Reviews (1)

GREAT! (except for the design)
WOW. This is a real work of research. The amount of detail and care that has gone into this study of Warhol's early paintings is not to be believed. The editors have compiled a completely staggering amount of information about each work shown here--and who knew there were so many original paintings?

My only complaint is the book's design, which doesn't seem to have anything to do with Warhol's own aesthetic. The pictures are beautiful, but the words are tough on the eyes--the table of contents is especially awful. This is really a shame, because you can see pictures of Warhol paintings in lots of places. I don't know where you'd find all this wonderful data, though. (Put it on CD-ROM!)

It's definitely an expensive book, but unmatched, as far as I can tell, in its field. Bravo! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Directed at the expert, fine for the fan, too!
I would like to add to the reviews below that this book is a pleasure to hold and to view because it is so well made. If there is any 'art' book that should be made for posterity it is the catalog raisonne of an artist. In this instance, the publisher has done the artist's audience a real service for, the book is beautifully printed and bound in Italy by Amilcare Pizzi; Italy seeming to have usurped Switzerland's place as the world's premier art book printer. The pages are thick and glossy and the reproduction is top notch.
For those of you who are unaware of what a catalog raisonne is, it is meant to be a compilation and historical record of an artist's work that documents execution date, medium, size of image or plate, size of edition if a print, whether signed or unsigned, etc. This information is used by artists, historians, collectors and dealers to attribute a piece of art and place it in the artist's oevre, and of course to aid in placing relative value on it. Here too, the archivists, publisher, and editor have done a fine job of documenting the relevant facts. This is especially important in the case of Warhol who was a serial printer, sometimes to the point of intentional promiscuity. So, the fact that wherever possible relevant information is provided speaks volumes about the prodigious effort that must have gone into this undertaking. I rate this book four stars because I fear that since this is the third edition, there will be yet another edition published that renders this one obsolete. I understand this is precisely because Warhol was an inprecise documentarian, when he chose to do so at all, but I don't relish having to purchase another high dollar, though valuable book that is only slightly different from the one I already own. For people who don't give a darn, the book rates a five.

Andy Warhol Prints
This 3rd edition of Andy Warhol Prints gives much information to someone who is interested in the various published and unpublished works which Warhol created. In addition to providing color photographs of the prints, the book gives details about the edition size and characteristics of each individual portfolio. This book will be quite useful for the Warhol fan, art students, as well as collectors of Warhol's work. It is the most definitive book of his prints available.

Definitive Guide to Warhol
Prints, proofs, paintings -- everything is here, plus essays that explicate and set context.

The best catalog of Andy's Prints
This gem of a book gets into all the details of Warhol's print making. See source images as well as artist's and printer's proofs. A must for any collector wanting to explore Warhol's work as well as a real eye opener as to how busy this man really kept himself. ... Read more

Book Description

Henri Matisse's ancestors had been weavers for generations: textiles, a key to his visual imagination, were in his blood. Although he was to outgrow every other influence, textiles retained their power for him throughout his life. His studio in Nice was a treasure house of exotic Persian carpets, delicate Arab embroideries, richly hued African wall hangings, and any number of colorful cushions, curtains, costumes, patterned screens, and backcloths.

This sumptuously illustrated book, which accompanies a groundbreaking exhibition at the Musée Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis; the Royal Academy of Arts, London; and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, explores for the first time Matisse's relationship with the textiles that surrounded him from his earliest days. Charting how the fabrics he painted became the very fabric of his painting, the authors examine the ways in which one of the greatest pioneers in modern art history used what he called his "working library" of textiles to furnish, order, and compose his extraordinary works of art. AUTHOR BIO: Ann Dumas is an independent exhibition curator. Jack Flam is professor of art and art history at Brooklyn College and New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. Rémi Labrusse is professor of contemporary art history at the Université de Picardie, Amiens. Hilary Spurling is working on the second volume of a biography of Matisse. Dominique Szymusiak is director of the Musée Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Breathtaking paintings, sketches, and art objects
The collaborative publishing project of art historians and expeters Ann Dumas, Jack Flam, Remi Labrusse, and Hilary Spurling, Matisse: His Art And His Textiles is a stunning, full-color artbook showcasing how Henri Matisse, an artist descended from weavers, was influenced by his personal collection of vivid textiles - Persian carpets, Arab embroideries, African wall hangings, cushions, curtains, patterned screens, backcloths and more. Over 100 of Matisse's artworks along with numerous colorful fabrics, displayed as the catalogue of an exhibition at the Musee Matisse, the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The text explores the connection that Matisse had to beautiful textile works, though the latter half of Matisse: His Art And His Textiles is devoted entirely to breathtaking paintings, sketches, and art objects. An enthusiastically recommended addition to library collections and art shelves.

GLORIOUS ILLUSTRATIONS AND EXCELLENT SCHOLARSHIP

What does the name "Matisse" bring to mind?For most, it would probably be the fact that he was a great artist, perhaps some would think of his use of color, the Fauvist movement, or perhaps his cut-outs, works that marked his late career.Textiles, fabrics would probably notcome to many minds.Now, this sumptuous volume published to accompany an exhibit that traveled to France, Britain, and New York sheds light on how very important these elements were to Matisse personally and to his oeuvre.

Matisse's unique visionwas astounding.In addition to his paintings, he sculpted, illustrated books, and designed sets for Diaghilev.Born in the north of France, which is the core of that country's textile industry, Matisse was exposed early on to the beauty of fabrics.. For many generations his family had been weavers, perhaps his love of textiles came to him naturally.It's been said that he was particularly attracted to Islamic art, the intricate patterns and colors that arrested the eye.What is known is that his Nice studio held a veritable trove of exotic carpets, embroideries, wall hangings, and all manner of brilliantly colored cushions and curtains.

His use of textiles is evident in his paintings in which he uses fabric as a backdrop or simply to drape a model.It was, indeed, part and parcel of his art.Consider the use of fabric in his "Purple Robe and Anemones" - there is, of course, the purple striped robe worn by his model but also the two wall coverings in golds, red, blue.Amazing.Or, consider his "Interior, Flowers, and Parakeets," in which we find the table covered by a colorful, intricately patterned runner above a diamond patterned ruby rug.

Many of the fabrics on display in the exhibit and brought to vibrant life in this marvelous volume have been stored away since Matisse's death in 1954."Matisse, His Art, and His Textiles, " in addition to being superbly illustrated, explores the relationship of Matisse'sfabrics to his paintings, and thus adds considerably to our knowledge and appreciation of one of the forerunners of modern art.

- Gail Cooke
... Read more

Book Description

The Polaroid camera combined two of Andy Warhol’s obsessions--the disposable nature of modern consumerism and the photograph as ready-made. An inveterate and relentless user of Polaroid cameras, he made tens of thousands of instant photographs during the 1970s. Many of these were made over a short time span and focused on one individual or subject, sometimes a formal sitting for a portrait, an informal event with friends, or a party at The Factory.

Between 1970 and 1976, Warhol established a rigorous system of cataloguing. He would take home the Polaroids, edit and sequence them, and then enter them in individual red Holson Polaroid albums. These albums, with Warhol’s original sequence and themes, have remained intact.

Red Books is a red wooden box containing 11 of Warhol's Holson Polaroid albums. Each book contains a facsimile reproduction of Warhol’s sequence. The themes include a study of Paloma Picasso, a day trip to Montauk, Mick Jagger, the "Asshole" painting, and John and Yoko. In addition to the 11 red books, a black book is included which contains a text by François-Marie Banier explaining the significance of these albums within Warhol’s oeuvre and how they act as a visual diary of his work, offering unrivaled insight into his creative process. Essay by François Marie Banier. Other, 5.5 x 3.5 in. / 300 pgs / 220 color. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The arts community of Paris in the late 19th century has been gutted, stuffed, studied, and fetishized for so many years now that one could easily think there are no mysteries left to wring from this era, as exceptional as it was. This handsome title focuses on the relationship between the ribald, booming, bohemian neighborhood of Montmartre and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's work(1864-1901). It places his art so squarely in context that it rushes back to life and relevance. This is no mean feat, and the picture depicted in these four scholarly and engrossing essays is much clearer, stranger, and more sordid than Hollywood’s botched tribute. As discussed in Phillip Dennis Cate's essay, all manner of artists commingled in Lautrec’s dens of exploitation (circuses, dancing halls and whorehouses): Nabis, Symbolist, and post-Impressionist painters, absurdist humorists, caricaturists, anarchists, musicians, scene painters, and even proto-conceptual artists. As Mary Weaver Chapin explains, Lautrec was a pop artist before pop, with his appropriations of handbill imagery, his affinity for famous performers, his elevation of the "low" poster medium to "high" art, and his interest in perpetuating his own fame. It's easy to understand the attraction of this era; after all, so many of the cultural seeds of the 20th century were sewn in such a brief time in Paris' 18th arrondissement by (let's face it) a bunch of horny drunk dudes messed up on absinthe. --Mike McGonigal ... Read more

Reviews (2)

u dont get it
every other review of this book has dumbfounded me. they dont get the concept of the book at all. i hear all the negative reviews, but for the wrong reasons, the book is brilliant and the best klimt out there and here's why. It's a window into the genius's mind, we get to see all of his sketches to each corresponding piece. for any real artist it's a jewel of composition, type design, and beautiful ideas. the people who want books of the famous pieces, are the same people who like the force fed music the radio stations give them and the women who wear broaches on sunday when they go for the annual museum outing (no offence grandma) . welcome to thinking for yourself. and finding out how gustav klimt thinks. good book....

Incomplete illustrations
I fell in love with Klimt after a trip to Vienna. This book was the first I purchased in hopes of taking some of his work with me, but I was sorely disappointed. Little of his most recognized work is included. Although the information was good, the illustrations were lacking. ... Read more

Book Description

Based on family letters and documents, lengthy interviews with his widow, Lee Krasner, as well as his psychologists and psychoanalysts, this book explodes the myths surrounding his death in 1956. 12 color and 175 black-and-white photos and reproductions. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

I love this book.
This is one of the most interesting biographies I've read in a long time. I think Pollock is mostly misunderstood. He was a very good painter, but he's a simple guy, looking to be famous to make a few bucks, have a few kids, and remain relatively on the level, but Lee Krasner knew better. Pollock hated "phonies" and felt he had became one after the Look article, etc.. Here you'll find all those wonderful Pollock stories in fine detail. Like him pissing into peggy Guggenhiem's fireplace during a cocktail party. This book will give you the history of that period like no other, and a feel for what it's like to be an ambitious artist in the New York art world. Great supporting cast in Lee Krasner, Clement Greenberg, Peggy Guggenhiem, and all those painters!

Well-Researched
Excellent index and thorough, chronological coverage of events in the life of this important American artist.

It is a huge book but moves fairly quickly, since Pollock's life was really very interesting. Any art history student studying Pollock and the New York abstract expressionist movement will find plenty of insight here. Includes wonderful collection of black and white photos from all phases of the man's life.

Pollock had a tough time dealing with the fame and notoriety foisted upon him as a genius of the New York school, and for many years Pollock has often been dismissed as the phony he himself feared he was. It certainly is refreshing to see Pollock as a whole man (talented, wise, adventurous, flawed, tenacious, alcoholic), not just as an overrated art star. (The recent Kurt Varnadoe book on his art is also excellent in this way). Self doubting artists may find some degree of comfort in this book, actually.

Detailed, unbiased writing. One of the best artist biographies I've ever read.

Commits almost all of the sins of the biographer's craft
The Naifeh/White Smith biography of Jackson Pollock is extensively researched, and it's also (for what it's worth) fairly readable. But it's a pretty bad biography. The writers feel free to let their imaginations run riot, and indulge in weak psychobiographic speculation with little proof or justification, and they seem intent on "reading" Pollock's life as if it were a coherent and pre-written text (the most offensive example of this is at the end, when they seem to suggest Jackson's death, and his attendent criminally negligent killing of Edith Metzger, were somehow part of his artist's journey). I think a major artist like Pollock deserves a better and more responsible biography.

Who cares how many pages it is?
I read this book when it first was published.
This book made me want to see the new movie!
I balked at it's cost but it is the best biography I have ever read.
It is well researched and written.
Things from the book at linger in my memory after all this time?
His hell raising at the Canal Bar,dealing with Peggy Guggenheim, his death and the strange notion that he claimed he would supposedly "know" when a woman had her period.

Read this book, I'm going to again!

Fascinating story of a genius alcoholic
The beginning of this book is hard to get through but once Jackson moved to New York, I was totally absorbed in his story. I'm sorry that the movie based on this book did not sweep the Oscars. By the time you finish the book, you feel like you know this man, but of course, he didn't even know himself. I recommend not only the book, but the movie, and the soundtrack, too. ... Read more

Amazon.com

This lavish but manageable book is the catalog for one of the most successful van Gogh exhibitions ever (at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., through January 3, 1999, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art from January 17, 1999, to April 4, 1999). Judging from the haunting, beautifully reproduced paintings and drawings in the book--which range from the iconic to the rarely seen--it is easy to see why hordes of people keep pressing through overcrowded galleries to get a glimpse of the originals. The ones here are all from the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, where most of Vincent's work resides.

Author Richard Kendall does a heroic job of writing van Gogh's tortured story one more time. Few artists have analyzed their own work with the clarity and insight Vincent brought to his. And Kendall relies heavily on Vincent's letters to his brother Theo, giving the reader broad access to the ultimate expert, the painter himself. The wealth of color plates is intoxicating--70 paintings, including The Potato Eaters and other early, gloomy works, a dozen self-portraits, Almond Blossom, Wheatfield with Crows, Butterflies and Poppies, The Bedroom, The Zouave, and The Courtesan (van Gogh's take on a Japanese geisha in full regalia).

It seems trivial to further praise the book's designers for holding it to only 150 pages, but the length makes an important difference. This is a volume that fits comfortably on the lap, to be perused and enjoyed at close range, for hours if you want, and not just displayed in unwieldy glory on a coffee table. --Peggy Moorman ... Read more

Reviews (6)

the most original artist of his time
Vincent van Gogh is the artist who I feel I relate to most on a personal level. His demons are my demons. His yearning to some day find "the right girl" is my yearning. His spiritual faith in God is my spiritual faith. His weaknesses are my weaknesses. His strengths are my strengths. I'm very fond of van Gogh. He made many mistakes, including getting involved in a doomed love affair with a prostitute, or how he cut off his earlobe in a fit of anguish. Well, okay, I identify with him but that's something I've never been tempted to do haha. Vincent was a troubled and tormented and deeply under-appreciated artist in his day, only managing to sell one or two paintings in his life. Now he is among the very most popular. His works sell for many millions, even minor works.

David Rehak
author of "Love and Madness"

A GREAT JOURNEY WITH VAN GOGH
One of the best pieces that I ever read explaining paintings along the different periods which were passed by Van Gogh. Also, it gives a complete ride through his life and personality.

A Quality Work!!
I have this book and I am so glad ,I discovered it. I am, a painter,and have always been influenced by Van Goghs work. However most of the books I own do not have very good quality , printing .This book however is excellent! It is very close to , standing in front of the original painting. I would recomend this book to anyone that loves Van Gogh. I am so proud to make this book a part of my art library. Get it while you can!!

Didn't see the exhibit? Read the book!
The next best thing if you weren't able to make it to this record-breaking exhibition in Washington and Los Angeles. This book, an overview of the exhibition, is an extremely thorough and interesting overview of the 70 works on display. But it's more than that. I was very impressed with Richard Kendall's commentary in the book. Not only is this a comprehensive and thoughtful look at the "Van Gogh's Van Goghs" exhibition, it's also an excellent look at Van Gogh's life and career--period. I might have expected this--this major exhibition was superb and this catalogue is a worthy companion. Exhibition or not, this book is first-rate.

brillant
Interest in Van Gogh heightened with Hollywood movie with Kirk Douglas an Hollywood actor. My mother has a wood painting of sunflowers (l6) and she asked that we research this for her, it has numerous local newspaper clippings taped to the back, which raises even more questions. It is signed Vincent? I saw a one man narrative of Van Gogh's life depicted by his brother Theo, Actor: Jim Jarrett called Vincent. It was much informative of the letters Vincent wrote to Theo. . This enlightened one as to Vincent's odd behavior. Vincent the man. Mr.Kendall, if possible please cooresponde back. My sister is also in contact with you. Thank you for reading this message and any redirect would be appreciated. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A mammoth achievement
Not much more to add to what's already been said. This is a big investment of space as well as money, but I'm glad I have it, I've never seen an art book that compares, for Leonardo or any artist for that matter. Absolutely beautiful.

Without equal; without hyperbole....
Some books are good. Some are great. This one is profound! This is a prodigious quantity of Da Vinci's works in mostly large format and astonishing color. The subtleties found in his technique, his drawing materials, the toning due to age, are all given an immediacy and a life-like quality that is rarely achieved in reproduction. The drawings and studies are particularly interesting and appealing because of this. One is left in awe both by Da Vinci's work and Taschen's bold efforts in printing this monumental book. Taschen, always a good choice for art books both for their quality and extraordinary price advantage, has with the production of this book, added significantly to the literature on Da Vinci that is available to the average consumer. In all honesty, I don't know how they can produce and sell this book for less than $500. Its overall dimensions must be seen to be believed, weighing in at about 22 pounds! Start re-enforcing your bookshelves now. This is a proud addition to any library.

A Magnificent Addition to the Library on Leonardo Da Vinci
LEONARDO DA VINCI: THE COMPLETE PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS is a mammoth undertaking in concept and the product of this undertaking is physically mammoth! The very large, heavy tome sets out to explore the history of one of the greatest minds, artists, thinkers, and seers of all time and in doing so we are presented with all of the paintings down to the brushstroke, all of the drawings which include notes and paper quality, and the many writings of this giant of a man. Frank Zollner is an entertaining writer as well as a fine scholar. The facts are all (mostly) here and they are related in an enormously readable fashion. No dry data crunching here, just elegant prose that accompanies more visuals than you could ever imagine.

The three parts of the book are presented with equal importance: Part One is Da Vinci's life and his place in the historic and retrospective setting and contains many of his writings. Part Two is the catalogue raissone for the paintings, both those well known and extant and some images of paintings that no longer exist. Part Three is devoted to the fascinating drawings of just about every subject imaginable. Each is presented with grace, a touch of humor, and a sense of profound respect.

Other books on Da Vinci may boast better/more correct color reproduction and choices of cropping and layout, but for the sheer splendor of this great artist's output and influence on the world of art, religion, sociology and science, this book is going to be the benchmark for years to come. A magnificent book for your table and a particularly elegant gift for your friends!

A Glorious Complilation Of The Master's Work!
Leonardo Da Vinci epitomized the Renaissance humanist ideal. He possessed one of the greatest minds of all times. Painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, scientist, Da Vinci personified creative genius and had an immeasurable effect on modern culture. This compilation of his work, probably the most complete collection ever made, is spectacular. The reproductions are riveting.

Taschen has reproduced here Leonardo Da Vinci's 34 paintings in glorious color. The paper quality is excellent as is the binding. From "The Last Supper" to the "Mona Lisa," the paintings' details, even Da Vinci's brushstrokes, are clearly visible and exquisite. This 700 page book measures 22" X 17" when open and many of the artist's masterworks are shown with full page or double page details.

Frank Zollner biographical text is beautifully written and the book's first ten chapters explore Da Vinci's life, with excerpts from his letters, contracts and diaries. His painting are also discussed and interpreted here. A complete catalogue of Leonardo's paintings is included in Part II. Da Vinci's extraordinary talent as a draftsman is documented in the six hundred and sixty-three drawings which are presented in Part III. The drawings are arranged by categories, i.e., figures, anatomy, architecture, etc. Johannes Nathan's has written excellent commentary on Da Vinci's drawings and the artist's sensitive lines, both fine and bold, are truly a feast for the eyes.

"Leonardo Da Vinci: The Complete Paintings and Drawings" is one of the most visually stunning books I have ever seen. This was a "must have/must own" item for me, and I have spent many leisurely hours reading, perusing and enjoying this phenomenal collection. I can't think of a better gift for anyone who admires this master's works. This is a very rare and special book.
JANA

Hold on to your books on the paintings!
I was literally aghast when I opened this giant, lavish production to see page after page of the paintings bound right down the center and into the spine of the book. I can't imagine what the publisher was thinking. Tashen books are never really good books, but could they really exercise such poor judgement when using such a large amount of resources?

On the positive side, the drawings are excellently reproduced and are rarely split. Fortunately, they constitute the vast majority of the book. However, the book should be purchased for the drawings only. The treatment of the paintings is offensive. So much for a comprehensive source on Leonardo. Hold on to those books on the paintings, when you buy this one! ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Another Man's Treasure
Such a tragedy for a talented fellow like Basquiat to succumb to the temptations of drugs at such an early age. His paintings are so raw and fresh. I feel as though he used canvasses as giant doodle pads which he displayed to the world. Many of our own doodle pads (next to our phones, on our office desks, etc.) end up in the [bin] but Basquiat's ended up in the galleries and museums of the world. Some think of his work as [bad] but I view it as a treasure. Fine art, cartoons, grafitti and doodling...the best things in life. This book is the best collection I've seen of his work. The reproductions are well done and the essays are enlightening. For the art afficianado, this book needs to join the collection.

Basquiat at its Best
If you are looking for a wonderful combination of Basquiat's work and biography, this is the book to own. This book is full of many beautiful color plates of his work, as well as the story of his short, successful, but tragic life as an artist who had his brief moment in the sun before succumbing to the drugs.

FAST FORGET TUPA KNOWS
I am not convinced that this is the BEST Jean Michel Basquiat retrospective catalogue to date...but the work selected for this publication is certainly consistently better than most others published before or after this one. Basquiats peak of productivity was from1981-83 and much of that work is catalogued here..But the dissapointment is that many of his last works (circa 1988) will not be found here....but in the more extensive Basquiat catalogue published by the Tony Shafrazi Gallery.
There are also a few images here that will make you wonder why they were selected and some of the text seems to over emphesize  
the fact that Basquiat died of a DRUG OVERDOSE.
You can skip the text or consider it ....it's the work that counts in the end!

Exceptional Catalogue
This is by far the best catalogue of Basquiat's work as it was shown at the Whitney. By far, this book superseed others as it relates to quality and quantity of plates. Strongly recomend.

basquiat comes to life in vivid color
Basquiat is one of my favorite artists. I was first captivated by his works that were used in conjunction with Mya Angelou's poem Life Don't Frigten Me None. I was entranced by his art! I looked all over for a book that would give me a retrospective of his art. I found it. This book is wonderful. Great color great art work. Check it out. You'll Dig it too. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Frida Kahlo's diary, like her art, is painted in breathtakingly vivid colors. It covers her tumultuous last decade and encompasses love letters, political musings on Communism, and resplendent paintings. The paintings, peopled with mythic figures, self-portraits, and monsters, articulate Kahlo's fantastic visions. One drawing melds a procession of crying faces onto an intertwined couple surrounded by body parts, only to dissolve into a mass of roots and dendrites.

In the introduction, Carlos Fuentes writes, "...a streetcar crashed into the fragile bus she was riding, broke her spinal column, her collarbone, her ribs, her pelvis.... The impact of the crash left Frida naked and bloodied, but covered with gold dust." Her paintings depict her bodily experience, from anguish to sensuality. Kahlo said, "I never painted dreams, I painted my own reality." This visionary ability earned her a place among the surrealists.

Kahlo's prose delves into the associations between images and words, feelings and thought. Her writings shed welcome light on her active intelligence and provide an outline of the events of her life. This Abradale edition features plates reproducing the pages of the diary, and essays by Carlos Fuentes and Sarah Lowe that place it in the context of Mexican art, politics, and history. It is a magical work that adds to an understanding not only of Kahlo's work, but of her interior world as well.--Madeline Crowley ... Read more

Reviews (6)

If unique is what you seek
I was put off by this book for a few years before I got around to reading it because of the odd nature of Frida's drawings and doodlings, inks spillls morfing into "art" and in general the seemingly difficult text to follow. All this changed upon a recent trip to Mexico, amongst the tranquil backdrop of Mismaloya and unforgetable sunsets in this tropical paradise I was able to whip through this book. The serenity of the place helped me get through Frida's chaos. After reading her own insights and feelings about life I wanted more. Her bizarre life, filled with more theatre and characters than a Fellini film, more physical and mental agony than most humans can endure is one that deserves her own thoughts, although at times they are convoluted. Whether she was under the influence(many of her last years she was doped to mask the pain) or not is irrevelant because the text is spellbinding with illustrations that captivate the imagination, taking the reader along a surrealistic journey as only Frida can. It is a grotesquely beautiful book, rich in imagery , both literally as well as illustrated in the unique style of Frida Kahlo, reflective of the pain and suffering she lived, both self inflicted and her own fate. It is quite simply, Frida in her own words. The book is a handsome collection of thoughts and drawings by one of the greatest Latin American artists of the twentieth century. The author takes the liberty of interpreting each page, giving her perspective concerning the thoughts of Frida in a very helpful manner. The first part of the book is the diary, in writting and print and as colorful and bold as Frida was, whereas the second part is the type written text of the Frida's hallucianatory ramblings and drawings. This proves to a beneficail companion to reading each page, first by Frida followed by the clearer typed "translation" in thesecond part of the book. Without the type written text some sections are nearly impossible to decipher. The various sketches are shown in their embyonic stages and would later become part of her major works are truly amazing. If you are a lover of the works of Frida Kahlo this is a fine book to add to your collection of Kahlo memorabilia. This book is a perfect companion to Hayden Herrera's definitive biography. Incidently, my desire for more of Frida in her own words (this one is in Spanish mostly)was quenched recently by finding a book entitled "Escritura" by Frida Kahlo that is series of poems, letters and notes selected by Raquel Tibol. I highly suggest reading both if you are a Kahlophile.

Intimate and hallucinatory
This very intimate book accomplishes what no bio can: show us inside Kahlo, via her own ramblings and disorganization and odd illustartions and ink spills and lines, and drawings, etc. It is a weird highway to the inner mind of the goddess of 20th century art.

With a movie in the works ..., Kahlo is sure to solidify her position as the top-of-the-art-food-chain Latin American artist of the century (Georgia O'Keefe considered her the best female artist of the 20th century) and make her iconic face even more famous.

Kahlo deserves this position because she painted honestly and brutally. She painted her memorable Jewish-Austrian-Spanish-Mexican face, single eyebrow and slim moustache in stark honesty; she had many lovers of both sexes (when such a course of sex exploits was practically unknown); she grabbed her Mexicanity with a fierce pride and ferocity that would not be in vogue until decades after her death (Kahlo was born in 1907 and died in 1954) and yet during her life she was just the wife of a very famous Mexican muralist and a champagne Communist who partied with the Fords and Rockefellers while marching with the workers down the wide avenues of Mexico City. It is thus ironic that it is Kahlo, whose astonishing life and unique paintings are now the subject of lawsuits between governments and collectors, has taken the limelight from her talented womanizer husband and is rightfully considered one of the best artists of the 20th century, period. This is a nice addition and a must read for Kahlophiles.

Hallucinatory and lovely
This book gives an interesting view of the person who was Frida Kahlo, in her own very personal words and images. It is a bit sad that something so private has been made rather accessible, but it is good for lovers of Kahlo's art. The book is inspiring; it is quite creatively stimulating with the lush, free images and round scrawls in many colours. The introduction by Carlos Fuentes is well-written, and I especially liked his description of seeing Frida Kahlo at a Wagner opera. The essay by Sarah Lowe is likewise good. The reproductions of the diary pages look very good and clear (though since I haven't seen the originals, I'm just assuming they are accurate), the size of the pages is large enough, and the colours are all very vivid. The commentary is in a separate section from the diary reproduction, which is nice because you can look uninterrupted at the diary part, and not have to worry about what it all means. It does make for a lot of flipping back and forth when reading the commentary and referring back to the diary page, even though the page discussed is reproduced in black and white (very small) in the commentary. The commentary is rather sparse, and not all the pages of the diary are discussed. All in all a fascinating read.

A Must Own for Frida Junkies
This is not a book that you read, per se. If you are looking for a biography or autobiography of Kahlo and want to find out about her life and times - this is Not the book.

If you already have a lot of knowledge of Kahlo then this diary is a fantastic addition. It provides you with an insight into her mind, dreams and pain. The beautiful color reproduction of her actual drawing and writing is accompanied by a type-set explanation of her words.

No scholar of Frida Kahlo should be without this amazing, gorgeous portfolio. It is inspiring on many levels.

Graphically rich!
If you are expecting a standard diary, full of descriptions of what happened today, who visited for breakfast, and what Frida had for dinner - then don't order this book. Frida's diary is an amazing combination of text and paintings. She writes random comments with little consideration of form. In fact, many of the things she writes are random lists of words, or letters to loves that are never sent, or even descriptions of fantastic events that never occur outside of her imagination. It's like a huge and colorful experiment in free writing and unconscious expression. Combine these words with the sketches, paintings, and drawing scattered about - sometimes on pages of their own, sometimes in the midst of words that are written around the edges of the artwork - and you have an incredible and extremely unique diary. Personally, I found it inspiring to read and have incorporated many of the elements into my own journal. (If you are looking for a way to break out of writers block, or artists block, I would seriously consider getting a copy of this book and mimicking the technique. It's very freeing and has a way of generating ideas.) ... Read more

Book Description

Previous studies of Picasso's involvement with the classical have tended to concentrate on the period immediately following the First World War, and to attribute that involvement to both the rise of political conservatism in France and the domesticating influence of the artist's marriage to Olga Koklova. Focusing instead on the later, classicizing prints of the 1930s, this book offers a radically different view of Picasso and the "classical" -- a view that aligns his work much more closely with Surrealist, and specifically Bataillean, revisions of antiquity.

The book's argument is built around detailed analyses of several separate print series: Picasso's illustrations for Ovid's Metamorphoses, the etchings of the Vollard Suite, and The Minotauromachy. Common to all of them, the book shows, is a strong engagement not only with the classical, but with the viewer. In the latter, Picasso's prints are clearly at odds with the understanding of the relationship between classical art and its audience that prevailed throughout most of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries -- an understanding that held the work's purported autonomy to mirror the viewer's own. By exposing that autonomy as a fantasy, Picasso opens the "classical" work and its viewer alike to the entanglements of desire and the dissolution of boundaries it inevitably brings.

Much of the argument turns on close readings of key Surrealist texts by Georges Bataille, Michel Leiris, and Roger Caillois. Even more important, however, are the prints' numerous references, heretofore unnoticed, to specific works by, among others, Rubens, Rembrandt, and Goya. These references effectively create an alternative "classical" tradition out of which Picasso's etchings can be seen to have emerged. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Brings to life the great artist's first 25 years
I respond as a general reader and can attest that reading this work was very much like engaging in a talk with an erudite and witty and sympathic art loving friend. I say engaging as Mr Richardsom anticipates questions and provides explanations. He is also revealing, at least to my mind, about many of the important figures of the early 20th century, such as Gertrude Stein, but as well, the social and artistic revolutions that were occuring. Picasso himself, however, is determinedly apolitical.The illustrations are useful, plentiful and conveniently located adjacent to the text. Chapters may stand on their own - for example Chapter 28 "Summer at Gosol" has many interesting features that show the artist's creative energy and source of inspiration at the time, the relationship with Ferdinande contrasted with his admiration for a ninety year old patriarch of the tiny mountain village, there perilous journey by mule in and out of Gosol, the atmosphere and the creative joy that Picasso experiences, not to mention the breakthough in his work that occurs at this time. The paperback is sturdily bound and overall, as a read, I found the "story", if you will, a most engaging read.

Classic Biography
There should be no doubt that the first two volumes of Richardson's Picasso can be ranked alongside Ellman on both Wilde and Joyce or with Michael Holroyd's bio of Lytton Strachey. If a biographer loves his subject then that is no bad thing. Richard Ellman wrote his bios quite clearly in the style of his subjects and by so doing brought us closer to them.Ellman was obviously completely mesmerised by Oscar Wilde thus the greater the tragedy.

Picasso was no such doomed figure. If a ever a man was blessed with talent, opportunity, lovers sycophants,wealth and long life to enjoy them then this little Iberian colossus had it all. Richardson dotes on his client in obvious awe and why not? The book is painstakingly researched and pulls up from being pedantic by the author's ability to describe the historical firmament in which Picasso's star shone. These bit players (Max Jacob, Apollinaire, Braque, etc.) are giants in their own right and yet it is only Matisse who comes out ultimately unscathed. Mr. Richardson has his own favourites and these are evidently Picasso's too.

It is made plain that despite the comet of Picasso's life and times and all the bright shining lights his work remained inviolate and the unquestionable raison d'etre of his existence . Picasso takes obvious liberties with his friendships and lovers. If this is how a hugely successful personality can behave then Picasso can obviously be a complete swine. Mr.Richardson paints a picture of a man who, for good or evil, is able to absorb the passed and present literate and plastic art talents and synthesise them into his own staggering vision.

It is the unmitigated audacity of Picasso to compare his work on a par with El Greco, Zurbaran, Velazquez, etc. He does though concede their greatness. Nevertheless he has not the slightest doubt that he belongs in that realm. Such nerve!

Picasso was no monk (as the elderly Braque has sometimes been described) and evidently had an ego to match his talents. As a biography Richardson's work has to be amazing to read and leave us hungry for more. It also has to leave a bitter residue as evidence of Picasso's sometimes shabby behaviour.

How would any of us behave if such greatness were thrust upon us? That is simply one of the unanswerable questions a great biography poses.

Now, where are vols. III and IV?

Monumental but readable too
Richardson in his landmark biography of Picasso gingerly walks through the minefields that have been laid in the 100+ years that Picasso has been on the art scene. Picasso is near enough to being our contemporary that it would have been nearly impossible for Richardson to have treated him fairly in the minds of many. One of the foremost issues recently raised, is his attitude towards women and his treatment of his lovers and wives. As for what can be gleaned from this and Vol II, Picasso was probably about average in this respect for a man of his time. Richardson seems to have intelligently not taken the bait and endulged in defending the past against the present.

Since Richardson knew Picasso as an intimate friend, there is an air of familiarity that pervades the work. I really enjoyed the feeling of immediacy and of being there when it happened that Richardson has so skillfully woven into the book. In comparison, Simon Schama's monumental biography of Rembrandt (and Rubens) reads more like a peek at the past. Schama can be excused since the passing of nearly 400 years makes writing in the immediate mode difficult and maybe even a little pretentious.

Though definitely not hagiaography, Richardson does treat his subject almost like a doting father, but loving his child warts and all. As to the work being a defense of Picasso in his rivalry with Matisse, one could only read that into the work if one was a rabid Matisse fan. I'm sorry but, Matisse being the giant that he was, was no Picasso.

The book flows like a river. I was truly transported back into Picasso's life and social scene. I found the artistic analysis of his work to be on target and written without much academic showing off or mumbo-jumbo. If you are looking for a Post-Modernist deconstruction of Picasso, it (thankfully!) isn't here. The historical coverage of Picasso's social circle is excellent and made me want to have been able to attend some of the Picasso's tertulias at Lapin Agile. What an exciting time it must have been.

I flashed on Roger Shattuck's book The Banquet Years, which also transports the reader back to Paris in the years 1895 to WW I. Shattuck's book would be a good companion piece or primer for the Richardson series.

I saw Richardson give a lecture in 1998 at the College of Santa Fe. He does appear to be along in years and is definitely no Lapin Agile himself. From the gleanings of an after lecture discussion in the hallway with Richardson, it appears that Marylin McCauley, his collaborator on the project, is equally a writer and Picasso scholar and will be the torchbearer for the future editions. My own suspicions are that she may have been the major writer on Vol II. Since Vol II ends only in 1917, there appears to be at least 2 and possibly 3 more volumes to come. This is truly a monumental work and one that reads well. It could have easily turned out to be a "reference" biography reading like a bushel of note cards strung together.

I highly recommend it and the whole series. (I am confident enough that the ones to come will be as exciting.) Not only good brain medicine for a Modern Art enthusiast but fun reading too.

I wanted to give it the fourth star, but...
I think a good biographer should present the life of his subject and perhaps provide some analysis, taking into account what has happened since the subject's life happened. And for most of this biography, Richardson does that. But by the end of this first volume, Richardson has gone from chronicler to defender and mouthpiece. Naturally, Richardson prefers Picasso to Matisse in the greatest rivalry in 20th century art. (That's why he's writing a Picasso and not a Matisse bio, presumably.) But instead of presenting the viewpoints of Picasso and his band, Richardson actively takes sides, joining Picasso in berating Matisse. That's not a biographer's role and it cheapens this biography. The last 100 pages of the book read more like a rock star bio written by an adoring fan (Dave Marsh's book on Springsteen is a good comparison) instead of by a historic tome. So if you prefer Picasso to Matisse and enjoy Picasso's side of the rivalry, you'll likely give Richardson that fourth star. But that aside, this is quite a good biography. It provides insight, understanding and tells so fascinating stories along the way. It's a must-read for lovers of 20th century art. For a more neutral look at the Matisse-Picasso rivalry, read Hilary Spurling's bio of Matisse. The characterizations of the Steins, in particular, are markedly different. ... Read more

Book Description

Focusing on the period 1905-1913, this provocative and groundbreaking new book refutes the popular view of Matisse as the painter of relaxed pleasures, the master of decorative line and sensuous color. Alastair Wright discovers a darker, more complex side to Matisse: an artist whose work, caught in the uneasy space between modernism and tradition, was fundamentally engaged with the most pressing of modernity's artistic and ideological debates. Presenting a series of brilliant and highly original analyses of Matisse's most important early paintings, Wright locates the artist within a wider cultural field in which the identities of modernism--and of its viewers--were highly contested. Wright offers a penetrating examination of the public response to Matisse's work, arguing that his early-twentieth-century audience found in his painting a deeply disturbing challenge to contemporary concepts of the self, of the nation, and of the West.

This sumptuously illustrated book positions the work of Matisse and a number of his contemporaries in relation to key aspects of modernity--the commodification of the individual, the dislocation of cultural identity, and the effacement of racial boundaries under the pressure of imperial expansion--and provides a compelling account of how these contradictory historical materials fused to give birth to Matisse's modernism. What emerges is a renewed sense of the rich complexity of an artistic practice suspended between the seductive potential of pure color and an always ambivalent engagement with tradition. Tracing the interplay between Matisse's painting and discourses of art and subjectivity, Wright offers a significant new reading of one of the central figures of early-twentieth-century modernism.

... Read more

Book Description

Hailed by readers and critics across the country, this engrossing biography of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo reveals a woman of extreme magnetism and originality, an artist whose sensual vibrancy came straight from her own experiences: her childhood near Mexico City during the Mexican Revolution; a devastating accident at age eighteen that left her crippled and unable to bear children; her tempestuous marriage to muralist Diego Rivera and intermittent love affairs with men as diverse as Isamu Noguchi and Leon Trotsky; her association with the Communist Party; her absorption in Mexican folklore and culture; and her dramatic love of spectacle.

Here is the tumultuous life of an extraordinary twentieth-century woman -- with illustrations as rich and haunting as her legend.

Reviews (21)

The Best Book on Frida Kahlo
One cannot live in the modern world without regularly encountering self-portrait images of the beautiful and tragic Frida Kahlo. Whether on coffee mugs, t-shirts, posters, or Mexican artifacts, Frida's exquisite face with its darkly joined eyebrows and beribboned hair is immediately familiar to most observers, even if they do not know who she was. Yet Frida Kahlo's popularity in the twentieth century can be wholly attributed to her brilliance. Unlike the work of most modern artists, almost all of her 200 paintings depict realist, surrealist, and primitive self-portraits symbolizing the concerns and agonies of her life. Hayden Herrera's fine biography is still, seventeen years after its publication, the champion text on one of the most important, original, and phenomenal painters of our time.

Frida was born in 1910 (the year the Mexican Revolution began)to a Mexican mother and German father in the same cobalt blue house in Coyoacan, a suburb of Mexico City, where she later worked and shared her life with the great muralist Diego Rivera. Ironically, it is the house where her life also ended. Today it is a museum, open to the public and still festooned with her beautiful collections of retablos, pottery, and Mexican folk art. Frida's life was consumed by pain as a result of suffering polio at age 6 and a bus/trolley collision as a teenager when, thrown from the bus, she was gored by a steel rail. Frida spent most years of her life bedridden and in body casts (which she also painted)after some 30 surgeries meant to alleviate her suffering. Throughout her life,and even while prone in a bed with a mirrored canopy, she painted herself because of the focus created by chronic pain and said, "I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone." Her self-portraits suggest deep meanings as her face is always encircled with images derived from her physical and psychological life. The paintings are vibrant and, typical of many of her women contemporaries' works, tiny.

Hayden Herrera's book presents a comprehensive life study of the great artist, incorporating photographs, diaries, letters, painting reproductions, eye witness accounts, and local history and politics in the most readable, enjoyable, intelligent work available. An art historian, Ms. Herrera is thoroughly knowledgeable and writes beautifully, as well. One will be as engrossed by this book as by any great novel. Her work convincingly recreates the scenes from Frida's life and populates them with important contemporaries Frida knew and loved, including Andre Breton, Leon Trotsky, Tina Modotti, Pablo Picasso, and, of course, her own Diego Rivera who called her the greatest painter of our time.

There isn't a more engaging biography available about Frida Kahlo (in second place is Herrera's other text, Frida Kahlo:The Paintings), and one need not be an art student to be enthralled by this work. Ms. Herrera's compassionate, energetic account will capture anyone who wonders just what Frida Kahlo was like--her inspirations, occupations, and truly vivacious approach to her one very painful and amazingly productive life.

Thanks to this book, I discovered Frida!
It was thanks to this wonderful book that I discovered Frida Kahlo, who is now my heroine. I have read many books about her, but this is absolutely the best one. It made me laugh - and weep, too, because I could really feel Frida`s pain in my own body...
Today I am probably Sweden`s biggest Frida - fan, and I drive everybody crazy talking about her all the time! Thanks to her, I have started to paint and draw a lot, I dare to wear crazy clothes - and I dare to be my self.
Thank you, Hayden Herrera, for writing such a great book...

Complete and Complex Like Frida
Hayden Herrera has written an excellent portrait of the great artist Frida Kahlo, complete in thought and tender in describing a woman well lived.

Frida Kahlo is the ultimate survivor and represents women for their strength, tenderness, fierceness and suffering compassion. She lived during a time when women had few rights, especially Mexican women, she faced the dreadfulness of the Mexican Revolution in her early years, a bout with polio, a horrible bus accident that attempted to cripple her for life, an often unfaithful husband, criticism of her dreams, activism, accused Communism and many exciting adventures in life. She lived a true artistic life and her paintings represent the complicated nature of her inner soul. She loved hard and fought often, for her rights, her dreams and her man. While bed-ridden and suffering in the severest of