Egon Schiele's Portraits - Hardcover

Comini, Alessandra

4.18

28 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0520017269 ISBN 13: 9780520017269

Publisher: Univ of California Pr, 1974

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A critical study of the work of Egon Schiele (1890-1918), framed by the meaning of portraiture in the egocentric and erotic culture of Vienna at the end of the Hapsburg Empire and placed in the context of Viennese Expressionism, rising existential consciousness, and the unique ambiance of Vienna. Text by Alessandra Comini. 271 pages with 135 b&w text illustrations + 200 color and b&w plates; 8.75 x 11.25 inches. Notes, bibliography, index, list of plates.

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About the Author:

Alessandra Comini is University Distinguished Professor of Art History at Southern Methodist University.

Review:

"A solid achievement. . . . Comini examines these portraits in detail, relating them continually to the facts of the artist's life. This manner of interpreting Schiele's work is consistent throughout the book, so that the text is both a description of the work and a sketchy psychoanalytic biography of the artist. This is a very demanding approach to take to an artist's work but it makes perfect sense as a way to understand Schiele. The author manages the balancing act required of her with ease and grace, never failing to speculate on the connections between Schiele's work and that of contemporaries he knew, such as Klimt and Kokoschka." -- Kenneth Baker, Boston Phoenix

"A treasure. . . . Rarely will you find a book that so well combines psychology, social history and the aesthetics of art criticism." -- The New Republic

"Beautifully written, impressively researched and, above all, profoundly and originally thought out, Dr. Comini's amplified and dignified monograph is by far the subtlest and most enlightening analysis of Schiele. . . . Truly indispensable." -- Pierre Rouve, Arts Review

"Both vivid and definitive, based on a decade of formidable researches, a book of tremendous insight and captivating liveliness, a book of discovery, new facts, and absorbing interpretations." -- Marina Vaizey, London Times

"The best book on the Viennese wunderkind so far and maybe forever.. . . Egon Schiele's Portraits is not the circumscribed study suggested by the title, but a virtually all-inclusive biographical analysis of Schiele's art and psyche." -- John Canaday, New York Times Book Review

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