Overview
Here for the first time is the history of art dealers, those extraordinary men and women who, over centuries (and almost entirely out of the public eye), built their profession on a singular skill: identifying the intangible but infinitely desirable qualities that characterize the greatest works of art-and finding clients for whom those qualities are irresistible. Philip Hook's riveting narrative takes us from the early days of art dealing in Antwerp, where paintings were sold by weight, to the unassailable hauteur of contemporary galleries in New York, London, Paris, and beyond. Along the way, we meet a surprisingly wide-ranging cast of characters-from tailors, spies, and the occasional anarchist to scholars, aristocrats, and connoisseurs, some compelled by greed, some by their own vision of art-and some by the art of the deal. Among them are Joseph Duveen, who almost single-handedly brought the Old Masters to America; Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, high priest of Cubism; and Peter Wilson, the charismatic Sotheby's chairman who made a theater of the auction room. Rogues' Gallery bursts with unforgettable anecdotes and astute judgments about art and artists, honed by Hook's more than forty years in the art market-making it essential listening for anyone interested in the hidden history of art.
Full Product Details
Author: Philip Hook ,
Nigel Patterson
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
Imprint: Tantor Media, Inc
Edition: Unabridged edition
Dimensions:
Width: 13.50cm
, Height: 1.50cm
, Length: 19.00cm
Weight: 0.072kg
ISBN: 9781541459281
ISBN 10: 1541459288
Publication Date: 31 October 2017
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Audio
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
aEUROoeA lively exploration of the history of art and the tastemakers and dealers whose influence in shaping it is often overlooked.aEURO ---Kirkus
A lively exploration of the history of art and the tastemakers and dealers whose influence in shaping it is often overlooked. ---Kirkus
Author Information
Philip Hook joined Sotheby's Impressionist & Modern Art Department in 1994. Currently a board member and senior director of Impressionist & Modern art in London, he is the author of Popular Nineteenth Century Paintings, Breakfast at Sotheby's, The Ultimate Trophy, and five successful novels set in the art world. British audiobook narrator and AudioFile Earphones Award winner Nigel Patterson has many credits as a stage, screen, and voice-over actor that influence his powerful characterization across a broad range of genres. A graduate of the University of Oxford, he is fluent in French and Spanish.
