Dufy
Category: Books
Dufy Details
On The Cover: The Blue Train...50 pages of reproductions present rich survey of Dufy's engaging art, 30 in full color six of the color illustrations double page size. Read more
Reviews
Dufy was a "Fauvist," one of the few members of that artistic style, and if you ever have the opportunity to see his works in person, they are simply magnificent. His use of color is so impacting, so beautiful, that they just jump right off of the canvas, even though most of his works are nearing a century of age. The place to see most of them at one time is of the modern art museum in Paris (not the Pompidou Center, but the modern art museum of the village of Paris, right next to the copy of the flame of the Statue of Liberty on the Seine River). And guess what? Entry to that museum is always free. Not to the exhibitions that are held, but to the main museum itself, but that is where all of Dufy’s paintings are held, in the main collection of the museum. Occasionally, you will see the single Dufy painting at various museums both in Europe and in North America, but it’s the modern art museum in Paris that has that massive, parabolically curved painting that he did that you literally walk inside and could spend hours examining all the pieces. Plus numerous "normal" sized paintings. His art is happy. It is lighthearted, cheerful, bright, and is quite distinctive from other painters. This particular book is so old, about 30 years, it, unfortunately, is losing some of its colors in the reproductions in spite of the quality of the prints. That's a shame because Dufy was all about color, and when the reproductions are faded, much of his brilliance is lost. Finding books that have paintings of hiss is quite difficult, particularly in North America, but even in Europe. And that’s why I recommend this book, but you have to understand that the colors really have faded due to the type of ink used in the print. Nevertheless, the written content is there to explain his life and work, and the prints are crisp and clear. But to see what these paintings really look like, you'll have to visit the modern art museum in Paris. There are also scattered works in Vendôme, France, Lyon, and even a couple at the Cleveland Museum of Art in Indiana. So, in spite of its deficiencies, the book's rarity alone allows us to rate it as five stars.