LibGuides: Art & Art History (ARTA): Biography & Autobiography

Biography & Autobiography

American Women in the Visual Arts, 2nd edition by Kort, Carol.
Call Number: N 6512 .K677 2015 Online
ISBN: 1438150067
Publication Date: 2015
Artists of Wyeth Country: Howard Pyle, N. C. Wyeth & Andrew Wyeth by Maynard, W. Barksdale.
Call Number: ND 237 .W93 M39 2021 Print
ISBN: 9781439920701
Publication Date: 2021
The Brandywine Tradition in painting, founded by Howard Pyle and carried on by N. C. Wyeth and others, is rooted in superb draftsmanship, sumptuous handling of oil paint, and detailed visual observation (if not exhaustive historical research). The tradition was carried into our own time by Andrew Wyeth, among the most beloved of American artists. This book offers admirers of this school a chance to literally follow in these artists' footsteps. Journalist W. Barksdale Maynard provides six in-depth walking and driving tours that allow readers to visit the places where the Wyeths and Pyle painted in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. As Maynard explains, Andrew Wyeth's artistic process was influenced by Henry David Thoreau's nature-worship, and by simply walking daily. Maps and aerial photographs, as well as glorious full-color images and artworks of the landscape (many never reproduced before) illustrate the text. Maynard also presents an unauthorized and unbiased biographical portrait of Andrew Wyeth. Using interviews he conducted with family, friends, and neighbors, he shines a different light on the reclusive artist, emphasizing Wyeth's artistic debts to both Pyle and surrealism.
Botticelli: Artist & Designer by Debenedetti, Ana.
Call Number: ND 623 .B7 D43 2021 Online
ISBN: 9781789144383
Publication Date: 2021
In this vivid account, author Ana Debenedetti re-examines the life and work of Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli through a novel lens: his business acumen. Focusing on the organization of Botticelli's workshop and the commercial strategies he devised to make his way in Florence's very competitive art market, Debenedetti looks with fresh eyes at the remarkable career and output of this pivotal artist within the wider context of Florentine society and culture. Uniquely, Debenedetti evaluates Botticelli's celebrated works, like the 'Birth of Venus,' alongside less familiar forms such as tapestry and embroidery, showing the breadth of the artist's oeuvre and his talent as a designer across media.
Glory of Van Gogh: An Anthropology of Admiration by Heinich, Nathalie.
Call Number: N 6953 .G63 H4513 1996 Online
ISBN: 0691032696
Publication Date: 1996
Great Lives From History: Renaissance & Early Modern Era, 1454-1600 by Moose, Christina.
Call Number: CT 115 .G74 2005 Online
ISBN: 1587652110
Publication Date: 2005
Henri Matisse by Brown, Kathryn.
Call Number: ND 553 .M37 B76 2021 Online
ISBN: 9781789143812
Publication Date: 2021
Henri Matisse's experiments with form and color revolutionized the 20th-century art world. In this concise critical biography, author Kathryn Brown explores Matisse's long career, beginning with his struggles as a student in Paris, and culminating in his celebrated use of paper cutouts and stained glass in the last decade of his life. The book challenges various myths about Matisse, and offers a fresh perspective on his creativity and legacy. Chapters explore the artist's enthusiasm for fashion and cinema, his travels, personal ties, interest in African art, love of literature, and willingness to challenge audience expectations. Through close readings of Matisse's works, Brown offers new insight into the artist's friendships and battles with dealers, critics, collectors, and fellow artists.
Walter Emerson Baum, 1884-1956: Pennsylvania Artist & Founder of the Baum School of Art & Allentown Art Museum by Hutson, Martha Young.
Call Number: ND 237 .B277 H872 1996 Print
Publication Date: 1996

Finding the Famous & Infamous

When researching Art History, it's helpful to know about the people involved. Who created, developed, emulated -- or stole -- the styles and techniques that are familiar today? What was happening in the world when they were alive, that may have influenced their work?

To find biographical information about famous artists, try these Library resources.

SpartaCat (Library catalog) -- To find biographies and autobiographies, search for the person by name, or by combining the person's profession with the word "Biography," as shown below.

"Artists, Biography"
"Women artists, Biography"
"Painters, Biography"
"Sculptors, Biography"
"Illustrators, Biography"
"Photographers, Biography"

You can also use the "Genre" search to browse for "Biographies" or "Autobiographies."

Popular culture and news magazines, as well as trade publications, often publish profiles or interviews that can reveal interesting information about the person you're researching. If the person is deceased, a detailed obituary might be useful.

All of these can be found by using the EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) or ProQuest databases. Search for the person's name and select the type of article you want from the menu.

Here is how it looks in EDS:

Here is how it looks in ProQuest: