I'm thinking of getting the newish biography of De Kooning (by Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan). Reviewers seem to have liked it. I'm interested in De Kooning's work, but he's not my absolute favorite artist, plus he was never terribly articulate when expressing his own ideas in words (that's my impression, anyway). So I'd like to hear opinions about this book, plus alternative recommendations, given the following:
- I'm very much drawn to American abstract expressionism and related movements (favorite artists include Ad Reinhardt, Barnett Newman, and Philip Guston), but I'm open to recommendations outside this area, too.
- I want a good read, not a collection of photographic reproductions of the work with a smattering of commentary or analysis.
- I'm hoping for a book that addresses the artist's ideas and creative process substantially.
- I've probably read enough about Jackson Pollock already.
― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 15:20 (nineteen years ago)
Uh, the lack of responses so far makes me think I set this up in an overly specific way, and I wish I had just asked...
What biographies of visual artists have you read and liked? What did you like about them?
― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 19:38 (nineteen years ago)
Calvin Tomkin's Duchamp book. Very clearly written, no author-based flights of fancy imposed on artist's work.
The Larry Rivers autobio. Very warts and all letting-it-all-hang-out self-portrait.
― Sons Of The Redd Desert (Ken L), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 20:15 (nineteen years ago)
well, that De Kooning bio was pretty great
― Roque Strew (RoqueStrew), Wednesday, 14 June 2006 21:48 (nineteen years ago)
That's not all that weird. The book is out of print, I assume, and somewhat rare; someone had a copy, and put in a huge price, just hoping for the best (I have sold a few CDs at unexpectedly high prices that way!) and someone else came along to undercut.
― Casuistry (Chris P), Saturday, 17 June 2006 00:37 (nineteen years ago)
three weeks pass...
Roque Strew was right, the De Kooning bio was great.
Now I've picked up Jed Perl's New Art City, thinking it would be interesting to go from a focus on De Kooning to a broader perspective on New York in that era. Perl's research is impressive, but there's something not-quite-coherent about the total effect, so far.
― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Tuesday, 11 July 2006 02:45 (nineteen years ago)
The "search inside" arrow points straight into Duchamp's mind.
― Abbadavid Berman (Hurting), Tuesday, 11 July 2006 03:04 (nineteen years ago)
Well, that's where the concept of art is grasped most firmly.
― Ruud Haarvest (Ken L), Monday, 17 July 2006 13:01 (nineteen years ago)