Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A magisterial presentation of all the works of Barnett Newman, along with fascinating new insights into his artistic achievement

Barnett Newman (1905-1970), one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century, has captivated critics, scholars, and the general public for decades. This highly anticipated catalogue raisonné presents Newman's entire oeuvre--paintings, drawings, sculpture, graphics, an architectural model, lost and unfinished works, and ephemera--in one stunning and definitive volume. Featured elements include color reproductions of unparalleled quality; extensive provenance, exhibition, and publication histories; and a listing of the contents of the artist's library at the time of his death.

In addition to the catalogue raisonné prepared by Heidi Colsman-Freyberger, the book offers revelatory essays on the artist, his career, and his working methods and features fascinating photographs of Newman, his studios, and his installations. Richard Shiff draws on new documentation to explain why Newman chose to create abstract art, how he achieved "fullness" in his paintings, and how his works exemplify the social functions of an artist. Carol C. Mancusi-Ungaro reveals extraordinary details about Newman's studio practice and materials and techniques, information not available to the public before because Newman only allowed his wife to observe him at work. Mancusi-Ungaro also discusses the fate of works that were damaged while traveling to exhibitions or by vandals.
Produced and designed to the highest possible standards, this magnificent catalogue raisonné is a critical purchase for anyone interested in twentieth-century art.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

One of the original abstract expressionists, Barnett Newman differed from Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning in that while he had a deep intuitive sense, he developed a more intellectual understanding of painting. Closer in philosophy to critics Clement Greenberg and Harold Rosenberg, Newman became the champion of the New York School of abstract painting, which included Adolph Gottlieb, Mark Rothko, and Clifford Still. He received little recognition until the late 1950s, when he influenced younger artists such as Larry Poons, Frank Stella, Donald Judd, Dan Flavin, the minimalists, and pop and optical painters. Compiled by the Barnett Newman Foundation and a group of talented curators and art historians, this catalog raisonn? chronicles his paintings, drawings, graphics, sculptures, and unidentified works, unfinished paintings, and ephemera. The essays densely describe Newman's philosophy of art, his aesthetic relationship to other artists, and his purely intellectual approach to painting as self-referential without any preconceptions. They do not, however, follow his evolution as an artist. Ann Tempkin's Barnett Newman provides more in-depth biographical material and commentary on his artistic progression. Recommended for all postwar art collections in large public and academic libraries.-Ellen Bates, New York (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

CHOICE Review

This superb publication was compiled by a highly qualified team of scholars who together provide a fascinating and exhaustive record of Newman's achievement as artist and ethical citizen. The main text is contributed by Shiff (Univ. of Texas), whose chapters combine historical and critical commentary of lucid persuasion. Mancusi-Ungaro (Whitney Museum of American Art) writes with both sensibility and technical expertise about Newman's painting. Then follows the catalogue raisonne, as detailed as it is enlightening, drawn up by independent scholar Coleman-Freyberger. The quality of reproduction corresponds with the wording of the artist's oeuvre and contribution to what might be termed the Manhattan Decade of pictorial and sculptural Modernism. All the supporting data are equally excellent--in particular, the exhibition history, bibliography, and index. This is essential for professional scholars but would intrigue a broader informed readership. ^BSumming Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals. R. W. Liscombe University of British Columbia

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Richard Shiff is Effie Marie Cain Regents Chair in Art and Director of the Center for the Study of Modernism at the University of Texas; Carol C. Mancusi-Ungaro is Director of Conservation at the Whitney Museum of American Art; and Heidi Colsman-Freyberger is an independent scholar, researcher, and bibliographer.