H.C. Westermann - Hardcover

Adrian, Dennis; Rooks, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0810945649 ISBN 13: 9780810945647

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams, 2001

Synopsis

The irony and antic sense of humor that animate the work of H. C. Westermann (1922–1981) and make it so accessible are evident on every page of this volume, the first comprehensive study of
the artist in over 20 years. Published to accompany a major traveling exhibition of Westermann’s
sculpture, the book looks at how defining themes central to 20th-century America—the horror and disillusionment of war, the mythology of the American utopia, and Hollywood and mass media—shaped his thought and his art.

Magnificent color illustrations accompany essays by Robert Storr, who evaluates Westermann in the context of 20th-century art; Lynne Warren, who looks at his years in Chicago in the 1950s; Dennis Adrian, a longtime friend, who surveys the artist’s entire oeuvre; and Michael Rooks, who examines his most elaborate achievement, the house and studio in Connecticut that the artist designed and built by hand from 1969 to 1981.

About this title

About the Author

Dennis Adrian is an art critic, historian, and independent curator living in Chicago. Michael Rooks is assistant curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. Robert Storr is senior curator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Lynne Warren is curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.

Reviews

Twenty years after his death, Westermann, a great if not yet fully appreciated American sculptor, is accorded a major traveling exhibition and this pioneering and handsomely illustrated overview. Curator Storr and his distinguished contributors, including art critic Dennis Adrian, neatly combine biographical and critical perspectives to illuminate the artist's masterfully crafted and psychologically acute creations. Storr reflects on the tremendous impact Westermann's combat duty as a marine had on his worldview and work, which are characterized by a sharp sense of paradox and sardonic humor. Built with tender regard for his materials, especially wood (a reflection of his love of nature), Westermann's death ships, mystery houses, secret-filled boxes, and machinelike variations on the human form embrace both our quest for security and refuge and the unavoidable precariousness and absurdity of life. Vital, mischievous, and down-to-earth, Westermann believed in hard work, possessed a keen aesthetic, and succeeded brilliantly in transmuting deep emotion into a folksy surrealism that draws viewers in with its quirky charm and then ambushes them with its provocative powers. Donna Seaman
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Edition details

• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0810945649
• ISBN 13: 9780810945647
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 212