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Looking at Pictures

By Robert Walser
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Looking at Pictures offers a captivating glimpse into Robert Walser's lesser-known art writings, featuring essays on masters like Van Gogh, Cezanne, and Rembrandt. Walser explores themes including the nature of artists and dilettantes, and the contrasts between painters and poets, all infused with his distinctive wit and delicate sensitivity. This collection is enhanced by stunning full-colour reproductions, making it a tribute to his unique artistic vision.
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Format: Hardback
$4799
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This elegant collection is ideal for readers interested in modernist literature, art criticism, and those fascinated by the interplay between visual art and writing. Art lovers and admirers of cerebral, witty prose will find Walser's essays especially rewarding.

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A special side of Robert Walser: his essays on art

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A beautiful and elegant collection, with gorgeous full-colour art reproductions, Looking at Pictures presents a little-known side of the eccentric Swiss genius: his great writings on art.

His essays consider Van Gogh, Cezanne, Rembrandt, Cranach, Watteau, Fragonard, Brueghel and his own brother Karl. They also discuss general topics such as the character of the artist and of the dilettante, as well as the differences between painters and poets.

Every piece is marked by Walser's unique eye, his delicate sensitivity, and his very particular sensibilitiesβ€”and all are touched by his magic screwball wit.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Critics praise Walser's work for its perfect blend of assurance and ambiguity, calling it "bold and idiosyncratic" and celebrating his singular genius. Descriptions such as "a Paul Klee in prose" and "good-humoured, sweet Beckett" highlight his charm and experimental style. Esteemed voices like Benjamin Kunkel, Nicholas Lazard, Susan Sontag, Lydia Davis, and Ben Lerner commend the book's originality and emotional depth.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780811224246

Publisher: New Directions Publishing Corporation

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 09 November 2015

Country: United States

Imprint: New Directions Publishing Corporation

Contributors:

  • Translated by Christopher Middleton
  • Translated by Lydia Davis
  • Translated by Susan Bernofsky
  • Translated by Susan Bernofsky
  • Translated by Christopher Middleton
  • Translated by Susan Bernofsky
  • Translated by Christopher Middleton

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 127.0mm

Height: 188.0mm

Weight: 286g

Pages: 144

Collections

Arts & Culture Biography & Memoir Non-Fiction Robert Walser

About the Author

Robert Walser (1878-1956) was born in Switzerland. He left school at fourteen and led a wandering and precarious existence working as a bank clerk, a butler in a castle, and an inventor's assistant while producing essays, stories, and novels. In 1933 he abandoned writing and entered a sanatorium-where he remained for the rest of his life. "I am not here to write," Walser said, "but to be mad." Susan Bernofsky is the acclaimed translator of Hermann Hesse, Robert Walser, and Jenny Erpenbeck, and the recipient of many awards, including the Helen and Kurt Wolff Prize and the Hermann Hesse Translation Prize. She teaches literary translation at Columbia University and lives in New York. Lydia Davis is currently a finalist for the 2013 Man Booker International Prize. Distinguished poet and translator Christopher Middleton lives in Austin, Texas. His awards include the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize and the Schegel-Tieck Translation Prize.

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