The Art of Love: The Romantic and Explosive Stories Behind Art's Greatest Couples

by Kate Bryan

Asli Yazan (Illustrator)

The Art of Love tells the stories of the most fascinating couples of the art world – uncovering the passionate, challenging and loving relationships behind some the world's greatest works of art. 

Kate Bryan (broadcaster, writer and curator) delves into the complex world of artistic relationships, exploring the nuanced ways in which art and love can share the same space. When two married artists collaborate, do they ever get a moment off? What happens when love fades and two artists, known by one moniker, part? When a couple work independently, how do they manage jealousy and competition? 

In this book, you’ll meet love in all its glorious and complicated forms, including unlikely couples with conflicting philosophies (Yayoi Kusama & Joseph Cornell); unconventional marriages that prove love has many guises (Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera); couples who suffered from intense, public burnout (Marina Abramovic & Ulay); soul mates who found safety in each other (Ethel Mars & Maud Hunt Squire); and bitter rivalries that weren't built to last (Jasper Johns & Robert Rauschenberg).

Through evocative stories and beautiful illustrations, Kate tells of the formation, and sometimes breakdown, of each romance – documenting their highs and lows and revealing just how powerful love can be in the creative process. 
Whether long-lasting, peaceful collaborations, or short-lived tumultuous affairs, The Art of Love, opens the door on some of the greatest love stories of the twentieth century. 

• ISBN13: 9780711240315
• Publish Date: 6 June 2019
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 25 November 2022
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: White Lion Publishing
• Edition: New Edition
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 184
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Art of Love is an interesting look at how artistic endeavor and relations affect and define creative work. Author Kate Bryan uses short biographic backgrounds to give a glimpse into how (or if) the artists' art and lives intersected one another.

Due out 2nd July 2019 from Quarto on their White Lion imprint, it's 184 pages and will be available in ebook and hardcover formats. The ebook version is available now. It's unclear from the publishing info, but the eARC I received for review includes an interactive table of contents with direct links to each of the 34 couples included as well as a hyperlinked index. (Very handy).

There's an erudite well written introduction by the author which represents about 6% of the page content. She includes some of the philosophy behind her treatment of the subject, along with some very interesting observations about the interactions and dynamics of personal and professional interactions in artistic partnerships. How did they relate to one another, how they traversed the different levels of fame in their art, etc. Reading the foreword enhanced my understanding and enjoyment of the biographies. Each of the section headings is nicely illustrated by Asli Yazan. There are no interior photos with any of the included artists' works, but Yazan's line drawings represent some of the artists' works. I'm not sure how I feel about that, it might be almost imitative, on the other hand, there were several places I thought to myself "Ah, that's who originally did this piece of artwork".

I was not familiar with all of the included artists, and there were some couples with whose work I was only familiar with one and not the other. The couples in the book are all drawn from the last 140 years; starting with Camille Claudel&Auguste Rodin to the present day. The couples are a mixed bunch, from married heterosexual couples, gay men, gay women, and one passionate but unconsummated platonic relationship. There are artists represented from many different cultures and ethnicities.

This would make a good selection for art interested readers, fans of the included artists, and a good library book or gift.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.