xii, 402 pages., 87 text photos., 26 color illsustrations, bibliography, 8vo. (9 1/2 x 6 1/2), Octavo, dark blue boards, cloth spine, gold text on spine, dust jacket. Very good condition, unsold inventory from an old bookstore. Inventory #70059-3.

Seller Inventory # 000947

Contact seller

Report this item

Bibliographic Details

Title: Grant Wood: A Life
Publisher: Knopf
Publication Date: 2010
Language: English
ISBN 10: 030726629X
ISBN 13: 9780307266293
Binding: Hardcover
Printing: 1st Printing
Condition: As New
Dust Jacket Condition: As New
Weight: 2 pounds

About this title

Synopsis

He claimed to be "the plainest kind of fellow you can find. There isn't a single thing I've done, or experienced," said Grant Wood, "that's been even the least bit exciting."

Wood was one of America's most famous regionalist painters; to love his work was the equivalent of loving America itself. In his time, he was an "almost mythical figure," recognized most supremely for his hard-boiled farm scene, American Gothic, a painting that has come to reflect the essence of America's traditional values--a simple, decent, homespun tribute to our lost agrarian age.

In this major new biography of America's most acclaimed, and misunderstood, regionalist painter, Grant Wood is revealed to have been anything but plain, or simple . . .

R. Tripp Evans reveals the true complexity of the man and the image Wood so carefully constructed of himself. Grant Wood called himself a farmer-painter but farming held little interest for him. He appeared to be a self-taught painter with his scenes of farmlands, farm workers, and folklore but he was classically trained, a sophisticated artist who had studied the Old Masters and Flemish art as well as impressionism. He lived a bohemian life and painted in Paris and Munich in the 1920s, fleeing what H. L. Mencken referred to as "the booboisie" of small-town America.

We see Wood as an artist haunted and inspired by the images of childhood; by the complex relationship with his father (stern, pious, the "manliest of men"); with his sister and his beloved mother (Wood shared his studio and sleeping quarters with his mother until her death at seventy-seven; he was forty-four).

We see Wood's homosexuality and how his studied masculinity was a ruse that shaped his work.

Here is Wood's life and work explored more deeply and insightfully than ever before. Drawing on letters, the artist's unfinished autobiography, his sister's writings, and many never-before-seen documents, Evans's book is a dimensional portrait of a deeply complicated artist who became a "National Symbol." It is as well a portrait of the American art scene at a time when America's Calvinistic spirit and provincialism saw Europe as decadent and artists were divided between red-blooded patriotic men and "hothouse aesthetes."

Thomas Hart Benton said of Grant Wood: "When this new America looks back for landmarks to help gauge its forward footsteps, it will find a monument standing up in the midst of the wreckage . . . This monument will be made out of Grant Wood's works."

About the Author

R. Tripp Evans is Professor of Art History at Wheaton College in Massachusetts. He is the author of Romancing the Maya: Mexican Antiquity in the American Imagination, 1820-1915 (2004). He received his doctoral degree in the history of art from Yale University and has served as a visiting lecturer at Yale, Wellesley College, and Brown University. He and his partner, Ed Cabral, live in Providence, Rhode Island.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Store Description

The Old Print Shop, Inc. was founded in New York City in 1898 and is currently owed by Harry and Robert Newman. The gallery specializes in American art with a specialty in printmaking, 1700 to contemporary, maps prior to 1950, and books relating to art, printmaking, and architecture. Edward Gottschalk founded The Old Print Shop in 1898. At that time, it was located between 9th and 10th Streets on Fourth Avenue in back of Wanamaker's. He moved the shop to its current location in 1925. After Mr. Gottschalk's death, his widow hired Harry Shaw Newman, who had sold prints to Mr. Gottschalk, to run the Shop with an option to buy over a five-year period. The contract was signed on October 11, 1928. The final payment was due by October 31, 1933. The roaring twenties was an exciting time to own an art gallery. Prices for prints and paintings were at an all-time high. But in 1933, the middle of the Great Depression, few people were buying art, and it was a bad time to owe money. Through the help of a friend and fellow Currier & Ives enthusiast, Harry T. Peters, Harry Shaw Newman was able to get a loan that enabled him to make his final payment on the shop in 1933. The shop's first period of strong growth began during the 1940's. Although World War II was devastating Europe and Asia, most of America was back at work. Harry Shaw Newman realized that nineteenth-century American paintings were being overlooked by collectors and museums and was quick to bring them to the attention of the public. In the 1950's it was American primitive art and sculpture. The Shop was instrumental in helping build several notable collections of American primitive art. During the 1960's, 1970's, and 1980's there was a re-evaluation of American art from the past two centuries. The Shop chose at this time to concentrate on American printmakers and publishers from the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries. Today, many museums in America, Europe, and Asia collect and display fine prints. As The Old Print Shop moves into its second century, it will continue to look for art that has been overlooked and reintroduce it to patrons and collectors.

Visit Seller's Storefront

Association Member

Members of these associations are committed to maintaining the highest standards. They vouch for the authenticity of all items offered for sale. They provide expert and detailed descriptions, disclose all significant defects and/or restorations, provide clear and accurate pricing, and operate with fairness and honesty during the purchase experience.

Seller's business information

The Old Print Shop, Inc.
49 West 24th Street, Second Floor, New York, NY, 10010, U.S.A.

Sale & Shipping Terms

Terms of Sale

Purchasing an item sold by The Old Print Shop, Inc., the following are the complete and only terms and conditions on which all property is offered for sale.

ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS. Buying any item, the Buyers agreement to be bound by these Terms and Conditions. Any right of buyer under this agreement shall not be assignable and shall only be enforceable by the original buyer. The rights and obligations of the parties shall be governed by the Laws of the State of New York. All Buyers submit to the ...

More Information

Right of cancellation

If you are a consumer you can cancel the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.

INFORMATION REGARDING THE RIGHT OF CANCELLATION

Statutory Right to cancel

You have the right to cancel this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.

The cancellation period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the the last good or the last lot or piece.

To exercise the right to cancel, you must inform us, The Old Print Shop, Inc., 150 Lexington Avenue, 10016, New York, New York, U.S.A., +1 212-683-3950, of your decision to cancel this contract by a clear statement (e.g. a letter sent by post, fax or e-mail). You may use the attached model cancellation form, but it is not obligatory. You can also electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". If you use this option, we will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a cancellation on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.

To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right to cancel before the cancellation period has expired.

Effects of cancellation

If you cancel this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).

We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.

We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to cancel with contract.

We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.

We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.

You shall send back the goods or hand them over to us or The Old Print Shop, Inc., 150 Lexington Avenue, 10016, New York, New York, U.S.A., +1 212-683-3950, without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your cancellation from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.

Exceptions to the right of cancellation

The right of cancellation does not apply to:

the delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
the supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not cancel it once delivery had started.

Model withdrawal form

(complete and return this form only if you wish to withdraw from the contract)

To: (The Old Print Shop, Inc., 150 Lexington Avenue, 10016, New York, New York, U.S.A., +1 212-683-3950)

I/We (*) hereby give notice that I/We (*) withdraw from my/our (*) contract of sale of the following goods (*)/for the provision of the following goods (*)/for the provision of the following service (*),

Ordered on (*)/received on (*)

Name of consumer(s)

Address of consumer(s)

Signature of consumer(s) (only if this form is notified on paper)

Date

* Delete as appropriate.

Shipping Terms

We strive to pack each item professionally. For cost savings mailers will be used when it is stated or agreed to. Within the continental US we generally FedEx or USPS. Most European and Asian shipments will go via USPS.

Return shipping must be paid by the purchaser. We are happy to answer questions in advance of purchases, ths is very important for shipments outside the United States as they are expensive.

Shipping rates within U.S.A.

Shipping rates within U.S.A.
Order quantity	3 to 7 business days	3 to 6 business days
First item	� 6.75	� 12.00

Delivery times are set by sellers and vary by carrier and location. Orders passing through Customs may face delays and buyers are responsible for any associated duties or fees. Sellers may contact you regarding additional charges to cover any increased costs to ship your items.

Detailed Seller Information