Published in France in 1987, this is the book in which Lecoq first set out his philosophy of human movement, and the way it takes expressive form in a wide range of different performance traditions. He traces the history of pantomime, sets out his definition of the components of the art of mime, and discusses the explosion of physical theatre in the second half of the twentieth century. Interviews with major theatre practitioners Ariane Mnouchkine and Jean-Louis Barrault by Jean Perret, to...

The New York Times–bestselling biography of Manet, Cezanne, Degas, and others—a "revealing group portrait . . . lively, required reading" (People).Though they were often ridiculed or ignored by their contemporaries, their paintings are now revered around the world. Their dazzling works are familiar to even the most casual art lovers—but how well do we know the Impressionists as people? The first book to offer an intimate and lively biography of the world's ...

Pulitzer Prize–winning art critic Sebastian Smee tells the fascinating story of four pairs of artists—Manet and Degas, Picasso and Matisse, Pollock and de Kooning, Freud and Bacon—whose fraught, competitive friendships spurred them to new creative heights.Rivalry is at the heart of some of the most famous and fruitful relationships in history. The Art of Rivalry follows eight celebrated artists, each linked to a counterpart by friendship, admiration, envy,...

Influenced by the masters of Antiquity, the genius of Michelangelo and Baroque sculpture, particularly of Bernini, Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) is one of the most renowned artists in history. Though Rodin is considered a founder of modern sculpture, he did not set out to critique past classical traditions. Many of his sculptures were criticised and considered controversial because of their sensuality or hyperrealist qualities. His most original works departed from traditional themes of mythol...

After the pleasure comes the pain. The Sexual Life of Catherine M, Catherine Millet's analysis of the many forms and flavours of sexual pleasure, was internationally admired, and not just for its literary qualities. The audacity of a sex life well lived and thoroughly examined left readers wondering how she managed to pull it off while sustaining her relationship with life partner, writer Jacques Henric. 'I had love at home' she explained. 'I sought only pleasure in the world outs...

The innovative works of the Post-Impressionist Paul Cézanne laid the foundations of a new and radically different form of art in the twentieth century. Challenging the conventional values of art in his time, Cézanne’s insistence on personal expression and the integrity of the painting itself, regardless of subject matter, have since earned him universal praise among his fellow artists, with Matisse and Picasso calling him "the father of us all." Delphi’s Masters of Art Se...

A painter of the Impressionist movement, Alfred Sisley was born on October 30th 1839 in Paris but was of British origin. He died on January 29th 1899 in Moret-sur-Loing. Growing up in a musical family, he chose to pursue painting rather than the field of business. In 1862 he enrolled in Gleyre’s studio where he encountered Renoir, Monet, and Bazille. The four friends left their master’s studio in March 1863 to work outdoors, setting their easels to paint the forest scenes of Fontainebleau....

Matisse and Picasso achieved extraordinary prominence during their lifetimes. They have become cultural icons, standing not only for different kinds of art but also for different ways of living. Matisse, known for his restraint and intense sense of privacy, for his decorum and discretion, created an art that transcended daily life and conveyed a sensuality that inhabited an abstract and ethereal realm of being. In contrast, Picasso became the exemplar of intense emotionality, of theatrical...

"[An] epic account of life and loves among artists and writers in Paris from belle époque to world slump." —William Feaver , The SpectatorA legendary capital of the arts, Paris hosted some of the most legendary developments in world culture—particularly at the beginning of the twentieth century, with the flowering of fauvism, cubism, dadaism, and surrealism.In Bohemian Paris, Dan Franck leads us on a vivid and magical tour of the Paris of ...

Paul Cézanne forms the connection linking late 19th century Impressionism and the early 20th century's new contour of Cubism. Matisse and Picasso together recognize that "Cezanne is the father of all us," so that his contribution to modern art just can not be rejected.Cézanne, who exhibited paintings rarely and lived progressively more in creative isolation, is considered nowadays as one of the greatest pioneers of modern art and painting, equally for the method that he evolved of ...

This Introduction is an exciting journey through the different styles of theatre that twentieth-century and contemporary directors have created. It discusses artistic and political values, rehearsal methods and the diverging relationships with actors, designers, other collaborators and audiences, and treatment of dramatic material. Offering a compelling analysis of theatrical practice, Christopher Innes and Maria Shevtsova explore the different rehearsal and staging principles and methods ...

Conceptual art in the Western world is in crisis. That is the view of many people who are disillusioned with what they regard as its attention-seeking antics, where artists themselves have proudly proclaimed 'the death of art'. Why has art been on this road to destruction, and how did it get there? How does one make sense of the bewildering complexity of Conceptual art, and how does one extract meaning from its diverse and sometimes bizarre manifestations?This predicament needs exp...