Alex Katz Beauty

Coming of age as an artist in the 1950s, Alex Katz set out to reinvent representational painting in the wake of Abstract Expressionism. At first, Katz struggled to find an audience, destroying hundreds of canvases. This exhibition surveys the artwork that survived from this momentous decade, one in which he first painted outdoors, innovated with collages and met Ada del Moro, his wife and muse. The author's contextualise Katz's painting, consider how he and his peers looked at one another, mined 19th-century portraiture, and borrowed from television, advertising and cinema. The result is a fascinating study of a young artist laying the groundwork for an astonishingly successful career. Fans of Katz will be astonished by the radicalism of his early work, and those being introduced to the artist will be struck by its freshness and relevance. Published in association with the Colby Museum of Art, Waterville, ME. AUTHOR: Diana Tuite is the Katz Curator at the Colby Museum of Art, Waterville, ME. 150 colour illustrations

Key texts on beauty and its revival in contemporary art.

Alex Katz (born 1927) is best known as a painter--specifically, as a painter of his family and his distinguished circle of friends, including poets, writers and artists. In the early 1950s, he began experimenting with printmaking, but it was not until the mid 1960s that he intensified his interest and production in the medium. Pushing at the limits of various printing techniques, Katz tested out pictorial ideas first conceived for his paintings, retaining planes of matte color but further simplifying his forms and dramatically cropping his images. These reduced compositions were wonderfully compatible with the graphic clarity of printmaking, and by effectively translating his paintings into prints, the artist achieved what he called the "final synthesis of painting." This publication provides insight into an often-neglected yet vital aspect of Katz's work, from the early 1950s to the present day.

First overview of nude paintings from three decades and new work by one of the foremost representatives of American Art.

Renowned for his vivid, larger‐than‐life portraits, Alex Katz is a towering figure in contemporary painting. His work can be found in institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, MoMA, LACMA, and the National Portrait Gallery. The revised and expanded edition of Phaidon’s landmark survey is the most up‐to‐date overview of Katz’s prolific 50‐year career. Featuring more than 300 gorgeous reproductions of key works, Alex Katz devotes ample space to the artist’s lush portraits while also including his landscapes, sculptures, and painted books. Rounding out the book’s content are writings from the artist himself; contributions from Robert Storr, Iwona Blazwick, Carter Ratcliff; and a new essay by Barry Schwabsky.

Publisher description

"An immensely readable book." – The Guardian "An engaging and entertaining tour through the history of art." – House & Garden "Never has writing about the great artists been so concise, so precise, and so insightful" a–n "The book beautifully mixes…personal recollections and musings with Katz's broader reflections on art history, and his notions of what makes a great painting." Elephant Magazine Have you ever dreamt of having your own private museum tour with one of the world's most–celebrated artists? Take a walk through art history in the company of one of the pre–eminent American painters of our time, Alex Katz. Describing his personal encounters with the work of over 90 key artists, Katz's observations offer a fluent, vivid and incisive view, making Looking at Art with Alex Katz the perfect guide both for those looking for an introduction to the world of visual art, and anyone looking for a fresh view on their favorite artist. Includes entries on: Francis Bacon, Louise Bourgeois, Paul Cézanne, Leonardo da Vinci, Peter Doig, Alberto Giacometti, Philip Guston, David Hockney, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Edvard Munch, Barnett Newman, Jackson Pollock, Rembrandt, Henri Rousseau, Titian, Luc Tuymans, Vincent van Gogh, Johannes Vermeer and more.

Published on the occasion of the exhibition, Alex Katz, This Is Now, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, June 21-September 6, 2015, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, October 16, 2015-January 31, 2016.