A review by knitdyeread
The Art of Rivalry: Four Friendships, Betrayals, and Breakthroughs in Modern Art by Sebastian Smee

3.0

Honesty time. I skimmed most of this book. It's well written and interesting, just a little denser than I expected when I requested the arc. This book is packed with a ton of information about the artists and their lives. It reads more like a history book about the temperament and personalities of these 8 artists rather than a narrative exploring rivalry through the lens of famous artistic friends. That's not a bad thing. It's just not what I expected. That being said, I would buy this for the art history nerds in my family.

The author does address his reasons for choosing to only write about male friendships (patriarchal attitudes of the era in which he is writing), and why he chooses to leave out male/female rivalries (complex romantic interests, chauvinistic condescension), but I'd still like to see women artists and artists of color be part of the conversation.

ARC provided by NetGalley