Roland Penrose - James King

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Résumé :
Front cover: 'A brilliant analysis of one of the most extraordinary, subtle and complex characters I have ever known.' Julian Fellowes Back cover 'James King has produced a brilliant analysis of one of the most extraordinary, subtle and complex characters I have ever known. Roland Penrose was ruthless in his pursuit of the best, ruthless with anyone standing in the way of what he wanted to achieve, and yet genuinely tender in his rare ability to explain the art he loved, the art that he wanted you to love. He and his wife, Lee, were my first real tutors in the world of creativity, and I owe them a great and loving debt. This book is not just about a man, it is about an era, a change in our thinking, that in many ways set us free.' 'Painter, writer, arts administrator, ardent lover, gentleman-farmer, Surrealist rebel from a Quaker background - Roland Penrose's breathtakingly intense and complex life is absorbingly described in this richly detailed narrative. Essential reading.' Elizabeth Cowling, Edinburgh College of Art The first biography of Roland Penrose, one of the great English-born practitioners of modernism in the twentieth century As an artist, an impresario, a biographer and a collector, Roland Penrose (1900-1984) is a key figure in the study of modern art in England. Acclaimed biographer James King explores the intricacies of Penrose's life and work, tracing the profound effects of his upbringing in a Quaker household on his values, the early influence of Roger Fry, and his friendships with Max Ernst, Andr? Breton and other surrealists, especially Paul ?luard. Penrose's conflicted relationship with Pablo Picasso, his tireless promotion of surrealism and the production of his own surrealist art are also discussed. Penrose's complex professional and personal lives are handled with a deftness of touch, including his pacifism, his work as a biographer and art historian, as well as his unconventionality, especially in his two marriages - including that to Lee Miller - and his numerous love affairs. James King is Professor in the Department of English and Cultural Studies, McMaster University. Among his other books are lives of Roland Penrose's friends, Paul Nash and Herbert Read. Front cover image: Roland Penrose looking at Dal?'s Retrospective Bust of a Woman at The London Gallery. 1937. Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. Back cover image: Lee Miler and Roland Penrose, Sedona, Arizona, 1946. Photograph by Lee Miller. Lee Miller Archives. Cover design: [EUP logo] edinburghuniversitypress.com ISBN 978-1-4744-1450-0 Barcode

Biographie:

James King is Professor in the Department of English and Cultural Studies, McMaster University. He has been a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellow and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Among his other books are lives of Roland Penrose's friends, Paul Nash and Herbert Read.

Sommaire:
Preface: The Inner Light; 1. 'Born a Quaker' (1900-1913); 2. 'This Fascinating Horror' (1914-1918); 3. A Heretic in Training (1919-1922); 4. Born Again (1922-1931); 5. Insoluble Questions (1932-1940); 6. 'Let's Do Something' (1935-1936); 7. The Modern Colossus (1936-1938); 8. Aphrodite in Blue (1936-1938); 9. On the Brink of War (1937-1939); 10. Grim Glory (1939-1945); 11. Post-War Blues (1945-1947); 12. Re-Defining Modernism (1946-1953); 13. A Pastoral Retreat (1949-1953); 14. Life with a Virtuoso (1954-1966); 15. The Uninvited Guest (1966-1984); Notes; Bibliography; Index.