Synopses & Reviews
Thomas Eakins was misunderstood in life, his brilliant work earned little acclaim, and hidden demons tortured and drove him. Yet the portraits he painted more than a century ago captivate us today, and he is now widely acclaimed as the finest portrait painter our nation has ever produced. This book recounts the artistand#8217;s life in fascinating detail, drawing on a treasure trove of Eakins family correspondence and papers that have only recently been discovered.Never before has Thomas Eakinsand#8217;s story been told with such drama, clarity, and accuracy. Sidney Kirkpatrick sets the painterand#8217;s life and art in the wider context of the changing world he devoted himself to portraying, and he also addresses the artistand#8217;s private lifeand#151;the contradictory impulses, obsessions, and possible psychological illness that fired his work. Kirkpatrick underscores Eakinsand#8217;s unflinching integrity as an artist and discloses how his profound appreciation of the beauty of the human form was both the source of his greatness and ultimately of his undoing. Nevertheless, the author observes, Eakins has had his and#147;revenge,and#8221; inspiring a new generation of realist painters and gaining the recognition that eluded him in life.
Review
"A novel biography of one of America's most important nineteenth-century artists. Kirkpatrick recreates Eakins's world, fleshing out the cultural and physical context that makes that life understandable to twenty-first century readers. Not content to retell either the familiar narrative of the artist as the beleaguered, innocent victim of prudish Philadelphia or as the disturbed and self-destructive provocateur, Kirkpatrick presents a driven and sympathetic artist who possessed tragic flaws."and#8212;Martin Berger, University of California at Santa Cruz
Review
"Sidney Kirkpatrick's masterful and thoroughly compelling biography ofandnbsp;Thomas Eakins is rich with fresh insights and new understandings of an artist who may well be America's finest. Eakins is illuminated in these pages as a man dedicated to his artistic vision despite the myopia of the Victorian era from which he emerged. Kirkpatrick reveals Eakins as brave and lonely, wise and fallible, daring yet focusedand#8212;not only a majestic figure of his time, but for all time."and#8212;Digby Diehl
andnbsp;
Review
"Riveting and eloquentand#8212;the definitive Eakins biography for this generation. Kirkpatrick reveals the artist in all his brilliant diversity. Here we have the uncompromising master who pioneered American realism, and paid the price for offending the sensibilities of his fickle generation."and#8212;Edward J. Renehan Jr., author of
Dark Genius of Wall Streetandnbsp;
Review
"Kirkpatrick heartily serves the reader a rich broth of artistic, historical, and scientific ideas in Eakins's Philadelphia. Astutely illuminates the creative circumstances behind Eakins's masterpieces. Fresh and rewarding."and#8212;Linda Kay Zoeckler, former Head, Huntington Art Reference Libraryandnbsp;andnbsp;
Review
"The strongest and most poignant work on Eakins, replete with surprises, that shows why Eakins has less in common with Sargent, who satisfied socialite portrait clients, and more with Rembrandt and da Vinci, who removed veils from the outer and inner lives of centuries past and far into the future."and#8212;Peter Nelson, Art Center College of Design
Review
"Kirkpatrick is a historical detective who unravels the mesmerizing story of the rise, fall, and revenge of Thomas Eakins. He writes in an artful, absorbing style; you will not be able to put down this gripping biography."and#8212;Ronald C. White, Jr.,andnbsp;author of
The Eloquent President: A Portrait of Lincoln Through His WordsReview
and#8220;Award-winning filmmaker and best-selling author Kirkpatrick tells the story of Eakinsand#8217;s turbulent career with dramatic flair. and#8221;
Review
"Mr. Kirkpatrick is relentless in and#8230; investing his subject with a pathos and grandeur that only the finest biographies attain."and#8212;Carl Rollyson,
New York SunReview
and#8220;Kirkpatrick brings Eakins to life as a breathing, sweating, prickly and fascinating man, one a wide audience will appreciate. . . and#8221;and#8212;Roberta Fallon,
Philadelphia WeeklyReview
"Kirkpatrick gives Eakins convincing depth that reminds readers of the ways biography can enhance appreciation of art.and#8221;and#8212;
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
About the Author
Sidney D. Kirkpatrick is a critically acclaimed author and award-winning documentary film producer. His most recent book is
Edgar Cayce, An American Prophet.
CITATION: "A novel biography of one of America's most important nineteenth-century artists. Kirkpatrick recreates Eakins's world, fleshing out the cultural and physical context that makes that life understandable to twenty-first century readers. Not content to retell either the familiar narrative of the artist as the beleaguered, innocent victim of prudish Philadelphia or as the disturbed and self-destructive provocateur, Kirkpatrick presents a driven and sympathetic artist who possessed tragic flaws."-Martin Berger, University of California at Santa Cruz
(Martin Berger)
CITATION: "Sidney Kirkpatrick's masterful and thoroughly compelling biography of Thomas Eakins is rich with fresh insights and new understandings of an artist who may well be America's finest. Eakins is illuminated in these pages as a man dedicated to his artistic vision despite the myopia of the Victorian era from which he emerged. Kirkpatrick reveals Eakins as brave and lonely, wise and fallible, daring yet focused-not only a majestic figure of his time, but for all time."-Digby Diehl
(Digby Diehl)
CITATION: "The strongest and most poignant work on Eakins, replete with surprises, that shows why Eakins has less in common with Sargent, who satisfied socialite portrait clients, and more with Rembrandt and da Vinci, who removed veils from the outer and inner lives of centuries past and far into the future."-Peter Nelson, Art Center College of Design
(Peter Nelson)
CITATION: "Kirkpatrick is a historical detective who unravels the mesmerizing story of the rise, fall, and revenge of Thomas Eakins. He writes in an artful, absorbing style; you will not be able to put down this gripping biography."-Ronald C. White, Jr., author of The Eloquent President: A Portrait of Lincoln Through His Words
(Ronald C. White)
CITATION: "Riveting and eloquent-the definitive Eakins biography for this generation. Kirkpatrick reveals the artist in all his brilliant diversity. Here we have the uncompromising master who pioneered American realism, and paid the price for offending the sensibilities of his fickle generation."-Edward J. Renehan Jr., author of Dark Genius of Wall Street
(Edward J. Renehan Jr.)
CITATION: "Kirkpatrick heartily serves the reader a rich broth of artistic, historical, and scientific ideas in Eakins's Philadelphia. Astutely illuminates the creative circumstances behind Eakins's masterpieces. Fresh and rewarding."-Linda Kay Zoeckler, former Head, Huntington Art Reference Library
(Linda Kay Zoeckler)
CITATION: "Kirkpatrick brings Eakins to life as a breathing, sweating, prickly and fascinating man, one a wide audience will appreciate. . . "-Roberta Fallon, Philadelphia Weekly
(Roberta Fallon, Philadelphia Weekly)
CITATION: "Award-winning filmmaker and best-selling author Kirkpatrick tells the story of Eakins's turbulent career with dramatic flair. "
(Library Journal)
CITATION: "Mr. Kirkpatrick is relentless in . investing his subject with a pathos and grandeur that only the finest biographies attain."-Carl Rollyson, New York Sun
(Carl Rollyson, New York Sun)