The Accidental Masterpiece: On the Art of Life and Vice Versa
by Michael Kimmelman
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 231)
Read in August, 2007
Kimmelman is one of the most likable, curious, open-minded art-writers we have. Instead of a pretentious reviewer, he's a discusser, and discusses some great topics: Bob Ross and amateurism, a guy who has collected thousands of light bulbs, how what we find beautiful is often a conditioned response, Albert C. Barnes (a guy who made a fortune on antiseptic, spend the fortune on famous and unfamous art, and left it all to a school when he died), the value of originals in a time of mass reproduct...more
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Boy oh boy, did I heart this book. Written by the chief art critic for the New York Times, it is less an examination of art than an examination of how to live artistically. The chapters cover a variety of topics, including the lives of particular artists and the latent art that suffuses compulsive collecting (my favorite!).
Mainly, I loved it because it is more inspirational that any self-declared inspirational text. Seeing how others view art as life and life as art made me want to ru...more
Mainly, I loved it because it is more inspirational that any self-declared inspirational text. Seeing how others view art as life and life as art made me want to ru...more
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Read in March, 2006
recommends it for:
Life Livers
When asked "What do you do for a living?", I tend to answer "I live." As pompous as this sounds, I derived this answer here from Kimmleman's mind altering book.
To be be creative, or to live a life of art - one does not need to pursue it as a career or even participate in creative endeavors. Rather, life itself is an art form.
"We can learn, that a life lived with art in mind might itself be a kind of art." - Kimmelman
"The Beatiful Is a Promise of H...more
To be be creative, or to live a life of art - one does not need to pursue it as a career or even participate in creative endeavors. Rather, life itself is an art form.
"We can learn, that a life lived with art in mind might itself be a kind of art." - Kimmelman
"The Beatiful Is a Promise of H...more
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Read in November, 2007
I've been walking to work lately, late mornings and late evenings. The fire at Zaca Lake is still going, so the air is dirty and the light is muted. Reading this book, written by the the New York Times' chief art critic, while walking down Salsipuedes St. is the perfect thing. Kimmelman's writing is superb. He writes about beautiful things: life, art, memory, what it means to be alive, and why art is important.
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No less an authority than C. Montgomery Burns once said "I may not know art, but I know what I hate. And I don't hate this." I don't know the first thing about art, but I'm sort of fascinated by it and I love reading great, accessible art criticism. This collection of essays by the New York Times art critic Michael Kimmelman is unbeatable, and the opening piece about Pierre Bonnard is godlike.
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Read in April, 2008
An excellent collection of essays on art and life and why we create. I loved the section about Antarctica, and the section on the pilgrimage. Really well written, and who wouldn't want to be Michael Kimmelman, being taken into the world and studios of artists and to experience their creations of the moment. This book was a selection chosen by my book club.
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Read in February, 2007
recommends it for:
everyone
a very 'accessible' book on the visual arts. a genuinely enjoyable read, enlightening, thought-provoking... i lovelovelove this book... he's a brilliant man and writer...
the chapter on conceptual art tugs at my brain-heart.
a pleasure to read someone earnestly discussing art, from bob ross's happy trees to sol lewitt's walls
the chapter on conceptual art tugs at my brain-heart.
a pleasure to read someone earnestly discussing art, from bob ross's happy trees to sol lewitt's walls
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Read in December, 2007
recommends it for:
everyone who gives a rat's ass about Art
I loved it. Got it as a birthday gift and ate it up in a week, though it could have been read MUCH faster than that. Kimmelman delves not too deep into his subjects, he pries the lid off the can and let's us do the stirring of the paint. Great sections on Ray Anderson, Bob Ross, Wayne Thiebaud, Yoko Ono... Just a great read.
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Read in April, 2008
i guess i didn't pay close enough attention to what this book was about. i expected it to be more about life in general, or about different art mediums. but it was art criticism, and limited basically just to visual art. which does interest me, but not really enough to read a whole book about it.
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I finally have time to finish this book, so I'm re-reading all my favorite bits. Michael Kimmelman has made art appreciation not only relevant to my daily life, but...yes, I'll say it...an indispensable part of my need to have at least a little meaning attached to beauty. :)
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If I'd ever taken an art history class, I would be able to follow everything Kimmelman argues. As it is, I connect really deeply with his sentiments about art and circumstance, and I imagine that anyone with similar artistic sensitivity will too.
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Read in January, 2008
The chapter on the photographer on Antartic expedition was where I locked on in the book. I enjoyed it and would like to read from more this author. What I enjoyed most is his breadth of experiences and how it relates to art and life.
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recommended to Terry by:
Emily
I'm loving this book.
Okay I loved this book. I love the way that Kimmelman pulls you into his subject. It's so relatable which is hard to pull off when writing about contemporary art. I can't wait to read the next Kimmelman.
Okay I loved this book. I love the way that Kimmelman pulls you into his subject. It's so relatable which is hard to pull off when writing about contemporary art. I can't wait to read the next Kimmelman.
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Read in May, 2006
Incredible collection of essays on art and life that will make you look at everything around you differently. Maybe it helped that Kimmelman wrote about some of my favorite artists, but I completely adored this book.
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Read in December, 2007
Really lucid, interesting, provocative.... and just a wee bit disappointing in the end, with two listless chapters that don't add anything. Still the first chunk of the book is excellent.
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Read in August, 2007
Pretty damn good. It's very rare to read a book on art, that manages to be engaging, amusing, and informative while simultaneously manging not to be pompous. excellent read
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recommended to David by:
Jenny
A good series of essays. sort of like Alain De Botton's "The Consolations of Philosophy" but for art and perceptions of art & beauty. I liked some of the essays enormously.
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Read in November, 2006
I picked this book up at Barnes and Noble and read about 60% of it in the store. Made me think that anything worth doing is probably worth doing passionately.
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Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
people who like to look at art
This was excellent. The essay about Bonnard was my favorite, but the one about Wayne Thiebaud and his luminous cakes was almost as good.
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Read in January, 2008
Subhead: on the Art of Life and Vice Versa. Intelligent essays on the livse and work of many, sometimes interwoven, artists.
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