Great Collectors of Our Time is the first major survey of contemporary collecting and collectors since Douglas Cooper's Great Private Collections, published in 1963. It examines many of the greatest collectors of our time in Europe, North America and the Far East, and follows their tastes - whether in the Old Masters or the avant garde - from the 20th century into the 21st. In 1945, Paris was still the cultural capital of the world, but its culture was being increasingly challenged by America. American collecting was soon to pull up its European anchor and move across the Atlantic, in growing acceptance of America's own art, the decline in the domination of three European schools of art - Italian Renaissance, English 18th century and French 19th century Impressionism - and the rise of the New York School and contemporary art. Prior to 1939, collecting was a private pleasure, sometimes intellectual and scholarly, but more often about enhancing surroundings - 'la douceur de vivre'. Today, colle
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About the Author
James Stourton is Chairman of Sotheby's UK. He read History of Art at Cambridge and joined Sotheby's in 1979. He is the author of Great Smaller Museums of Europe and frequently writes on the history of collecting. He has written on the subject for Apollo, The Art Newspaper, Matrix, The Independent and The Spectator and regularly lectures to the National Art Collections Fund, Sotheby's Institute of Education and Cambridge University faculty of Art History.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An insider's look at private collections,
By Claude Reich (Florianopolis, Brazil and Paris, France) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Great Collectors of our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945 (Hardcover)
Written by a senior staff member of Sotheby's, this book offers an interesting overlook on the collections and personalities of some of the most important art collectors of our time. The text itself is a collection of short pieces on each collector, describing the building and the highlights of their collection (which can be African art, Islamic art, modern paintings, rare books, old masters, contemporary art, etc). You will not find any real scoop here, since, but for a few exceptions, most of the people and collections described are already well-known , but it is still a book that is pleasant to read and full of good-quality illustrations of seldom reproduced works.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A treasure!,
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This review is from: Great Collectors of our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945 (Hardcover)
This is a truly magnificent book, very well written, very complete. The text is scholarly and straight forward, with many answered questions about this club of great collectors. While the events of theirs lifes are vividly told, the text also explains and illuminates each personality through interesting analyses. The author tends to be factual and does not speculate much. If you want to be as much entertained as educated on this great collectors buy this fantastic book. This is no ordinary art book. You will treasure it and be proud to show it to friends. Simply 5 stars!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fine Art,
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This review is from: Great Collectors of our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945 (Hardcover)
Will be enjoyed by those interested in the most significant collectors of great art since the end of World War II and the role each played in preserving various treasures of the world's culture.
By its nature this is a quick survey work, with short articles on each collector, along with nice photographs of important pieces within their separate collections. Each individual survey spans the time from when and how the collector started; to the collection's ultimate breadth and setting; to how it was eventually dispersed (usually to a museum or two) at death or other final point--unless the collector is still alive and still in possession. My favorite collector in the book: The Canadian embassy worker in the Soviet Union, Mr. George Costakis. For those really interested, you can find more detailed books on a number of these collectors, such as "Memories of a Collector" by Giusppe Panza. James Stourton is a highly informed and interesting art expert, although certainly given to focusing on the positive about each of his selected collectors and their collections.
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