Showing posts with label avant-garde. Show all posts
Showing posts with label avant-garde. Show all posts

20% Off Discounts: Best Price Nightwood (New Edition) Review

Nightwood (New Edition)

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Nightwood (New Edition) Review

First, I should tell you what Nightwood isn't. It's not acelebration of love between women, or of the glamour of Paris, or ofmodernism's traditionally spare aesthetic. It is, however, a wonderful book, which will probably try your patience but will repay your efforts with the pleasure of reading some of the most wonderful writing to have been produced this century. Djuna Barnes, born in the US, spent some twenty years in Europe, during which she wrote innovative journalism, a novel (Ryder), short stories, poetry and plays, and, slowly, the autobiographical fictional narrative that was finally published as Nightwood in 1936. The novel was hard to place, and finally published by no less of a modernist luminary than T.S. Eliot, then working at Faber and Faber.
Barnes' novel chronicles a love affair between two women: Nora Flood, the sometime "puritan," and Robin Vote, a cipher-like "somnambule" -- sleepwalker -- who roams the streets of Paris looking for -- well, it's not quite clear, but it's a fruitless quest she's on. Nora finds herself roaming the streets too, looking for Robin, but, like most of the characters of the novel, she bumps up against Dr Matthew O'Connor instead. O'Connor, an unlicensed doctor from the Barbary Coast, dominates much of the novel with his astounding barrage of anecdote, offering a stream of stories that all point, ultimately, to the sublime misery of romantic obsession. The love story (if it can even be called that) is framed by the history of Felix Volkbein, a self-styled Baron who marries Robin early on, and whose family tree provides the structure on which the rest of this dawdling narrative hangs.
But nothing I say here can give you a sense of Barnes' dense, lyrical prose, and quite amazingly complex and beautiful writing: you simply have to puzzle over the book yourself to experience perhaps the most idiosyncratic novel produced by an American writer between the wars. It's a dark, melancholy story, with much detailed description of the decaying expatriate lifestyle Barnes herself (sometimes) enjoyed. The final chapter of the book has been regarded as controversial, opaque, and/or vaguely pornographic: Eliot wanted to exclude it when the novel was first published. It might certainly surprise you, and perhaps dismay you if you want to see all threads neatly tied together at the end. But I've read this book several times, and have never regretted it for a moment.

Nightwood (New Edition) Overview



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43% Off Discounts: Lowest Price Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat Review

Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat

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Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat Review

By the age of 32 Grant Achatz, chef/owner of Alinea, had achieved his dream of having the best restaurant in American and, along the way, had completely redefined not only the dining experience but how we think about food and eating. In this book, Chef Achatz, along with Nick Kokonas (his business partner in Alinea and a first-time restaurateur), describes the path he took to reach his goal. If the story ended there, it would be an amazing story of hard work and sacrifice coupled with sheer genius and the audacity to succeed at all costs. The story takes a totally different turn when Chef Achatz is diagnosed with stage IV cancer of the tongue and is faced with the heart-rending choice of risking his sense of taste, and with it his livelihood and identity as a chef, in an attempt to save his life.
Though it sounds cliche, this book transcends genre and audience. For those interested in cooking and the life of a chef, it ranks alongside the works of Michael Ruhlman and Anthony Bourdain as the best in the genre. As a business book, it is a tremendous inspiration for the budding entrepreneur (or for a successful businessperson who is in the midst of doubt) and shows the power of making an audacious goal then driving forward to reach it. Above all it is the story of the extraordinary life of an extraordinary person as he strives to grow, succeed, live, and love. Chef Achatz has shown that he holds himself (and his staff) to the highest standards, and this book does not disappoint in any way. In short, the best book I've read in a very long time. Very highly recommended.

Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat Overview



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16% Off Discounts: Best Price History of Modern Art (Paper cover) (6th Edition) Review

History of Modern Art (Paper cover) (6th Edition)

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History of Modern Art (Paper cover) (6th Edition) Review

I saw this book in a museum (the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, GA) and had the chance to peruse the museum's copy (which was of the previous edition) before buying it. After just spending 15-20 minutes with it in the museum, I became convinced that it was worth the hefty price. Now, having purchased the most recent edition, I am glad I did. It is an expensive book, but worth the price, in my opinion, as it contains a wealth of information and a wealth of art.
The book was originally written by H.H. Arnason, who, as the book's Preface explains, was Professor and Chairman of the University of Minnesota's Art Department from 1947 to 1961. He also held other posts and was affiliated with the Guggenheim Museum. Since Arnason passed away some time ago, recent editions of the book have been updated by Elizabeth C. Mansfield (Associate Professor of Art at NYU), who has brought the book up to the present (as recent as 2006) with sections on globalization and postcolonial theory.
Both Arnason and Mansfield are clearly intelligent scholars who place the art within its historical context to help us to see what it did, where the innovations were, and what conflicts and issues were live at that time. For example, the opening chapter deals with the legal case between Ruskin and Whistler, in which Whistler sued Ruskin for libel when Ruskin defamed Whistler's painting "Nocturne in Black and Gold." The battle was over whether Whistler could charge such a large amount of money for something that, in Ruskin's eyes, was not art. The (his)story is told in a very readable way, with the painting shown, and it is a perfect and intelligent way to open the book, since a crucial issue involved in modern art is, what makes it art and who decides?
I have not had time to work my way through the whole book (it is 830 pages), but I have liked very much what I have read so far. The index is handy for finding the artists one is interested in, if you don't want to wade through the book, since the chapters are organized thematically. The book may be intended for College textbook use, but I think it is definitely interesting enough to be read by anyone interested in art and painting. It's probably a bit too large and intimidating to work well as a real "introductory" book for someone who knows nothing about art or modern art (unless you have a seriously scholarly mind), but otherwise, I think it is as accessible as it can be given its size and scope, it makes for some great reading and it also passes as a good reference work. I recommend it.

History of Modern Art (Paper cover) (6th Edition) Overview



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