Henry Moore: Sculpting the 20th Century ANNOTATION
This catalogue accompanies a major exhibition organized by the Dallas Museum of Art with the generous collaboration of the Henry Moore Foundation. The exhibition opens in Dallas on 25 February 2001 and then travels to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Published in association with the Dallas Museum of Art
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Henry Moore (1898-1986) is arguably one of the most famous and beloved sculptors of the twentieth century, yet in recent decades his work has fallen out of favor in the world of contemporary art criticism. This handsome book examines this intriguing contradiction and seeks to reassess Moore's crucial contribution to art of the last century.
Looking at Moore's early engagements with primitivism, his 1930s dialogue with abstraction and surrealism, and his postwar interest in large-scale public sculpture, the authors show how the sculptor helped to define some of the most significant aspects of modernism.The authors also contextualize within the polemics of early modernism Moore's emphasis on direct carving instead of modeling and the necessary balance between abstraction and what he called the "psychological human element." Moore's early sculpture -- largely unfamiliar to the general public -- is given particular attention, enabling the reader to explore the evolution of thematic and formal elements in his work and his ongoing response to different materials. Photographs, some by Moore himself, of over 120 works, including plasters, maquettes, carvings, bronzes, and drawings, are featured, many of which are previously unpublished.
FROM THE CRITICS
Choice
Excellent texts complement the photographic essays with stimulating titles. . . Well produced and modestly priced. Highly recommended.
Virginia Quarterly Review
A lavish, beautifully illustrated, and impressive scholarly catalogue. . .will be of considerable interest to scholars and amateurs alike.
Blake Gopnik - Washington Post Book World
An impressively evenhanded take on Moore's career and reputation. Highly readable. . .
Publishers Weekly
Making its case right from the title, Henry Moore: Sculpting the 20th Century argues for the popular English sculptor's continued primacy. Edited by Dallas Museum of Art curator Dorothy Kosinski, and serving as the catalogue for an exhibition currently touring the U.S., the book covers the artist's entire career, from his early primitivism to his 1930s surrealism to his post-war public art. Photos of over 120 of Moore's suggestively abstract plasters, carvings, bronzes and drawings grace the pages of the book, along with scholarly essays from Moore proponents. ( June) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Internet Book Watch
Moore is one of the most beloved sculptors of the 20th century, yet his work has fallen out of favor with the modern critics: this seeks to reassess Moore's crucial contribution to art of the last century, examining his early experiments with primitivism and his later probe into modernist pieces. The focus on his early works in particular provides Moore enthusiasts with a body of works and approaches not seen in many other considerations of his works.
ACCREDITATION
Dorothy Kosinski is the Barbara Thomas Lemmon Curator of European Art, Dallas Museum of Art. She and David Mitchinson, Head of Collections and Exhibitions at the Henry Moore Foundation, are co-curators of the exhibition. Contributors to the catalogue are Dorothy Kosinski, Steven Nash, Alan Wilkinson, Anita Feldman Bennet, Julian Andrews, Elizabeth Brown, David Cohen, and Harriet Senie.
Home
