Henry Darger: With Henry Darger's the History of My Life - Hardcover

Klaus Biesenbach

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 3791349198 ISBN 13: 9783791349190

Publisher: Prestel, 2014

Synopsis

Now available again in a new format, this lavishly illustrated volume presents the iconic American "outsider" artist in a new critical light, locating him as a major figure in the history of contemporary art. Self-taught and working in isolation until his death in 1973, Henry Darger realized an elaborate fantasy world of remarkable beauty and strangeness through hundreds of paintings and an epic written narrative. Angel-like Blengins with butterfly wings, natural catastrophes, innocent girls, and murderous soldiers all appear in Darger's scenes, which are reproduced in this book in double-page and gatefold illustrations. In the volume's introductory essay, Klaus Biesenbach examines the radical originality of Darger's art, including his use of collage, incorporation of religious themes and iconography, and frequent juxtaposition of innocence with violence. An essay by Brooke Davis Anderson illuminates Darger's source materials and techniques, while another by Michael Bonesteel puts Darger's life in the context of his work. The book also includes Darger's autobiography, "A History of My Life," introduced by Carl Watson. The only book of its kind, Henry Darger offers an authoritative, balanced, and insightful look at an American master.

About this title

Review:

'... a magnificently produced bookBevis Hillier, The Spectator 5/12/09 'a glimpse into the world of the insane Henry Darger... guaranteed to give pleasure'.Brian Sewell, London Evening Standard, 10/12/09 --Arts & Collections International, Winter 2009

About the Author:

Klaus Biesenbach is Chief Curator of the Department of Media and Performance Art at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

About this edition

• Publisher: Prestel
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 3791349198
• ISBN 13: 9783791349190
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 320