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Lives of The Great 20th Century Artists
Offers profiles of modern artists from Munch, Matisse, and Leger to Warhol, Lichtenstein, and Hockney and discusses important art movements of the twentieth century
- GenresArtNonfictionArt History
359 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
3 people are currently reading
87 people want to read
About the author
Edward Lucie-Smith
450 books29 followersJohn Edward McKenzie Lucie-Smith, known as Edward Lucie-Smith, is an English writer, poet, art critic, curator and broadcaster.
Lucie-Smith was born in Kingston, Jamaica, moving to the United Kingdom in 1946. He was educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and, after a little time in Paris, he read History at Merton College, Oxford from 1951 to 1954.
After serving in the Royal Air Force as an Education Officer and working as a copywriter, he became a full-time writer (as well as anthologist and photographer). He succeeded Philip Hobsbaum in organising The Group, a London-centred poets' group.
At the beginning of the 1980s he conducted several series of interviews, Conversations with Artists, for BBC Radio 3. He is also a regular contributor to The London Magazine, in which he writes art reviews. A prolific writer, he has written more than one hundred books in total on a variety of subjects, chiefly art history as well as biographies and poetry.
In addition he has curated a number of art exhibitions, including three Peter Moores projects at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool; the New British Painting (1988–90) and two retrospectives at the New Orleans Museum of Art. He is a curator of the Bermondsey Project Space.
Lucie-Smith was born in Kingston, Jamaica, moving to the United Kingdom in 1946. He was educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and, after a little time in Paris, he read History at Merton College, Oxford from 1951 to 1954.
After serving in the Royal Air Force as an Education Officer and working as a copywriter, he became a full-time writer (as well as anthologist and photographer). He succeeded Philip Hobsbaum in organising The Group, a London-centred poets' group.
At the beginning of the 1980s he conducted several series of interviews, Conversations with Artists, for BBC Radio 3. He is also a regular contributor to The London Magazine, in which he writes art reviews. A prolific writer, he has written more than one hundred books in total on a variety of subjects, chiefly art history as well as biographies and poetry.
In addition he has curated a number of art exhibitions, including three Peter Moores projects at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool; the New British Painting (1988–90) and two retrospectives at the New Orleans Museum of Art. He is a curator of the Bermondsey Project Space.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 17, 2021
Concise biographies of some of the finest artists of the 20th century.
The Fascist leanings of the Futurists was disturbing and I must now view their works with a more discerning eye.
I mourn for the untimely deaths of Frank Marc (during the Battle of Verdun, WWI) and Egon Schiele (from the Spanish Flu three days after the death of his pregnant wife); one can only wonder what masterpieces still lay in their hands.
I thank the editors for introducing me to Stanley Spencer, an English painter/WWI veteran that painted idiosyncratic Biblical scenes that seem to take place in England, as well as moving scenes from the First World War. His perspective is oftentimes flowing,distorted with elongated figures reminiscent of El Greco.
The Fascist leanings of the Futurists was disturbing and I must now view their works with a more discerning eye.
I mourn for the untimely deaths of Frank Marc (during the Battle of Verdun, WWI) and Egon Schiele (from the Spanish Flu three days after the death of his pregnant wife); one can only wonder what masterpieces still lay in their hands.
I thank the editors for introducing me to Stanley Spencer, an English painter/WWI veteran that painted idiosyncratic Biblical scenes that seem to take place in England, as well as moving scenes from the First World War. His perspective is oftentimes flowing,distorted with elongated figures reminiscent of El Greco.
June 27, 2013
This is an excellent overview of modern artists, it is by no means comprehensive. The last 3 or 4 sections are the weakest parts as they are dealing with contemporary artists and I doubt if all readers would agree with the choices made. This is a book everyone interested in art should read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews