}When the Dutch painter Piet Mondrian (18721944) made his first ventures into the realm of nonrepresentational art, he could hardly have imagined the impact his vision would have on twentieth-century art, architecture, and design. Internationally recognized as the leading pioneer of abstract art, the founder of Neo-Plasticism, and the ideological father of the De Stijl movement, Mondrian embodied the spirit of modernism. His unmistakable grids and angular compositions expressed his desire for order and clarity amid the chaos of industrial civilization. This comprehensive collection of his essays, letters, notes, and interviews is arranged chronologically from Mondrian's earliest De Stijl essays up to an interview conducted shortly before his death. The texts are complemented with a chronology, an intimate memoir by his close friend Harry Holtzman, an essay on Mondrian's early writings by Martin S. James, a selective bibliography, and 254 reproductions of Mondrian's paintings, works, by his contemporaries, and photographs of the artist, his family, and friends. The New Art The New Life is the definitive source for understanding the underlying principles of Mondrian's art and life. Revealed in these writings is the self-denial, discipline, and patience of a man who modified the way we perceive the world. }
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Review of Mondrian's collected writings
27 April 2000
By Lane Banks
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Piet Mondrian, one of the great minds of modern art, left voluminous writings to both explain and defend his abstract style of painting. This book assembles his published essays, from his first "The New Plastic in Painting" (1917), through his other contributions to De Stijl magazine, and his posthumously published sketchbook notes.
This book is not for the casual reader, or for someone just beginning to explore Mondrian's ideas and work. Mondrian's writing style is at times lucid and straightforward, at others repetive and oblique, and this adds up to a dense read that requires much focus to appreciate. Mondrian's major contributions to modern art are all outlined in verbal form here, from the basics of Neo-Plasticism that he utilized throughout his mature style, to ideas that were so fantastic that they were not practical, such as his desire to make all his paintings in the space where they were to be displayed.
The book itself is quite lengthy: at 400 pages, this is not a quick read. While illustrations of Mondrian's paintings are included, they are not part of the overall page count, so the 400 pages are solid text. Each essay begins with a commentary that is quite helpful is placing that particular writing within its proper context, and the introductory essays by Holtzman and James are informative.
Overall, a great book chronicaling the development of one of the landmark styles of modern art, and the utopian, visionary thoughts of the man who dedicated his life to the world he had created, and to the hope that future generations would incorporate his idealistic beliefs into everyday life.
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