The Pornographer of Vienna
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Product Description
Review
Utterly engrossing. I was drawn into Schiele s reeling world with its reek of wet paint and sex --Jon McGregor, author of IF NOBODY SPEAKS OF REMARKABLE THINGS
Doesn't shrink from depicting the squalor of Schiele's existence and powerfully evokes his uncompromising talent --Guardian
Doesn't shrink from depicting the squalor of Schiele's existence and powerfully evokes his uncompromising talent --Guardian
Product Description
The son of a railway inspector, Schiele rejects his bourgeois upbringing and flees in pursuit of artistic fulfilment. When he gains admission to the prestigious Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, it seems that a glittering career lies ahead of him. But Schiele's talent drives him to portray the moral and physical squalor of the Habsburg capital, and he is rejected by an indignant and hypocritical art world. Forced to endure acute poverty and even imprisonment, Schiele continues to pursue his artistic mission, and in the last months of his life finally finds acclaim with those who had shunned him. In a lavish first novel of rare descriptive power and empathy, fuelled by a blend of research and literary imagination, Crofts succeeds in evoking the man as well as the artist. The result is a masterful, at times heartbreaking portrayal of Austria's most decadent and most misunderstood painter, and of the city which both inspired and destroyed him.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Crofts has "got" turn of the century Vienna.
The book is a chronological look at the life of a tortured artist. Don't be put off by the title if "porn" isn't your bag - it refers to the denunciations Egon Schiele had to face in court when defending his art.
This is an intelligent read. He shows rather than tells and, like his subject, paints pictures of the venality and sensibilities of a daring young man in a conservative society. I enjoyed it greatly. For a first novel, we can surely expect impressive things from this man.
If you enjoyed Nabokov, you'll certainly enjoy Crofts.
Incidentally, the opening line of the novel is amongst the best I have read in years.
The book is a chronological look at the life of a tortured artist. Don't be put off by the title if "porn" isn't your bag - it refers to the denunciations Egon Schiele had to face in court when defending his art.
This is an intelligent read. He shows rather than tells and, like his subject, paints pictures of the venality and sensibilities of a daring young man in a conservative society. I enjoyed it greatly. For a first novel, we can surely expect impressive things from this man.
If you enjoyed Nabokov, you'll certainly enjoy Crofts.
Incidentally, the opening line of the novel is amongst the best I have read in years.
21 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Being a reader who always judges a book by its cover, I was spot on with `The Pornographer of Vienna'. The enticing dust-cover aside, the story itself was totally gripping. I read it in a couple of sittings and was carried along by the pace of the writing and the refreshing use of language: Crofts seems to cook up mind-bending metaphors at will and is particularly strong on dpicting the tension between characters. It is, more or less, the tale of the tortured artist, which I thought I had heard before: all the navel-gazing, ear-slashing, whatever. But this blew me away. The rebellious and flawed Schiele is fascinating, erotic, inspiring, tragic, spinning unavoidably to his fate. Well worth the effort.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This story of Egon Schiele and Gustave Klimt and the woman who came between them is very atmospheric and full of historic detail. There are a lot of erotic scenes in it but not gratuitous. I had to take the dustjacket off before my mum saw it, tho!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The subject is not as good as the writing
Egon Schiele was one of the great painters of the 20th century. His art was challenging, intense, sexual and hugely controversial. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Victor Ward
Not as good as some would have you believe.
I bought this book a while back, having been seduced by the attractive cover and the blurb. However, I found it to be a boring read. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Nicholas Thomas
The misunderstood pornographer?
Egon Schiele is depicted throughout this as being fascinated with the female form - his models getting younger and more controversial throughout. Read more
Published on 30 Jan 2009 by Read Me
Meh
I'd heard good reviews and I found the attention to detail fantastic but for me the actual story lacked depth or interest. Read more
Published on 18 Nov 2008 by P. Roberts
Salaciously gripping
As a huge fan of Schiele's paintings and infamous ego, I read this book with joy. There are particular moments spread throughout the novel which, if you are very familiar with... Read more
Published on 8 Sep 2008 by B. Norris
A great artist who was not a great human being
Egon Schiele was a remarkable painter, but he was not a remarkable human being, though it is understandable that Lewis Crofts, who has been fascinated by Schiele's work for many... Read more
Published on 23 Sep 2007 by Ralph Blumenau
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