Customer Reviews

Corot

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I was looking for a book with good reproductions of the best paintings by Corot, especially his later landscapes. In this respect I was disappointed with this exhibition catalogue, because it focuses too much on Corot's portraits and some less important works. Also, most of the reproductions are quite small scale. On the plus side, this book is packed with information: each painting is thoroughly presented with detailed background information.

"No man should become an artist who is not passionate about nature" Corot
"There is only one master here-Corot. We are nothing compared to him, nothing" Claude Monet,1897
"He is still the strongest, he anticipated everything...." Edgar Degas, 1883
"Corot's figures aren't so well known as his landscapes, but it cannot be denied that he has done them. Besides Corot drew and modeled every tree trunk with the same devotion and love as if it were a figure" Vincent van Gogh 1881.

Nowadays Corot's reputation is somewhat below the abovementioned masters. Examining some of his finest paintings as presented in a major retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum in 1996 should cause the observer to wonder why this is the case. His landscapes are wonderfully evocative and atmospheric and there are a number of very beautiful figure paintings. It is to be noted that Corot (1796-1875) was a prolific painter - some 3000 canvases. Many forgeries exist as well, as explained in an interesting essay on this subject. The curators of this exhibition have selected 163 of the best of his works.

This book is somewhat of a collectors piece; hard backed copies generally fetch a substantial price. This fact is understandable given its magnificent printing standards, general presentation and rarity. I have the soft cover version which, though less desirable, is also a splendid addition to my library. If available at a reasonable price you should snap it up.