Diego Rivera by Pete Hamill

From Barnes & Noble

Mexican painter Diego Rivera's "stoic, laboring peasants" and "warm, earthy palette" are familiar to many, if not most, art lovers, but fewer are familiar with his turbulent life. In Diego Rivera -- part biography, part "appreciation" -- award-winning journalist Pete Hamill, who himself studied art in Mexico City many years ago, attempts to get beyond the myths that have long surrounded Rivera to the man they obscure.

From the Publisher

Like his contemporary, Pablo Picasso, the Mexican artist Diego Rivera (1886-1957) was a man of enormous energy, astonishing versatility, and voracious appetites. Rivera made his mark as one of the greatest muralists of the twentieth century. His dramatic public life involved him in the deepest contradictions of art and politics. The great years of Rivera's art - the 1920s and early 1930s - saw an outpouring of work that was equal to the achievement of any twentieth-century master.. "Pete Hamill's Diego Rivera narrates the life and explores the art of this remarkable figure: prodigiously productive artist, polemicist and political activist, Mexican nationalist, and lover of many women. Acknowledging the cost of Rivera's didactic communism, Hamill focuses on what is enduring in his work.. "Pete Hamill has served as editor in chief of the New York Daily News, the New York Post, and the Mexico City News.

The Progressive - Dean Bakopoulos

In this tight and balanced look at Mexican painter Diego Rivera, journalist and novelist Pete Hamill focuses on Rivera's work. While Hamill touches on Rivera's unpredictable temperament...notably displayed in his infamous marriage to Frida Kahlo...this gorgeous book devotes itself to Rivera's development as artist and political icon.

Hamill deftly shows why Rivera deserves to be remembered as one of the great painters of the twentieth century.

Library Journal

Hamill, former editor-in-chief of the New York Daily News and the New York Post, has lived, worked, and studied art in Mexico. This lively, if not definitive, biography of the pioneering Mexican muralist recounts the king-sized Rivera's real-life escapades without romantic embellishment and with a critical eye. In particular, Hamill is suspect of the seemingly universal admiration for Rivera's "narcissist" wife, artist Frida Kahlo. Coming on the heels of renewed scholarly interest in Rivera and the Mexican muralist movement, Hamill's work must inevitably compete with other studies. It relies more on secondary sources than Patrick Marnham's dependable, more thoroughly researched Dreaming with His Eyes Open (LJ 10/1/98), which it could serve to complement. With 100 very fine illustrations, 50 of which are in color; suitable for large library systems. [BOMC selection.]--Mary Hamel-Schwulst, Towson Univ., MD Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Booknews

Hamill (a political journalist, author, and editor) narrates the life and explores the art of Diego Rivera, the prodigiously productive artist, polemicist and political activist, Mexican nationalist, and lover of many women. Acknowledging the cost of Rivera's didactic communism, he provides historical insights and focuses on what is enduring in the artist's work. The 107 illustrations (including 59 in color) show the full range of his art (murals, paintings, drawings, and illustrations) as well as documentary photographs. Oversize: 10x10<">. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

New York Times Book Review

...fascinating book...Hamill writes authoritatively about Rivera's work and diverse styles

Product Details

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents