Author:Andrew Graham Dixon
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio lived the darkest and most dangerous life of any of the great painters. The worlds of Milan, Rome and Naples through which Caravaggio moved and which Andrew Graham-Dixon describes brilliantly in this book, are those of cardinals and whores, prayer and violence. On the streets surrounding the churches and palaces, brawls and swordfights were regular occurrences. In the course of this desperate life Caravaggio created the most dramatic paintings of his age, using ordinary men and women - often prostitutes and the very poor - to model for his depictions of classic religious scenes. Andrew Graham-Dixon's exceptionally illuminating readings of Caravaggio'spictures, which are the heart of the book, show very clearly how he created their drama, immediacy and humanity, and how completely he departed from the conventions of his time.
Caravaggio has rarely been seen in such depth and such relief as in this marvellous biography. Andrew Graham-Dixon reads Caravaggio's paintings with the habits and assumptions, thoughts and fears of his contemporaries so that we see and feel the paintings more acutely and intensely than before. The man and his work emerge enriched and enlivened
—— Neil MacGregor, Director of the British MuseumCaravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane gave me immense pleasure and provided constant delight. It is a thrilling lesson in the art of seeing, a sensual exploration of the shadows of Caravaggio's sometimes violent but always Christian world, a detective story with a highly satisfying ending. Andrew Graham-Dixon's ability to have a reader see a painting through written language is a rare and precious gift. The book's rigour and integrity are obvious. I trusted every word and was sorry to turn the final page
—— Peter CareyA stunning work, resounding with profound insights which rivet the attention... A beautifully conceived and presented book from the professor of art history at Columbia University, New York. There must be few others in the world who could equal it
—— Western Daily PressPowerfully vivid story-telling... Schama is a powerful communicator, and it is a joy to witness him explore the extraordinary evolution of eight world-class works of art
—— Good Book GuidePolitics, religion, war, sex and love are the inspirations behind the paintings chosen, and each takes on a new life under Schama's gaze
—— First magazineThe author's powerful storytelling technique in this book... makes both the artist and his art spring to life
—— The LadyIn this frank memoir, the British journalist Georgie Greig recounts his regular meetings with Freud.
—— ApolloStartlingly frank.
—— Nick Curtis , Evening StandardBoth tender biography and blunt revelation. In that it is the first to reveal the man and the essential symbiosis of heterosexual obsession…with the messy business of painting, it is the most important book yet written on Freud.
—— Brian Sewell , Evening StandardA riveting anecdotal portrait… Everywhere there are fascinating nuggets… A fond, fair-minded, thankfully non-judgmental and pretty full portrait of a person shaped around the people – and most saliently the lovers – who came into his life.
—— Rachel Campbell-Johnston , The TimesGreig has penetrated deep into the labyrinth of Freud’s private life. The result is a gripping page-turner about an endlessly fascinating and extraordinary man.
—— Lynn Barber , Sunday TimesCompelling and fascinating… It is a book fill of clues – generous with routes to an understanding of this massively difficult and hugely gifted individual.
—— William Boyd , Mail on Sunday[It] will be on many an art lover's Christmas list this year.
—— Mary Lussiana , Country & Town HouseFond and faintly disturbing.
—— Nicky Haslam , SpectatorA rattlingly readable effort... Greig does a fine job revealing tales one suspects the artist may have wished to keep private.
—— Alastair Smart , TelegraphAnybody with an ear for a good story, never mind an eye for fine art, will be beguiled.
—— Hephzibah Anderson , Mail on SundayGreig's fascinating, intimate biography of Lucian Freud was a revelation. Every question I had about Freud – from the aesthetic to the intrusively gossipy – was answered with great candour and judiciousness… Wry, dry and completely beguiling.
—— William Boyd , Guardian[Greig’s] perceptive observations and eagle’s eye for detail immediately drew me in.
—— Rebecca Wallersteiner , VantageThe Freud who emerges in this account is a slippery figure, not only for journalists who tried to explain him but also for his intimates.
—— New YorkerMr Greig's is a compelling portrait of a complete amoralist who became a monstre sacré.
—— The EconomistGreig’s portrait glimmers with his eye for the telling detail.
—— Robert Collins , Sunday TimesA mesmerising book, seamlessly crafted, totally absorbing, and impossible to put down.
—— The TabletA very readable and enjoyable book, full of salacious detail of the artist and his fascinating life.
—— Julia Weiner , Jewish ChronicleThis intimate biography of Lucian Freud spares no blushes in its account of one of Britain's greatest painters, tracing his life and work through candid revelations about his views on art, relationships and family.
—— Charlotte Mullins , Art QuarterlyBuilding up brush stroke by brush stroke, Greig has produced a three-dimensional study of equal candour. Part demon, part genius, it is an absorbing portrait of the complexity of a strange human character.
—— Peter Lewis , Daily MailAn unapologetic mixture of intelligent perception and high gossip... It is, overall, more revealing than anything about [Freud] yet written.
—— Frances Spalding , GuardianI am captivated by this fascinating memoir... It's an extraordinary read.
—— Barbara Taylor Bradford , Daily MailCandid and intelligent.
—— Spear'sA gripping, page-turning vision of Lucian Freud that penetrates deep into the artist's private life.
—— Sunday Times OnlineUtterly engrossing and lavishly illustrated
—— Mail on Sunday