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The Art of Rivalry

The Art of Rivalry

By Sebastian Smee

Four Friendships, Betrayals and Breakthroughs in Modern Art. Random House, 2017.

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15 mins read

13 Key insights

A brief summary of The Art of Rivalry

Four turbulent tales of artist rivals, spanning from the early French impressionists to Picasso to Pollock, who shared both personal and professional rivalries and friendships that motivated each other to create masterpieces.

Key insights in The Art of Rivalry

1
What do you get from this book? Stories of four pairs of artists who inspired each other through friendly competition—or outright rivalry
2
Rivalry is behind many of art history’s greatest works, fueling ambition among artists who became renowned
3
Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud were among Britain’s boldest twentieth-century painters—and its boldest characters
4
Bacon cured Freud of his sentimental tendency as an artist, though Freud’s influence on Bacon’s art is less clear
5
French impressionist pioneers Manet and Degas approached representation of the world differently but both revolutionized art
6
Manet drew Degas out of himself, inspiring the younger artist to paint the world around him
7
Matisse and Picasso were among the greatest artists of the early twentieth century, forging modernist and abstract aesthetics
8
Picasso leapt from Matisse’s shadow by taking their shared inspiration from African art in a different direction
9
The “action painting” of Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning propelled America to the forefront of the art world
10
Pollock’s dramatically innovative art was matched in intensity by his turbulent personal life, though both influenced and motivated de Kooning
11
Summary of the key insights
12
Selected critiques in brief
13
Final word

Who should read The Art of Rivalry

Art enthusiasts • historians • lovers of gossip • philosophers of aesthetics • anyone interested in how rivalries spark inspiration

About the author of The Art of Rivalry

Sebastian Smee is an art critic and the winner of a Pulitzer Prize for his criticism for The Boston Globe. He is a University of Sydney graduate and has also written for The Times and The Australian. His other books include Side by Side: Picasso v Matisse and Lucian Freud.

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Sebastian Smee

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