Stanley Spencer (1891-1959) explored fundamental issues of life with an urgency and persistence unique among British artists of his generation. His art comments on religion, love, sexuality, fraternity and community. Charting the trajectory of Spencer's painting career in depth, this original publication provides a comprehensive analysis of the artist's oeuvre.
Central to understanding Spencer's work is the man himself - deeply subjective, his paintings reflect the ideas and beliefs that motivated him. While he had less emotional attachment with his landscapes, he viewed each figure painting as constituent of a body of work which, viewed as a whole, was representative of his personal and professional evolution. Examining critically the artist's key works from all periods, Andrew Causey places Spencer's art within the wider context of the spiritual, social and even, exceptionally, political values that underpin his work and make him such an outstanding painter.
While strong emphasis is placed on Spencer's 'visionary' paintings of the 1910s and1920s and the important crowd scenes and portraiture of the 1930s, Stanley Spencer gives due attention to the works produced later in the artist's career. The result is a well-rounded, original analysis of one of Britain's greatest painters that will enhance the libraries of general and specialist readers alike.
By:
Andrew Causey
Imprint: Lund Humphries Publishers Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: New edition
Dimensions:
Height: 270mm,
Width: 228mm,
Spine: 22mm
Weight: 1.229kg
ISBN: 9781848221468
ISBN 10: 1848221460
Pages: 192
Publication Date: 04 February 2014
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Contents: Introduction; Chapter 1: Marriage to the world; Chapter 2: Where the spirit moves me; Chapter 3: War, re-birth and a 'New Me'; Chapter 4: A modern conversation piece; Chapter 5: All the faithful dead; Chapter 6: God's clown; Chapter 7: Possessed by joy; Chapter 8: The search for love; Personal, sincere and courageous; Chronology; Bibliography; Index.
Andrew Causey wrote extensively on 20th-century art and was the author of books on Henry Moore, Paul Nash (his most recent published in 2013 by Lund Humphries), Edward Burra and Peter Lanyon. He contributed to exhibition catalogues on Stanley Spencer, Andy Goldsworthy and other artists and organised exhibitions at many venues including the Royal Academy, the Hayward Gallery, Tate and regional galleries and museums in the UK. He was Emeritus Professor of the History of Modern Art at Manchester University.
Reviews for Stanley Spencer: Art as a Mirror of Himself
'A richly stimulating guide to a complex artist...Any book that can add to our understanding of genius - as this one does - is to be prized' The Art Newspaper
