Lawrence Gowing

A richly illustrated survey of Matisse's impact on modern art that also examines his career, techniques, aesthetics and stages of artistic development. The work of Henri Matisse has been both a profound inspiration to his successors and a source of infinite enjoyment to all who love art. Yet the apparent spontaneity of his colour and ease of imagery were the fruit of a lifetime’s arduous labour; the simplicity of his compositions the result of a formidable intelligence. In this richly illustrated study, Lawrence Gowing takes us through Matisse’s career, assessing his influence on the art that has followed him and looking closely at Matisse’s own achievements. The detailed discussion of individual works reveal the subtlety and complexity of one of the greatest masters of all time.

'One of the best books ever written by one painter about another' John Russell, The New York Times Lucian Freud (1922-2011) was exceptional among 20th-century artists. His vigorous and innovative paintings are works of consistent richness and force, often disturbing and haunting. This book, in which Freud took a large part, is exceptional in itself: he chose, grouped and presented the large selection of paintings and drawings. The text is by Sir Lawrence Gowing, who was a painter himself and was a long-standing friend of Freud's.

As one of the leading critical voices on art of the postwar years, polymath Lawrence Gowing (1918–1991) combined a passion for close visual involvement with formidable literary skills. Edited by art historian Sarah Whitfield, four decades of Gowing’s writing are brought together for the first time in this volume, covering subjects from the Old Masters to Francis Bacon and Howard Hodgkin. Having first gained success as a painter, Gowing's 1952 monograph on Vermeer brought him early recognition as a writer with the ability to combine aesthetic experience with a meticulous historical perspective. Gowing’s foremost commitment was to the pioneering painters of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, notably Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse. The exhibitions he curated at the Tate and Museum of Modern Art famously helped to mould and reshape public perceptions. Characterised by a desire to instruct and encourage, his writing reflects a highly successful career as a curator and teacher.

"Vermeer" is considered by some to be one of the most profound books ever written on the artist. The text has been updated for this third edition to appear in paperback. The volume also includes an essay on Vermeer, "Counterfeiter of Grace", written by the author shortly before his death in which he sums up current Vermeer research. All the illustrations used have been newly reproduced for the reissue of this classic work in the field of art history.

The work of Henri Matisse has been both a profound inspiration to his successors and a source of infinite enjoyment to all who love art. Yet the apparent spontaneity of his colour and ease of imagery were the fruit of a lifetime's arduous labour; the simplicity of his compositions the result of a formidable intelligence. In this richly illustrated study, Lawrence Gowing takes us through Matisse's career, assessing his influence on the art that has followed him and looking closely at Matisse's own achievements. The detailed discussion of individual works reveal the subtlety and complexity of one of the greatest masters of all time.