First edition. Jacket is lightly rubbed and worn along edges. Jacket spine is sunned, but text is legible. Spine is lightly bumped and shaken, but binding is secure. Inside is clean and unmarked.

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Bibliographic Details

Title

The Rhetoric of Purity: Essentialist Theory and the Advent of Abstract Painting

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Publication Date

1991

Language

English

ISBN 10

0521385466

ISBN 13

9780521385466

Binding

Hard cover

Edition

1st Edition

Condition

Very good

Dust Jacket Condition

Good

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About this title

Synopsis

In The Rhetoric of Purity, Mark Cheetham explores the historical and theoretical relations between early abstract painting in Europe and the notion of purity. For Gauguin, Serusier, Mondrian and Kandinsky - the pioneering abstractionists whose written and visual works Cheetham discusses in detail - purity is the crucial quality that painting must possess. Purity, however, was itself only a password for what Cheetham defines as an 'essentialist' philosophy inaugurated by Plato's vision of a perfect, non-mimetic art form and practised by the founders of abstraction. The essentialism of late nineteenth-century French discussion of 'abstraction', Cheetham argues, also infects the work of Mondrian and Kandinsky. These visions of abstraction are central to the development of Modernism and are closely tied to the philosophical traditions of Plato, Hegel and Schopenhauer. As a conclusion, Cheetham provides a postmodern reading of Klee's rejection of the rhetoric of purity and claims that Klee's refusal speaks to contemporary concerns in visual theory and culture. By acting as an antidote to the seductive appeal of purity in art and society, Cheetham's final critique of the trope of purity seeks to preserve the possibility of visual discourse itself.

Review

"Excellent....Cheetham's study clarifies many of the contradictory aspects of early abstract theory." The Reader's Review

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Moe's Books has been selling new, used, and antiquarian books for over fifty years. Our store has four floors, a separate rare book room, and over 300,000 books. We are located in the heart of Berkeley, four blocks from the University of California campus on historic Telegraph Avenue. Please check out website for more information about the store and our event information. We have many of our readings available as free audio downloads. You can also contact us with want lists or questions about our inventory.

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