Nati sotto Saturno. La figura dell'artista dall'antichità alla Rivoluzione francese

Forget modern art. This is about the development of the artistic personality from antiquity up to the French Revolution. Covers patronage, the break from guilds and workshops, the assertion of artistic freedom, obsession with work, the inability of artists to get along with others, their sex lives,

Dit boek begint sterk met de vraag of er een universele karakterschets gegeven kan worden van kunstenaars, bij wie een creatieve geest vaak samengaat met de behoefte aan introspectie en afzondering. Vlagen van genialiteit worden veelal afgewisseld door periodes van melancholie en soms zelfs waanzin. Leggi tutto

Having read other books by Rudolf Wittkower, I must say that I was rather disappointed. Although being intrigued by the idea of investigating the nature of the artist and how this might be different from other professional groups, the book lacks a firm structure. Most likely Rudolf and Margot Wittkow Leggi tutto

Al final no hay una respuesta clara a lo que se llama «artista». Interesante lectura.

It is a book with lots of information, but very well organized and written, so it is not at all difficult to read. Nevertheless, every chapter follows more or less the same structure: introduction of a specific aspect of the figure of the artist and then lots of examples. At some point it can get a

Despite the authors' insistence that they don't want the book to be a collection of meandering (and contradictory) anecdotes, it's largely what it is. And that's what makes this hilarious, gossipy, and slightly cracked book so great.

Excellent book, very informative and interesting. The book obviously required an enormous amount of research.