Dix Portraits

by Gertrude Stein, Lynne Tillman (Introduction)

Originally published in 1930 in an edition of one hundred copies, Gertrude Stein’s Dix Portraits pairs her singular literary style with original lithographs by Pablo Picasso and other artists in Stein’s circle to create an exceptional artist book exploring written and visual portraiture.

Written between 1913 and 1929, revolutionary years in art history, Dix Portraits conveys the deep human engagement between an artist and her subject. The artist book unites Stein’s ten portraits in prose with sketches by five Pablo Picasso, Christian Bérard, Eugene Berman, Pavel Tchelitchew, and Kristians Tonny. Utilizing the interplay between word and image, Stein’s writing and the artists’ images provide nuance and depth, balancing humor and sincerity.

With a new introduction by the writer Lynne Tillman, Dix Portraits is an unforgettable artistic collaboration. The subjects represented include Guillaume Apollinaire, Christian Bérard, Eugene Berman, Bernard Faÿ, Georges Hugnet, Pablo Picasso, Erik Satie, Pavel Tchelitchew, Virgil Thomson, and Kristians Tonny. Originally printed in an edition of one hundred copies with the lithography, and now widely accessible for the first time, Dix Portraits captures Stein’s legacy as a champion of artists and a pioneer of creativity.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art

60 pages, Paperback

Published June 7, 2022

About the author

Gertrude Stein was an American writer who spent most of her life in France, and who became a catalyst in the development of modern art and literature. Her life was marked by two primary relationships, the first with her brother Leo Stein, from 1874-1914, and the second with Alice B. Toklas, from 1907 until Stein's death in 1946. Stein shared her salon at 27 rue de Fleurus, Paris, first with Leo and then with Alice. Throughout her lifetime, Stein cultivated significant tertiary relationships with well-known members of the avant garde artistic and literary world of her time.

Reviews

[michal k-c · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always preface any recommendation of a Stein book by saying something like "I think Stein is the great American writer but obviously the mileage varies", which is to say I get the resistance to her work. I think if you approach it with an open mind reading Stein can be one of the most rewarding literary experiences. Syntactic meaning is unsettled on every page in service of generating a new semantic experience. What more could you want out of prose/poetry?

[James Strahan · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s a one star or a five star for sure, couldn’t possibly tell you which. What’s going on Gertrude?

[Charlotte Avery · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so cool - very interestingly written. It reads like how I think impressionist paintings sound (even thought that is not the art movement the author refers to). I’m going to go back and find some quotes because some were so beautiful. Read this if you’d like to know what my internal monologue sounds like. 5/5

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Head spinning spinning head. Heed words. Words heeded by Gertrude Stein. Aren’t all paintings self-portraits?

[Addison Ware · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cool

[Sina Tahmasbi]

دوست ندارم از «تجربه‌ی عجیبی بود» استفاده کنم. تجربه برای من چیزی معمولا یک‌باره است. میخواهم چند بار دیگر هم در همچین باغی قدم بزنم. نمیدانم، شاید خودم هم یکی دوتا درخت کوچک کاشتم.

[Eric Lucente · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a master stroke take on adapting to the common practice of portraits that some of Stein’s adjacent artist friends would have been so fond of. It is both ahead of its time in terms of its contradiction to written English conventions (especially as staunchly rigid they might have been for its time) and its invention. Stein often contorts a word until it is exhausted, and then pushes further to squeeze enough meaning from it as she could. Often times, I imagine the hand movements in writing this piece being akin to the weightlessness of a pianist or the delicate touch of a painter. Excellent

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite dix portrait is the self portrait from 1912, after the Holbein. This book is drugs

[Rhonda Hankins]

I found this a super great little book, but I'm inclined to be very excited about anything Gertrude Stein wrote so take that endorsement with two grains of salt.

The publisher of this book gets a bow for publishing this obscure work but really no effort or thought was put into the formatting and that sloppiness makes it harder to appreciate. Stein's pieces should be with the portraits they are addressing. Portraits need labels so the identifiers on page 55 should be under the portraits themselves.

I also found the intro by Lynn Tillman really off putting. She herself admits on the bottom of page 7 that her opening is a really negative portrait of Stein and she's absolutely correct. Stein isn't everyone's cup of tea and her writing is like nothing else anywhere so it would have been more helpful to have an introduction that helped readers appreciate Stein's work rather than focusing on her personality traits that by all measures were challenging at best.

A much better introduction to Gertrude Stein that sheds light on the significance of Dix Portraits can be found here https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytim...

Gertrude Stein's own brother dismissed her writing as nonsense. And, who knows, he might be right . . . but there is something about her nonsensical writing that can appeal greatly if you feel like being open to it.

[Evelyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gertrude Stein used words to paint short portraits of artists she knew. The poetry and prose is characterized by wordplay that is often repetitive,frequently nonsensical and incoherent as it flows like it is written in a stream of consciousness manner. The failure to place each illustration with the essay describing its subject adds to the reader’s dismay. Suffice it to say this is a book best left in the dustbin of the history of writing for the average reader.

[Zay Aw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhhh… found this gem in a little bookstore in Lisboa - and found myself soak in every wordplay of Stein - yes, Stein, who notoriously coined the term “the lost generation”… who was also notoriously known as one of Picasso’s secret posse.

Her words, so weird but unique, sometimes does put me off. But lounging on a rooftop pool whilst savoring every fuckulence of Stein’s nonsense was pure meditation.

[eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

perfect boek om in jardin du luxembourg te lezen, merci pier

[Harrison Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow! What a workout that was! Trying to get through Gertrude Stein's work is a tough go. Because this book was not that long -- and one I was not familiar with -- I decided to give it a go. Only two things make this volume worth reading: the introduction by Lynne Tillman that attempts to explain the world that is Gertrude Stein, and the pencil and ink drawings that are included as part of the narrative. Otherwise, completely incomprehensible. A biography based on her life is a much better choice.

[Owen Hatherley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Glints of light and insight will be found but you need a far stronger stomach for the utterly twee than I have.

[Lindsey W McLaughlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I prefer her other work such as the Selected Writings of Gertrude Stein.

[Helen Jenks · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a thought provoking and incredible use of language but i do think i had a minor stroke trying to read this. some bangers though!

[pgb · Rating 3 out of 5]

dabbled in writers from the late 1800-early 1900s and I’m trying here but not my particular cup of tea.
super awesome collection of paintings in the back though ;”))

[Nathalie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Difficult to say the least...