Customer Reviews

Cezanne to Picasso: Ambroise Vollard, Patron of the Avant-Garde (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

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The Metropolitan Museum of Art has produced yet another fine curatorial statement with their exhibition 'Cezanne to Picasso: Ambroise Vollard, Patron of the Avant-Garde' and fortunately the accompanying catalogue is as bold and beautiful as the exhibition itself. The concept of discussing artists of international stature from the stance of the man who gave their careers the jumpstart needed is unique and valuable and is a tribute to the work that art dealers around the world perform in assisting artists in their career paths.

Ambroise Vollard (1867-1939), a Parisian art dealer, played a significant role in molding the art movements of the late 19th and early 20th century. The stimulus, according to the curators and essayists of this lavishly illustrated book, was the 1895 exhibition of Cezanne's art, an exhibition which triggered the movements of modern art as followed by such artists as Gauguin, Van Gogh, Degas, Rouault, Matisse and Picasso. Some credit Vollard with the development of the Fauvist school simply by his intelligent, sensitive, provocative exhibitions of the right artists given space beside each other that created comparisons and links.

The concept of art dealer as innovator is a fresh one and one handled with sufficient intelligent documentation by the various writers contributing to this catalogue to lend credibility to the premise. But over and above the curatorial concept is the pleasure of the exceptional illustrations of works by familiar artists not usually seen in books of this sort. The writing and design make this catalogue/book a collector's item that will enhance not only art school libraries but also the personal libraries of all art lovers. A very fine addition to the information about the artists included in this exhibition and catalogue. Grady Harp, October 06

This book is jammed with fascinating information,gorgeous reproductions and is extremely well priced.Anyone interested in 20th cent.art will welcome this book!

My daughter was an Art History Minor and had expressed interest in this book. I bought it for her as a holiday gift and she treasures it. Amazon got it to me in time for me to enjoy leafing through it as well. It is extraordinary both in picture and text. It is truly a keepsake.

A great exhibition, a great dealer and a great book. Very well documented, even though Vollard seems to have been very secretive. He certainly was at the right place, at the right time as the book very well shows . He no doubt was an opportunist, but with an eye and a love of art unmatched by his peers. He also invented the art market of his time and certainly deserved such a beautiful tribute.

The art work is well reproduced and of good size. The focus is more on the relationsh8ip of the dealer with the artists and this is mostly second hand or inference. Some of the nature of Vollard's character is noted by his modest furnishings and the haphazard way he kept many of the works. His style of negotiations and manners were kept close to his vest by all accounts so that the nature of describing him has many blank spots. As a means to describe the man the book fails in many ways As a means of relating him to the events about him it is quite reasonable.
An introductory biographical discussion from birth to demise at the beginning of the work would have made the subsequent discussions more accessible.

The book was in the new condition described at an excellent price . It aArrived earlier than expected.