Barbara Hepworth: Art & Life

by Eleanor Clayton

A richly illustrated biography on the life and work of Barbara Hepworth, one of the twentieth century’s most inspiring artists and a pioneer of modernist sculpture. Barbara Hepworth is one of the most important artists of the twentieth century, and her organic sculptures have come to exemplify three-dimensional modernist art. Published at a time of increasing interest in her work, this biography moves beyond the traditional narratives of modernism to provide comprehensive insight into Hepworth’s remarkable life, work, and legacy. In her lifetime, Hepworth was reproached for single-mindedness, with critics and commentators framing her work and demeanor as “cool and restrained.” Moreover, most exhibitions of her work in the twentieth century focused on Hepworth’s modernist abstract sculpture of the 1930s and its relation to her male contemporaries, leaving vast swathes of work overlooked, such as her largest and most significant public commission, the sculpture outside the UN building in New York. This fully illustrated biography reflects Hepworth’s multifaceted and interdisciplinary approach, shedding new light on her interests in music, dance, poetry, contemporary politics, science, and technology. Author Eleanor Clayton uncovers Hepworth’s engagement with these fields through friends and networks and examines how they show up in Hepworth’s artistic practice, and how the artist synthesized seemingly conflicting disciplines and ideas into one coherent and inspirational philosophy of art and life. 161 illustrations

Genres: Art, History, Biography, Nonfiction

288 pages, Hardcover

Published July 13, 2021

Reviews

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very accessible read about Hepworth's life and works and I appreciated the many illustrations to bring the words to life. I would have liked more written about how she made her work, and even more analysis of her as a female artist in the 20th century, and the expectation made of her to bring up children alongside her artistic work.

[Bee Operanto · Rating 5 out of 5]

firstly, beautiful crafted book ,even the paper felt luxurious to touch adding another dimension to reading this book, secondly, a wonderful insights into an artist life ,which being a woman artist myself the workload of a woman before making hasn't changed , the stolen moments, the effects of the current world reflects today had in Hepworth day, Eleanor Clayton congratulations on a fascinating book