A startling number of masterpieces now in American museums are there because of the shrewdness of one man, Joseph Duveen, art dealer to John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Mellon, Henry Clay Frick, and William Randolph Hearst. In a series of articles originally published in The New Yorker, playwright S.N. Behrman evokes the larger-than-life Duveen and reveals the wheeling and dealing, subterfuge, and spirited drama behind the sale of nearly—but not quite—priceless Rembrandts, Vermeers, Turners, and Bellinis.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
SAMUAL N. BEHRMAN (1893-1973), the son of a Jewish grocer, studied drama at Harvard and Columbia Universities. Before achieving success as a playwright, he worked at The New York Times, but was fired after it was discovered that the entertaining responses he was writing for the "Queries and Answers" section were to questions that he himself had submitted. He was acclaimed for the rarefied wit of plays such as "Wine of Choice," "The Second Man," and "End of Summer," and was also the author of a biography of Max Beerbohm. Upon his death, friends in show business remembered him as "the eighth of the seven lively arts."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Duveen's divine,
By Kim Anstatt (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Duveen (Hardcover)
Excellent biography of a forgotten man and his times - a man that changed the way Americans collected European art. Funny, witty and appallingly honest. A must read for anyone serious about art buying.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Is it real or is it Duveen?,
By KSG "ksgnyc" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Duveen: The Story of the Most Spectacular Art Dealer of All Time (Paperback)
While this book is enormously entertaining, it's value is limited as a serious work of history. The reality is; Lord Duveen, grandson of a blacksmith from Delft, who went on to be an English Baron, was much more of a hustler than this 1950's era fantasy makes him out to be. For a more modern take on Lord Duveen try: Artful Partners: Bernard Berenson and Joseph Duveen by Colin Simpson.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Necessity!,
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This review is from: Duveen: The Story of the Most Spectacular Art Dealer of All Time (Paperback)
This book is a necessity if you are interested in the history of American art.
Presents heartbreaking insight into Berenson's mind.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
WHEN JOSEPH DUVEEN, the most spectacular art dealer of all time, travelled from one to another of his three galleries, in Paris, New York, and London, his business, including a certain amount of his stock in trade, travelled with him. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
rival dealer, buying pictures, smuggling case, blue boy, selling pictures Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Henry, New York, Joseph Joel, Fifth Avenue, Joseph Duveen, United States, Lord Duveen, Sir Charles, Ministry of Marine, Oxford Street, Fragonard Room, Red Boy, Collis Huntington, King George, Sarah Siddons, Van Dyck, Arabella Huntington, Duveen Era, Frick Collection, Lady Lavery, Leonardo da Vinci, Madison Avenue, Prime Minister, San Marino, Secretary of the Treasury New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
WHEN JOSEPH DUVEEN, the most spectacular art dealer of all time, travelled from one to another of his three galleries, in Paris, New York, and London, his business, including a certain amount of his stock in trade, travelled with him. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
rival dealer, buying pictures, smuggling case, blue boy, selling pictures Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Henry, New York, Joseph Joel, Fifth Avenue, Joseph Duveen, United States, Lord Duveen, Sir Charles, Ministry of Marine, Oxford Street, Fragonard Room, Red Boy, Collis Huntington, King George, Sarah Siddons, Van Dyck, Arabella Huntington, Duveen Era, Frick Collection, Lady Lavery, Leonardo da Vinci, Madison Avenue, Prime Minister, San Marino, Secretary of the Treasury New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 26
books:
See all 26 books this book cites
- Italian Painters of the Renaissance by Bernard Berenson on page 95, page 106, and page 114
- Sketch for a Self Portrait by Bernard Berenson on page 105, page 114, and page 127
- Still Life by American Federation Of Art in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Fra Angelico (Metropolitan Museum of Art Series) by Laurence Kanter in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
See all 26 books this book cites
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