Giacometti at National Portrait Gallery

Contemporary and Old Art Reviews

Giacometti at National Portrait Gallery

Postby jasperjoffe » Tue Dec 08, 2015 1:46 pm

Bad Painter. Good Sculptor. I loved the lumps, small bronze mountains, of men with their heads in skinny profile. A kind of dimensional head fuck. The paintings looked sub-Bacon, very dated feel, just the same existentialist style applied again and again. The composition static, the figure bang in the middle, the contour lines meaningless. I craved some more sculptures. Interestingly his early paintings aren't great, usually a bad sign when the conventional early stuff by an artist doesn't have a lot going for it, though there are exceptions.
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Re: Giacometti at National Portrait Gallery

Postby CAP » Wed Dec 09, 2015 12:50 am

Alternatively, David Sylvester’s book, Looking at Giacometti (Pimlico 1994) is a good appreciation of the artist. ;)

And Giacometti’s famous portrait of Sylvester is off-centre in pose and placement, the sitter’s gaze somewhat to the right of frame. :P
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Re: Giacometti at National Portrait Gallery

Postby jasperjoffe » Wed Dec 09, 2015 12:28 pm

thanks CAP. the ds portrait is mannered in usual way, with the background just some space in the background!
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