Customer Reviews

The Art of Ford Madox Brown

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...and take notice that this book has a total of 352 pages, of which :206 (plus an 18-page introduction) are pure text; 123 are black and white illustrations; and only 8 (eight) color plates, most of well known and widely reproduced artworks by FMB, such as "work", "pretty-baa lambs" and "the last of England". If you are expecting a lavishly illustrated volume, you'll be as disappointed as I am, thus the low rating I have given. It is my personal opinion, and by no means I am judging the essay by Mr. Bendiner, which I have not read; for this you can read the review below.

F.M. Brown is one of the most fascinating, but neglected, artists of the nineteenth century. A book which takes his art seriously is long overdue. While some of the judgements contained here are arguable, there can be no doubt that Bendiner has done Brown justice. His comments are always subtle, alert to the ambiguities and complexities of Brown's approach. Bendiner has chosen to organise the book thematically, dividing it into chapters on Brown's 'Archaism', 'Humour', Realism', 'Aestheticism' and 'Social Conscience'. This approach has its problems, especially as the reader has to piece together Bendiner's thoughts on particular paintings, which may be scattered across the chapters. Sometimes it leads to diffuse commentary on important issues. Nevertheless, the approach has the advantage that Bendiner can emphasise the artistic principles of Brown's work overall - very important in Brown's case as critics have too often dismissed his art as 'illustrative'. Perhaps the best points are made in the opening chapters, that on the 'social conscience' can be weak, especially as it attempts to downplay the influence of Carlyle, a writer whose stylistic methods were very important to Brown - as is now increasingly recognised. The appenices containing Brown's own quirky commentaries on his paintings is a welcome addition to the text.