A unique look at the evolution of modern art in America, from art historian and eminent former curator of the Chicago Art Institute Katharine Kuh, a key figure in opening America+s eyes to contemporary art. -Any artist worth his salt is in advance of his time,+ writes Katharine Kuh. Picasso, Duchamp, LŽger, Mir—, Braque, Chagall, Klee, Calder, Davis, Hopper, Weston, Rothko, Arensberg, Dale, Philips. These are just a few of the artists, photographers, and collectors Katharine Kuh knew and worked with during her long career. One of America+s pivotal forces in the arts for over four decades, she began with her own gallery in Chicago in the early 1930s. To sell contemporary art in post-Depression America was almost suicidal, but with guts and gumption Kuh survived. In 1954, the Chicago Art Institute named her its first curator of modern art-a position of great prestige. Over the next 26 years, scouring the world, she acquired some of the most famous pieces in the institute+s collection, and formed close relationships with the artists themselves. Here she gives us insights into their personal lives, their creative influences, and the way they worked. After her death in 1998, noted art historian Avis Berman, Kuh+s literary executor, selected her key writings for this book.
My Love Affair with Modern Art: Behind the Scenes with a Legendary Curator FROM THE CRITICS Terry Hartle - The Christian Science Monitor These careful, sensitive, and well-written portraits of several giants from the 20th-century art world make this a deeply rewarding volume. One only wishes that Kuh had been able share her insights about more artists before she died.
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