Amazon.com

Do a faithful rendering of a soup can, a silk-screened photograph of a starlet, or a film of an empty chair constitute works of art? They do, poet and critic Wayne Koestenbaum ably demonstrates, if their author was Andy Warhol.

Warhol, who once observed that in time everyone would be famous for 15 minutes, himself earned early fame "as artist and whirlwind, as impresario and irritant." That fame endured over a career that stretched over four decades, as does his influence, even in some unexpected quarters: "Martha Stewart owes a lot to Andy Warhol," Koestenbaum volunteers. But Warhol, Koestenbaum argues, was much more than an artist. He helped shape the popular culture of his day; he launched the careers of dozens of musicians and artists; he revolutionized interior design, making his studio, the Factory, "an ambient artwork"; and he used art as a way of exploring matters of life, death, sexuality, and group behavior. He was, in short, a self-made phenomenon, an odd American success story.

The price for that success was high, Koestenbaum writes: the controversies Warhol inspired did not always serve him well, his associates had a habit of dying young, and he himself survived an assassination attempt that gave his later work an air of being "bulletins from the afterlife." This slender biography tells all those stories very well, and students of art and contemporary culture will learn much from it. --Gregory McNamee ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Makes You Care Again
This book makes you care again for Andy Warhol. In too many books and articles about Warhol, the authors seem to have some sort of vendetta against him and just want to tear him and his work down. Wayne Koestenbaum cares a great deal for Warhol, and his work. It is his work that is central to this look at his life, though from the start there is no denial of his homosexuality which Warhol himself desperately tried to keep somewhat hidden. You should have something of a familiarity with Warhol's work and life, this isn't really a good introduction to it, but it is the best interpretation of it that I have ever read. It is written with a great deal of sympathy for one of the 20th Century's greatest artists, who most critics - both hetro and homo - try to denigrate and destroy.

How gay was Warhol? About as gay as you can get...
Andy Warhol always stated about people having "15 minutes of fame" but this book, with its fierce, hard-hitting, sexually explicit, brilliant short take on the man's gay life, passions, and art goes much deeper into Warhol's life than we have ever seen. .
This book is part of the Penguin Lives biographies. The Author, Wayne Koestenbaum, shows how Andy Warhol managed to take classic American images such as Campbell Soup cans, Brillo boxes, and the faces of Marilyn Monroe and Jackie Onassis and made us look at them in radically different ways. The Author offers very interesting and intriguing background into Warhol's childhood (e.g., when his mom caught him playing with himself while looking at Popeye), his boyfriends and gay love affairs, his nights among the disco demimonde of Studio 54, the scene at the Factory, and his obsessions with body image, pornography, and AIDS.

Andy Warhol is a 'secret' gay icon of the time. This is a very interesting book that I would highly recommend to everyone.

Horrible
There is no other word capable of describing how utterly pointless, random, and pretentiously written this book is. Wayne Koestenbaum has produced the single worst biography I have ever read. Not only is the writing style painful and full of semi-fancy language used as a subsitute for content, but the book skips over major parts of Warhol's career, concentrating instead on his many movies. After mentioning the Velvet Underground, Koestenbaum writes "Their music has many admirers, but it may be the aspect of Warhol's world with which I have least sympathy, and so I will beg off any attempt at analysis." The utter ridiculousness of this sentence speaks for itself.

One of the most infuriating things about this book is that Koestenbaum repeatedly attempts to make connections between Warhol's works that do not exist, and to analyze his art in ways that don't make sense.

Do not make the same mistake I did and waste time and money on this book.

A gorgeous, innovative work
As a Warhol scholar, and someone who has read dozens of books and essays about him, I would heartily recommend this as an _addition_ to the other works. It's not really a biography in the traditional sense at all, and it certainly shouldn't be the first or only thing you read.

If you prefer a clinical, detached, "just the facts, ma'am" approach - skip this. If you are terrified by 20th century philosophy and psychoanalysis - skip this. If you find it easier to disparage strawman concepts like "postmodernism" rather than actually reading and thinking about continental philosophy (yes, I know it's difficult) - skip this. And judging from the reviews, if you're terribly uncomfortable with sexual themes or "swishiness" in art or writing - forget it.

The book is excellent. The prose is often rich and compelling - my copy is dogeared from all the passages I've marked - and the philosophical and psychoanalytic themes, while not developed, can be very suggestive. Koestenbaum has an excellent reading of many of the films - perhaps the most important and underexamined aspect of his work. Warhol's art is certainly not reduced to postmodernist cliches (as it has been so often elsewhere) nor is it reduced to being "about" his sexual identity. In a striking change, Warhol is not considered as a celebrity or a monster, but like the frail yet determined individual he was, the complex and multifaceted life he led, and the gorgeous, troubling, powerful art he produced. If you don't know anything about Warhol, if you've haven't seen much of his work or any of his films, don't start with this book - you'll be confused and dissappointed. But if you already think you know all about Warhol, and you read this book -slowly - while looking at his work, I think you've find it an incredibly helpful guide.

For real reviews, ...read Hal Foster's review in the London Review of Books

A Repetitive Artist
Frankly, I didn't know very much about Andy Warhol until I read this book. I learned how sexual and abstract (to use one of his favorite words) he really was. The book is a nice overview. It makes me want to learn more about him and see more of his work. There is a wonderful source reference at the end of the book for anyone who may want to continue research and study of WARHOL. He definitely made a mark in the art world for the 20th Century. .... ... Read more

Book Description

46 b/w photographs The original and varied articles comprising Who is Andy Warhol? were specially written by an amazing variety of authors-including Christopher Hitchens, Peter Wollen, and Victor Bockis-for an event held at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh. Through these pieces writers, researchers, and friends explore the nature of Warhol's achievements and the extent of his influence. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An Extraordinary Compilation Of Photography As Art!
Edward Weston, more than any other photographer that I admire and have studied, succeeded in creating photography as art. His abstract and voluptuous landscapes of the human form, his photographic sculptures of organic matter, his special vision that captured unnoticed works of art in nature, bring extraordinary passion and life to black and white photography. His exploration of "the universality of basic form" has provided us with masterpieces of photographic art. Much of Weston's best work is featured in this large and exquisite book. Published in London in association with the Huntington Library, printed and bound in Italy, and issued on fine paper approaching photographic print quality, this book is certainly a wonderful legacy of Edward Weston and his work.

In 1937 and 1938, the Guggenheim Foundation paid Weston to take a two-year photographic trip though California and the West - he was the first photographer to be awarded a Guggenheim fellowship - the images he made during that trip - more than 500, were presented to the Huntington Library. "What it all comes to is this," Weston wrote the Guggenheim Foundation in 1939, "I want very much to have a collection in the Huntington Library and will do anything I can to make it possible." "Edward Weston: A Legacy" organizes much of this material - extensive commentary, notes, biographical information and career-long examples of Weston's photographs. It is a truly stunning compilation.

Weston's work evokes warmth, sensuality, the erotic. There is passion behind his photographs of animals, like the fleet fox, his portraits, and in his strange visions of antique statuary. His nudes, especially the extraordinary work he does with Charis Wilson, take the viewer beyond the erotic to a discovery of eternal forms.

This is a magnificent book containing a master's work - a real treasure!
JANA

Overdue but worth the wait
Edward Weston gave more that 500 of his favorite works to the Huntington Library. Note books and other written material complete a major collection. This book is a major attempt to organize and say something meaningful about a prolific, private genius. I haven't read it all but I've already learned a lot and I've studied Weston for 40 years. The reproductions and their display as 8X10 contact prints is one of the most astonishing feats of printing I've ever seen, especially the nudes of Charis Wilson and the incredible sand dunes at Oceano. There are many photos that I have never seen, many I have seen and some I've held in my hand. This gives me the perspective to say that this book is worth buying just for the prints. You'll think as I have that you missed something until now, especially if all you've seen is book prints. This is as close you'll come to the real thing in print. I've sat buried in this book for half an hour, afraid to breath. ... Read more

Book Description

Before he found fame as the father of Pop Art, Andy Warhol was an accomplished advertising illustrator and commercial artist for fashion tastemakers such as Barney's, Neiman Marcus, I. Miller, Glamour, Mademoiselle, and Harper's Bazaar. This delicately beautiful, colorfully playful, and hugely influential fashion illustration work from the 1950s has never before been collected in a book. A pop object in itself, Andy Warhol Fashion is a fun and gorgeous gallery of hundreds of his most delightful images. These witty drawings -- fanciful shoes, chic hats, smart suits, and perfect accessories to match -- showcase his unique ability to find inspiration in the everyday and elevate the ordinary to the extraordinary. Sprinkled with Warhol's perceptively funny observations ("When you think about it, department stores are kind of like museums."), and a reflection on Warhol's influence in the fashion world by Simon Doonan, Andy Warhol Fashion is a must-have acquisition for anyone with style. ... Read more

Product Description

The complete collection of 35 paintings from Jan Vermeer, a master of Dutch art. His paintings mostly show women in their daily work. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A succinct but dazzling portfolio of Vermeer
Norbert Schneider has written many excellent books on art and among them is this small volume in which he addresses ALL of the paintings of Vermeer. Though the book is short (96 pages) it mirrors the output of the artist - he only painted thirty five works! Schneider's commentary is intelligent, brief, and in obvious adoration of the Dutch School of painting and Vermeer in particular. Not only is each painting reproduced with surprising accuracy of color and clarity, but Schneider provides many details of each work, opening the Pandora's box of each of these little masterpieces with microscopic precision. As is gratefully the tradition at Taschen Books, the price is so affordable that in addition to adding to your own library, this very special art book can be an elegant and dignified gift for your friends! ... Read more

Book Description

This exciting new art series combines the most popular artists with expert text and a fresh, unique, format destined to appeal to children and adults alike.Each of the Rizzoli Quadrifolios features sixteen foldout pages that open into huge poster-sized reproductions of the work, allowing readers to feel as though they have leaped into work itself.The series begins with two artists whose work continually compels audiences: Michelangelo and Van Gogh.Vincent Van Gogh features a variety of the best-known paintings by the Dutch artist, whose work continually breaks records at auctions.A tour of Van Gogh's portraits will travel to major American museums throughout 200 and 2001. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Great Book!
I received this Vincent Van Gogh art book as a gift over 10 years ago and I think it's a wonderful book with some great pictures of Van Gogh's art and I think This book is very well put together. I don't have the edition the previous reviewer had because the pages in my book are like the pages in any other hardcover art book and do not fold out but it sounds like an interesting edition. This book makes a nice coffee table book and I recommend it!

Beautiful images heightened by unusual binding
This unusual book was quite a find. It was made using a binding process I've never seen before. The pages actually unfold in a variety of ways to present images of Van Gogh's best loved paintings in a highly effective manner. Some pages fold out horizontally and present four works side-by-side, others fold out twice forming small posters. The quality of the graphics is excellent--especially the minute details shown in some of the enlarged reproductions. A beautiful volume and an asset to anyone who loves art. ... Read more

Book Description

A witty, profound homage to Western art and an escorted tour of the masterworks beloved by all.

Ranging over hundreds of years—and countless styles—with breathtaking virtuosity, George Deem has repainted the history of Western art. Deem's special gift is to paint, with witty sympathy, his own "revisions" of famous works, revisions that look like the originals but transform them in some way.

Now, in the most comprehensive collection of his work ever assembled, the amazing scope of Deem's devotion to his subject, art itself, can be seen. The greatest American and European artists are represented; their work, at first glance, seems uncannily perfect. Here is an exquisite Vermeer, looking so much like the original that it takes a moment to realize there is no woman holding a water pitcher in the corner of the room. And here is Cubist Cache, Deem's tour de force imagining of what Parisians do with their cubist art when they go away on vacation.

As a special feature the book includes a die-cut, ready-to-assemble version of Deem's quotation of Manet's Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, a cube in which we view the famous picnic from all four sides and from above.

This is the perfect gift book for art lovers. On one level it offers a delightful excursion through the famous paintings that everyone loves. On another, we marvel at the virtuoso display of artistic technique, in which no style or era can resist Deem's fond embrace and witty act of quotation. And finally, here is a body of work that, in affirming the richness and variety of its subject, reaffirms the pleasure we take in painting. 80 color illustrations. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Must Buy
This Book has been one of my greatest reading experiences it has been subtely combined with the portraits. The letters have been written with alot of passion and admiration and also with a certain amount of trust and comfort in one another. this is book is a must buy for all art lovers it will educate them immensely about the life nad works of on of the greatest artists to exsist and besdides that they will get an insight into the life of this great artist and human being. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is not only a fascinating biography of one of the greatest painters of the seventeenth century but also a social history of the colorful extended family to which he belonged and of the town life of the period. It explores a series of distinct worlds: Delft's Small-Cattle Market, where Vermeer's paternal family settled early in the century; the milieu of shady businessmen in Amsterdam that recruited Vermeer's grandfather to counterfeit coins; the artists, military contractors, and Protestant burghers who frequented the inn of Vermeer's father in Delft's Great Market Square; and the quiet, distinguished "Papists Corner" in which Vermeer, after marrying into a high-born Catholic family, retired to practice his art, while retaining ties with wealthy Protestant patrons. The relationship of Vermeer to his principal patron is one of many original discoveries in the book. ... Read more

Book Description

In this strikingly beautiful book, leading Vermeer scholars examine the life and works of this seventeenth-century Dutch master, analyzing his evolution from a painter of religious and mythological images to an artist who explored the psychological nuances of human endeavor. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

I think Vermeer is a much better painter than Rembradt
Well, if two points determine a line then Mike Venezia is making an effort to include more works by the artists he is writing about this year for his Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists series. This volume on Johannes Vermeer includes sixteen works by the artist, who only produced about 40 paintings in his life, along with almost a dozen other works by his contemporaries. Apparently there is less known about the life of Vermeer than any other artist in this series, so this particular volume is precluded from providing a decent biography. This works out fine because Venezia makes more of an effort to explain how Vermeer's paintings work and I always like it when the books in this series can provide some substantive "art appreciation" lessons along with the cartoons. It is interesting that Vermeer's works were mistaken for those of Rembrandt and Pieter de Hooch because when you compare their paintings it is clear Vermeer's work is unqiuely different. In fact, given the senese of quiet and stillness he creates in his works, you may well end up thinking that Vermeer was the best of the bunch from the Golden Age of Art that reigned in Holland during the 17th century. Rembrandt is a great first name (or last name for that matter), but I sure am surprised to discover I think Vermeer was a better painter.

An essential book for art lovers!
I was fortunate enough to have seen the now-legendary Vermeer exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. during the winter of 1995-96. 21 out of the 35 (or 36) extant paintings by Vermeer were included in the show, offering a unique opportunity to see the bulk of Vermeer's amazing works in a single space, something that no one has experienced since 1696, when @20 of his paintings were auctioned in Delft. Given the rarity and fragility of Vermeer's works, it is unlikely that such an event will ever be repeated. All who were unable to make it to the show, however, have this splendid book as a document of this unique event. This book will remain the standard work on Vermeer for many decades, and represents the fruit of several years' labor by art historians on two continents. Because so little is in fact known about Vermeer the man (in truth, we have no idea at all what Vermeer's education, interests, and personality were like), the catalogue essays fill this gap by contextualizing Vermeer's work within the history of Dutch painting, the development of perspective, and the fascinating tale of Vermeer's "rediscovery" in the 19th century and his richly-deserved rise to worldwide fame. The essays and catalogue entries may be too technical for some readers, as the authors have expended a lot of effort to reconstruct Vermeer's exact technique, something which can only be gleaned from careful study of the paintings themselves (no drawings by Vermeer have survived, nor have any statements he may have made about painting). This extensive scholarly apparatus, while illuminating and occasionally even riveting (the essay dealing with Vermeer's rediscovery is a great detective narrative!), tends to obscure the strange, even uncanny emotional charge that his images are suffused with. Vermeer's personal world - so limited in content yet unforgettably haunting and evocative - is one of stillness and peace suffused with tension. Each image contains remarkable spatial and temporal ambiguities that make simple scenes like a lady writing a letter while her maid looks away or two people standing near a piano (The Music Lesson) vibrate with dramatic tension. Sadly, the somewhat passionless writing encases the pictures (all of which are superbly reproduced) in a rhetoric that does not address the fundamental issue: What is it about these paintings that is so powerful that their maker was rescued from total obscurity and has inspired poetry, novels and countless studies? I was hoping to find some discussion of the psychological meaning of these images, but the traditional (overly scholarly and dry) art history within did nothing to help me understand my passion for the "Sphinx of Delft." That said, the book is a masterpiece of empirical research on the artist (barring some new discovery, it is unlikely that we will ever have any more facts about Vermeer and his world than can be read here), exquisitely designed, and distinguished with beautiful reproductions. The volume is certainly one of the few bestsellers in the field of the art book - when I attended the show, the paperback print of the book was totally sold out and the hardcover was flying off the shelves (it is odd that the book has not been reprinted in paperback). Johannes Vermeer is THE text to have on this artist and is unlikely to be superseded anytime soon. Immerse yourself in Vermeer's world and you will be transformed. Seeing this exhibition changed my life, and I treasure this book as a means of recapturing the awe and joy that overwhelmed me at the time. I hope you will enjoy this book as much as I have.

Review
This book contained crucial information aboout the Dutch genre painter Johannes Vermeer. It would be helpful for both a reseach paper or report,as well as for educational purposes. It ranged from biographical information to his professional work. The book was well done and nicely written as well. This one source provides vast information. Included are paintings done by the artist. I think most readers would be able to handle the vocabulary of this book. When finished with this book you will definetly be informed about the artist Jan Vermeer.

vermeer, a door to another world
vermeer's paintings are a door to another world. you see just a small panel with some touches of brush. how familiar this world is, you see the same windows, maids, tables, wine glasses etc. as countless other painters have drawn. but how astonishing this world is, inside these small paintings a wholely new world is. this book will show you the whole world vermeer's paintings create inside small space of canvas, with kindly, easy explanations and full enough illustrations. you may find other catalogues of vermeer's paintings. but if you have this book, ohters are only burden on your bookshelves. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Very good
This year at school, I had to write a research paper about an influential twentieth century American. I chose Andy Warhol. Needing a primary source, I went to the library and used this book. I chose it mainly because it was very big, and at the time I was worried I wouldn't have enough information. When I finally started reading, I discovered
a)there is a huge amount of pictures in this book (not a bad thing.)
b)this book had more than enough information.
It is a very good biography, good for warhol fans. The pictures are excellent, and offer a great career retrospective. The book is very informative, and my only complaint is that it didn't say enough negative things about the artist. However, I would recommend this book to anybody interested in Andy Warhol

A beautifully illustrated volume of Warhol's work
This is a lavishly illustrated large format book (11"x11") by one time Warhol associate David Bourdon. It tells the oft told story of how a sickly boy from a poor immigrant family became one of the most famous artists of the twentieth century, who's images of the famous and the mundane still influence art, design fashion and advertising today.

Even though the book is over 400 pages long with the author obviously interviewing many of the artist friends and family, Bourdon does not really document Warhol's life in any great detail. If that is what you are looking for, I suggest Victor Bockris excellent detailed biography "Warhol". Having said that, the author does cover all the main events of Warhol's life in a gossipy easy to read style (one which Warhol himself might have enjoyed).

The books main attraction is the amount of full page colour illustrations of the artists work. Probably around two thirds of the books 432 pages are given over to this, beginning with Warhol's first drawings at Pittsburgh Art College up to his last series The Last Supper.

Bourdon argues a convincing case for Warhol's importance as an artist and how more than several of the artist's concepts (I hesitate to call them theories) on the nature of celebrity and the business of art have entered the public conscience. I doubt we would have had Basquiat, Emin and Hirst without Warhol. The book shows how Warhol was and still is the perfect mirror for his age. From the Campbell soup tins, underground films, the drugs and sex filled Factory or the fame obsessed, celebrity portraits of the 70's.

If you are after an indepth biography of Andy Warhol I suggest that you try Bockris instead. However, if you are after a beautifully illustrated volume of Warhol's work and a good introduction to is life and work I strongly recommend this book.

Excellent biography AND career retrospective
Andy Warhol is one of the most perplexing figures in recent history. He ironically became his subject matter of choice--the pop culture icon. He was a legend in his own time, and yet it is difficult to separate the myths from the man. This book is one of the best I've read on Warhol. Art critic David Bourdon has a unique position as a close friend of Andy's, a difficult endeavor given the artist's tendency to remain aloof and mysterious. Bourdon gives an intimate biographical portrait, as well as a very thorough retrospective of Warhol's career[with over 300 illustrations!] This book is a must for anyone interested in exploring Warhol's work, as well as the more personal aspects of his life that determined the direction that his art took. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Interesting, strange
I read this because I like a lot of Mary Woronov's films and she seems pretty cool, so, what the heck. I know virtually nothing about Andy Warhol and the Factory, except for what I got in art history classes, which was pretty bland. I *think* I got a lot of this book, but who knows. It was tremendously interesting, and some parts are really, really funny. Others are really, really scary. For anyone interested in Andy Warhol and the people who made up the Factory, this book is for you. Mary Woronov was there and there is a chapter about many of the main people. It didn't mean much to me apart from entertainment because I had/have no idea who these people were/are, but for someone more serious about these people, this would be a must-read book. For the casual fan of Mary Woronov, you get a sense of her funny personality and stuff, her youth and college are covered, but there's nothing after the Factory. Whatever your interests, the book keeps your attention and is a great read.

The Hardest Girl in the world!
Mary Woronov's Years in the Warhol Scene/Factory! I loved this Book! The style, the juxtaposition of Hard edged Woman & a lost little girl. I loved that she was "unlikable" This is the type of strong heroine the Suburban punkettes should be emulating. She knows who the fakers are and where they reside. She follows her Own path on her Own terms. When she almost allowed that Stalker girl to get hit by the train I was Jarred but secretly hoping for, as Mary was for an ending worth telling the Grandkids about! Don't be afraid to Swim Underground!

Good.. confusing
I read this book to get more background on The Factory. I suggest that you do not buy this if you are looking for a book with background. You have to know a bit about The Factory to understand what's going on. I really enjoyed this though, and I found it very intriguing. This is the book that really got me very interested in the Factory. I highly recommend this. I am withholding one star because it was a bit confusing, with many gaps the reader had to have previous knowledge to fill in. It was insanely interesting, however.

Summer of Love!!
I was captivated by this book from page one. Woronov is deeply wounded and, as a result, incredibly funny. She writes like Francis Bacon painted: vicious, raw and painfully real. It truly is a joyride into Hell. My favorite passage is about the girl who o.d'd at a party and nobody cared. All continued having 'fun' until she was eventually revived. Everyone was most disappointed.

I felt dizzy reading this
dont get me wrong, I love Mary and the whole Factory entourage, and I get the way Mary wrote this book. But it still was a bit confusing. Anyone who wasnt familiar with the scene and didnt know who was who would be lost. ... Read more

Book Description

The exquisite paintings of Jan Vermeer, with their luminous colors and gradations of reflected light, are admired by art lovers everywhere. This lovely book examines the creative process and technical means by which the great seventeenth-century Dutch painter achieved his remarkable pictorial effects. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

11 year old didn't like this book
i didnt perticuarly like this book.vermeer is a great artist and they didnt put many illustrations of his work.it was very informative yet not a very good book, it was boring.

Not recommended
As a book that claims to shed light on Vermeers painting techniques, I found 'V & the art of Painting' pretty disappointing. Arthur Wheelock appears to be well established in the role of art critic and researcher and this perspective comes across strongly throughout the book. However there were few illustrations and the actual information on painting techniques covered in this book, appeared to me to be largely stating the obvious.
I don't think you could fault the author's background research on Vemeer and his work, but I wouldn't recommend this book to any artist or student trying to discover Vermeer's actual painting methods. ... Read more

Book Description

Amazon.com

After more than 1,500 pages of Vincent van Gogh's letters, most of themaddressed to his younger brother, Theo, a reader is exhausted by the struggles,arguments, and ultimate suicide of the creator of some of the most covetedpaintings on earth, and yet elated by the triumph of art and family devotionover constant sorrow.

However depressing the life of Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), his struggle iscontinually redeemed by lucid, analytical observations on art and artists asdisparate as his black-sheep friend Gauguin, Manet, Degas, Japanese prints, andeven the American illustrator Howard Pyle. He retains a touching certainty thathis early hero, Millet, whose pictures of peasants so moved him, will prove tobe the precursor of all that is progressive in art.

This three-volume, boxed set is a replica of the one originally published in1958 by the New York Graphic Society, a translation from the Dutch of letterspainstakingly ordered and preserved by Theo's young widow, Jo, in the early partof the 20th century. It would have benefited from annotations reflecting recentvan Gogh scholarship and theory, but nonetheless it remains a remarkablecollection of documents, including Jo's well-known memoir and family history.The early drawings are shockingly clunky, without a hint of grace orconfidence. This awkwardness never disappears entirely, but evolves into anaura of hard-won authenticity, as if van Gogh were continually grappling withsome fundamental, but ineffable, truth.

The symptoms of madness, "an illness much like any other," alienated Vincentfrom everyone around him. Even his aging parents, he wrote, "feel the same dreadof taking me in ... as they would about taking in a big rough dog."

"How much sadness there is in life," he wrote to Theo. But he found theantidote: "The right thing is to work." Work he did, with astonishing single- mindedness. He mercilessly demanded supplies and continual financial aid fromhis brother, and although we think of their relationship as a perfect union,Vincent wrote with occasional anger, impatience, or even cruelty, once coldlyassessing Theo's personality: "The bright side of your character is yourreliability in money matters."

There is a tremendous dramatic tension in the third volume of letters, as we seethe artist leap ahead in skill and insight, knowing all the while that this is alife that does not go all the way. This collection requires, and rewards, adevoted reader. --Margaret Moorman ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Vincent Van Gogh correspondence
This beautiful set of Van Gogh's letters starts with an introduction by his nephew (Theo's son) and a biography of Vincent Van Gogh by his sister-in-law , Theo's widow. It is a special set of books. The boxed set is very beautiful and I have it on display in my living room. I was fortunate enough to have seen the Van Gogh exhibit in Amsterdam ..., (and to have seen the Van Gogh exhibit when it came to the U.S. over 30 years ago. ...). I feel the artist's extraordinary family did so much to bring his art and writing to us, including this lovely book set. I thought the ... price was most reasonable considering what I got, and it made my trip to Holland even more special!

If you have the time...
I've seen Van Gogh's paintings many times in various museums and I find him one of the most fascinating characters in the history of art. Vincent's letters correspondence with his brother Theo are both revealing and transformative. Vincent writes as he painted--with great passion as he tries to communicate his inspirations, insights and frustrations to his dear brother Theo. The result of reading them is that they make you, the reader, see things in a new light.

This three-volume compendium is essentially everything you'd ever want to know about Vincent and then some. Frankly, for me though it was too much. To wade through Vincent's endless letters and replies was more work than pleasure. Though I didn't feel comfortable settling for any of the abridged collections that various biographers have published recently.

The only one of such books that I would recommend is "Stranger on the Earth : A Psychological Biography of Vincent Van Gogh" by Albert J. Lubin, which is a fascinating and, thankfully, shorter insight into Vincent's fascinatingly fragile personality.

An invaluable Van Gogh resource
This three volume set is an absolutely invaluable reference for any Van Gogh enthusiast. Van Gogh's letters offer tremendous insights into his life and works. That's why a complete set of the letters is a must--most of the other versions are heavily edited ("butchered" some would say). Dr. Jan Hulsker (one of the world's foremost Van Gogh scholars) once wrote: "[His letters] enable us to know more about Van Gogh's life and mentality than we do of any other artist. The letters form a running commentary on his work, and a human document without parallel."

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is working on an exciting and ambitious project to issue a completely new and revised set of the letters, but until that extraordinary reference is available, this set is the next best thing. Even for those not especially interested in Van Gogh's art, the letters are a striking, and sometimes painful, exploration of a man consumed with doubt, filled with compassion and profoundly troubled.

A rare look inside the mind of a genius
Even though I had an enormous interest in van Gogh, when I purchased the massive three volume set of the Complete Letters, the idea of actually sitting down and reading them all, cover to cover, was at the least, daunting. I began one rainy evening, at the beginning, reading each letter in sequence, as if I were the recipeint. I made a real attempt to understand the complete content of each letter and digest its meaning against what I already knew about van Gogh's life. It was a journey that took me a whole year to complete, and it was the only thing I read during that time. The chance to peek inside van Gogh's mind, and to anylize his thoughs, was to look into pure, naked, genius -- and I was humbled! The question I started with was: has a greater artist ever lived? The answer I was left with was: not likely! No letter left me unimpressed. No words were without meaning. No thoughts imparted by this great man are without value. Even if van Gogh had never picked up a paint brush, these letters alone would have secured him a place in history. Anyone interested in what goes into making such a man would do well to read these letters, one by one. I doubt I will ever have a more gratifying literary experience. ... Read more

Book Description

"The larger struggle we are witnessing today . . . [is] an ecological drama where the outcome rests not only on our realization that the natural physical environment is one and the same as our bodies, but that nature itself is a form of Mind." -- Bill Viola

Chosen to represent the United States at the 46th Venice Biennale, Bill Viola, a New York artist living on the West Coast, is recognized internationally for his work in video and sound installations. This book brings together a selection of essays, notebook entries, drawings, and descriptions of projects that map Viola's personal course through the readings, observations, experiments, and associations that form the groundwork for his art. Each work illustrated is accompanied by a description by the artist, as well as comments on the work's origins from the artist's notebooks. For the last 25 years, Viola has used innovative multimedia technologies to explore the phenomena of sense perception as a language of the body and avenue to self-knowledge, integrating many disciplines and philosophies to reveal contemporary art's relevance to the modern world. His views have deep roots in mysticism, poetry, philosophy, Eastern art, shamanism, Chinese Taoism, Sufism, and Zen Buddhism. Viola's chief concerns today are to draw attention to the upset ecological balance of nature by focusing on the connection between our inner and outer lives, on the conception of the self as part of the whole. Published in association with the Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London ... Read more

Reviews (2)

a brillant contemporary artist
Bill Viola is one of the most interesting artists working today. His work brilliantly blends technology and spirituality and this collection of his writings provides a glimpse into his thought process.

A brilliant artist and thinker
It is so refreshing to read what an artist's work is about from their own point of view, and not from a critic's. This book takes that a step further, by including sketches, a plethora of quotes, and facsimiles of Viola's legendary notebooks. Unlike most new media/video artists, Viola uses technology only to get beyond it, to provoke his audience to ponder the larger questions in life. He is an extraordinary thinker as well as a pioneering video artist. As an artist I find his writings -- and proof that he's an ordinary human being, with a messy notebook -- incredibly inspirational. The ideas in this book will keep you going for years. ... Read more