
Modigliani Unmasked
Mason Klein(Author)
Yale University Press
Published on 19. September 2017
Book
Hardback
172 pages
978-0-300-22549-5 (ISBN)
Description
An illuminating study of Amedeo Modigliani's early drawings and how they reflect the artist's conception of identity
One of the great artists of the 20th century, Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920) is celebrated for revolutionizing modern portraiture, particularly in his later paintings and sculpture. Modigliani Unmasked examines the artist's rarely seen early works on paper, offering revelatory insights into his artistic sensibilities and concerns as he developed his signature style of graceful, elongated figures.
An Italian Sephardic Jew working in turn-of-the-century Paris, Modigliani embraced his status as an outsider, and his early drawings show a marked awareness of the role of ethnicity and race within society. Placing these drawings within the context of the artist's larger oeuvre, Mason Klein reveals how Modigliani's preoccupation with identity spurred the artist to reconceive the modern portrait, arguing that Modigliani ultimately came to think of identity as beyond national or cultural boundaries. Lavishly illustrated with the artist's paintings and over one hundred drawings collected by Dr. Paul Alexandre, Modigliani's close friend and first patron, this book provides an engaging and long overdue analysis of Modigliani's early body of work on paper.
Published in association with the Jewish Museum, New York
Exhibition Schedule:
The Jewish Museum, New York
September 15, 2017 - February 4, 2018
One of the great artists of the 20th century, Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920) is celebrated for revolutionizing modern portraiture, particularly in his later paintings and sculpture. Modigliani Unmasked examines the artist's rarely seen early works on paper, offering revelatory insights into his artistic sensibilities and concerns as he developed his signature style of graceful, elongated figures.
An Italian Sephardic Jew working in turn-of-the-century Paris, Modigliani embraced his status as an outsider, and his early drawings show a marked awareness of the role of ethnicity and race within society. Placing these drawings within the context of the artist's larger oeuvre, Mason Klein reveals how Modigliani's preoccupation with identity spurred the artist to reconceive the modern portrait, arguing that Modigliani ultimately came to think of identity as beyond national or cultural boundaries. Lavishly illustrated with the artist's paintings and over one hundred drawings collected by Dr. Paul Alexandre, Modigliani's close friend and first patron, this book provides an engaging and long overdue analysis of Modigliani's early body of work on paper.
Published in association with the Jewish Museum, New York
Exhibition Schedule:
The Jewish Museum, New York
September 15, 2017 - February 4, 2018
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
165 color + 5 b-w illus.
Dimensions
Height: 298 mm
Width: 203 mm
Weight
1107 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-300-22549-5 (9780300225495)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Mason Klein is a curator at the Jewish Museum, New York. Richard Nathanson is an independent art adviser and an expert on Impressionism and 20th-century art.