Impressionist Quartet: The Intimate Genius of Manet and Morisot, Degas and Cassatt (Hardcover)

by Jeffrey Meyers (Author) "EDOUARD MANET, the notorious creator of sexually daring paintings, was beloved by his friends and despised by the critics and the public..." (more)
Key Phrases: Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The author of biographies of Joseph Conrad and Somerset Maugham, Meyers highlights here the intertwined lives of four Impressionist painters. Commencing with Edouard Manet (1832–1883), Meyers chronicles the artist's angst-ridden life as a bohemian and social rebel whose paintings were repeatedly rejected by the French art establishment. Berthe Morisot (1841–1895) is chiefly investigated in relation to Manet, with whom Meyers suggests she was romantically involved; she ultimately married Manet's brother (Manet was already married). Meyers's discussions of Morisot's paintings are engaging and unpretentious, as are his interpretations of all of the artists' works. The author pays more attention to Edgar Degas (1834–1917) than he does to American-born expat Mary Cassatt (1844–1926), whom he characterizes as a prickly, self-effacing woman with "a formidable array of off-putting qualities" who painted overly hygienic children. While Degas valued Cassatt as an artist and friend, Meyers says, he found her physically unappealing. As a glimpse into the context and dramas surrounding some of the world's most famous paintings, Meyers's book is lively and subjective, but not always entirely convincing. (May)
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From Booklist
The nineteenth-century rebel painters known as the impressionists, often reviled in their time, remain perennial art-world stars. Meyers, author of a formidable list of literary biographies of the likes of Hemingway, Orwell, and Lawrence, now considers four impressionists. Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt are often seen as lesser lights in their male-dominated world, but Meyers gives them their due in relation to the dapper Manet and the overlord Degas. They inspired, admired, taught, harangued, envied, loved, challenged, and competed with one another. Each developed a singular style in breaking with tradition. Each was lovable and unlovable in his or her own way. Meyers treats them singly and in pairs, and looks closely at many of their paintings to discuss creativity, politics, class, and sex as well as suppressed love and longing. Meyers' title hints at his musical structure: the book is less linear biography than four suites of essays, with themes and variations that often double back and revisit moments through each artist's experience. Risky, but mostly engaging. Steve Paul
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt (May 16, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151010765
• ISBN-13: 978-0151010769
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #147,137 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > Arts & Photography > Artists, A-Z > ( M-O ) > Morisot, Berthe
  #5 in	Books > Arts & Photography > Artists, A-Z > ( M-O ) > Manet, Edouard
  #31 in	Books > Arts & Photography > Schools, Periods & Styles > Impressionism

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Frustrating Read, May 2, 2006

By	K. Patterson - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Think carefully before buying this book. You won't finish it. The author spends most of his time describing (but not really analyzing) numerous works of art which are not illustrated in the book. At first, I tried to look up each image online, but with the number of paintings he writes about, it quickly became impossible. It is pointless (not to mention boring) to read the descriptions without being able to see the works themeselves. A very small number of paintings are illustrated in the book, but even they are in black and white. The biographical portions of the text are interesting, but the book is perhaps 1/3 biography, 2/3 description, which makes it impossible to get through.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intimate Quartet , December 2, 2007

By	M. holland (usa) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

For you artist biography lovers:

Here's a delicious treat !

Four fascinating painters described with exceptional insight & humour

A cumbersome, intellectual analysis ; This is NOT

A flavorful sketching of complex personalities & their creative process ; This Is.

Also this gifted author provides a history lesson , that of the I9th century / Entertaining & not "castor oil"

Reading this small but juicy bio

Helped me appreciate these painters much more/ what better compliment is that ?

& for the used price / You can't lose !!

Get this and fall in love with painting again..

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars spurring each other to greatness, October 14, 2007

By	Margaret E. Pollock "plato" (orlando,florida) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Who hasn't been hypnotized by this Impressionist Quartet's paintings? This book will open the doors to their intertwining lives and to their art. It describes the individual character of each artist and their personal triumphs and failures. Jeffrey Meyers has again done an interesting and fulfilling biography of these four artists.