Page 88 - Studio International - March April 1975

I am surprised he does not feel obliged to Austria and have been compiling this that the names of styles are not arbitrary
point out to his readers that the American magnificent work for at least six years; it but have significant content. Yet his tone,
scene must be viewed in the larger is scholarly and inspired, including a and the sense we get of the man behind
context of the international movement. delightful chronology of significant the prose, suggest that he could not have
The recent period, particularly, for which historical background, the earliest pre- been susceptible to such a confusion, and
Sitney initiated the term `Structuralist dating 1500 B.c., like `Antike that it was the currency of the stylistic
Film', cannot be understood without Schattenspiele' of Java. The fact that it is names he uses that allowed him to use
reference to at least a dozen European in German is no great disadvantage to them as conveniences. The choice of
film-makers and to the work of Kren. non-German readers as all titles are in illustrations in `Cubism and Abstract Art'
Although Sitney is responsible for the their original language, and much of the is conventional, but apt, providing a
`Structuralist' label, this book confirms encyclopaedia consists of simply laid-out really broad visual survey of the major
the general weakness of his analysis of factual information. trends in painting and sculpture in the
the newer `formal' developments even Malcolm Le Grice first thirty-five years of the century.
when applied to Snow, Landow, In all respects the best of the three
Frampton, Kubelka, etc. What becomes books, I think, is `Picasso: Fifty Years of
evident on reading the book is that the His Art'. Perhaps Barr felt a special
work of this later period (mostly post- Bargains affinity for Picasso or his work, or
1966) is just not Sitney's period. The perhaps he was just at the height of his
book becomes less and less interesting the Cubism and Abstract Art powers when he wrote the book, but it
more it moves away from the romantic, By Alfred H. Barr, Jr. 249 pp, 223 displays all the characteristics of his
visionary, symbolist, poetic and mythical illustrations. New York: The Museum finest writing on art. He manages to
films of the period from Deren to of Modern Art. Paperback, $6.95. interweave facts and anecdotes about the
Brakhage. He is inadequate in dealing Picasso: Fifty Years of His artist's life with descriptions and
with the structuralist films and equally at Art judgements about his work in the
a loss with abstract animation (curiously smoothest possible continuity, even
Fischinger, acknowledged by Belson or By Alfred H. Barr, Jr. 322 pp, though the text itself is fragmented by
Harry Smith as a major influence and 338 illustrations (8 in colour). copious reproductions. The reader is left
inspiration, is only mentioned once — in a New York: The Museum of Modern Art. with some picture of the man who
quote from Smith). For me, the value of Paperback, $8.95. produced the paintings under discussion,
the book is entirely in the first 25o of its Matisse: His Art and though the art is never eclipsed by the
45o pages. Two chapters on Deren, one His Public personality of the artist as it might be in a
on Peterson and Broughton, one on By Alfred H. Barr, Jr. 600 pp, more popular presentation. One senses
Anger, another on Markopoulos, and a 508 illustration (8 in colour). that Barr might have felt comfortable
couple mainly on Brakhage with reference New York: The Museum of Modern Art. with Picasso, even that they might have
to Baillie, contain many valuable Paperback, $10.95. liked each other. His remarks about the
quotations from the film-makers and all artist are discrete yet anecdotal in spirit.
of Sitney's most satisfactory ideas and The Museum of Modern Art has His comments on the work are more
generalizations. In his two chapters on recently reissued in paperback three critical than usual, not to say harsher. It is
Brakhage—`The Lyrical Film' and `Major books by its first Director, Alfred Barr, as if Barr felt that Picasso's art was robust
Mythopoeia' — he does much to indicate that have long been available only in enough to withstand anything anyone
the extent of the romantic tradition in expensive library editions. Taken might say about it. One comes away
modern American art with quotations together, the books are an impressive from the book feeling convinced of the
from Rothko, Kline and Pollock showing record of Barr's ability as an art writer. self-evident greatness of Picasso's art, as
the developments in film as consistent It is probably a shrewd move on the part if Barr really succeeds in suspending in
with this general tendency. For the of the MOMA to reissue these books at the reader's mind the pressure of
student of the avant-garde cinema the almost affordable prices at a time when received opinion, allowing us to see the
first half of the book is essential reading most new art books are simply priced work afresh. There are few, if any,
and is particularly valuable in its beyond consideration. For there is no books about Picasso in English to
treatment of Deren, Broughton, Peterson particular urgency or relevance that compare with Barr's for clarity,
and Markopoulos. seems to call for the republication of coherence, and critical responsibility.
'Eine Subgeschichte des Films' is a Barr's books now. In fact, they seem a `Matisse: His Art and His Public' is not
1300-page two volume encyclopaedia little dated because they contain no such a complete success, though its
of the avant-garde film, which will recognition whatsoever of modern exhaustiveness will always distinguish it,
certainly be unrivalled for many years as American art. Barr was a champion of even among scholarly studies of the
a reference book for the whole history of European modernism to a sceptical and artist. The book begins with passages of
independent cinematic experimentation. rather provincial American public. His biography interspersed with accounts of
Its scope is extremely comprehensive, the monograph on Picasso and his the artist's work. As it progresses, the
limits being drawn by the authors' exhaustive overview of Matisse are detailed analysis of individual works
assumption of what constitutes the written in a patient, sometimes overwhelms the biographical accounts
historical background of the modern pedagogical tone. He seems to have which become sparser and less
underground/avant-garde film culture. laboured to hold the interest of both the informative. The result is that the reader
All the major European and American uninitiated and the sophisticated reader. is left mystified about who Matisse was.
film-makers are dealt with alphabetically Part of the interest of these books today is Perhaps this is the result of Barr's own
with biography, filmography, a critical historical. They anticipate volleys of mystification by Matisse. He
assessment of their work and role in the reactionary response that no longer emphasizes Matisse's singlemindedness
historical development, and a list of the seem possible from an art audience in often enough to suggest that the artist
other literature dealing with them. In 1975. To the wider public, the names never really made himself available to his
addition many general topics are listed; Matisse and Picasso are long since biographer and critic. Yet one also gets
Dada, Documentary, Grotesque film, eponymous with the whole enterprise of the sense that Barr's own discretion in
Kinetic art, etc. It is broadly up to date modern art. regard to Matisse got the better of him, or
to 1971 or '72 (much of the later `Cubism and Abstract Art' was first perhaps that he had unresolved feelings
compilation being done at the first of published in 1936 to accompany an towards the artist. Comparison with the
two London avant garde festivals in exhibition surveying the progress of Picasso book suggests that Barr might
1972). It is much too large to have read modern European art. Barr covers a have preferred writing about Picasso's art
in full, so I have given it a number of large piece of ground in this book, but he because of the kind of content it has.
tests, trying to think of films or facts does it rather superficially. As surveys of Matisse's dazzling formal achievements
which the authors might not be expected early modern art go, Barr's is quite good. are appreciated at length, but not with
to know, but I have not caught them out, But he has a tendency to adhere a little quite the energy, the engagement that
and have learned a great deal. Scheugl too credulously to the stylistic categories Picasso's work seemed to educe.
and Schmidt are both film-makers from he sets up, perhaps fostering the idea `Matisse: His Art and His Public'
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