Customer Reviews

James McNeill Whistler

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I had been looking for a Whistler book, and this was simply the best one that I was able to track down. It includes the color images of the artist's best-klnown works, including his portraits, nocturnes, and etchings. The text is informative and comprehensive. My only complaint is that many of the images were smaller than I would have liked. When I get a book like this, the artwork is the main draw--not the text. More full-page images would have been nice.

This book does an excellent job of exploring the many contradictions of the life and career of an artist who was both his own biggest fan/promoter and his own harshest critic. The book presents the many talents (artist,etcher,interior designer to name a few) and his many flaws (vain, arrogant, bitter and self serving attitude) while still showing the human side of the artist . The illustrations are complete and a glorious showing of both his popular works as well as his less known pieces. The triad of this book, "Diabolical Designs" and "Beyond the Myth" reveal an artist who deserves much more critical and popular attention.