Modigliani

Amadeo Modigliani(1884-1920) has remained one of the most popular artists of modern times; his reputation has never been eclipsed by the great revolutionary figures who were his contemporaries. His sensuous nudes, his innocent, trusting children, his portraits - which capture the individual personalities of his subjects despite his highly mannered style - all show the exquisite refinement of line and color that explain his enduring appeal. Although influenced by the avant-garde movements of his time, Modigliani's art also has the flavor of his heritage, the immortal fifteenth-century art of his native Italy. In his life, Modigliani cut the figure of the quintessential bohemian artist. He was notorious for the excesses of his appetites, and they led to his untimely death at the age of thirty-six. His great love, Jeanne Hebuterne, committed suicide on the morning after his death. Yet the legend of his dissipation and irregular life may have been exaggerated, as the late Dr. Alfred Werner points out in this book, for the intense productivity of his pitifully short life bespeaks a man driven to work as much as to live. To write this book, Dr. Werner, an authority on the School of Paris painters, consulted with family and friends of the artist and examined a great deal of documentary material, some of which is reproduced here. In addition to his paintings, Modigliani's drawings and his sculptures - which he himself valued above all else in his art - are included in this striking study of a brief but incandescent life.