James Abbott McNeill Whistler: A Life

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This withering biography knocks Whistler (1834-1903) off a pedestal. The man who painted marvelously subtle color harmonies emerges as an insufferably vain snob, a combative hothead given to fistfights, a racist who once punched a Haitain in the face simply because he was black. Although born in Massachusetts, the artist passed himself off as a Southern gentleman in London where he was ensconced. Whistler believed his only responsibility was to his art. His early romantic liaisons were with ``undemanding, uncomplicated'' women, and he neglected the children born to them, even in later years when he married and settled down. Fleming ( The Young Whistler ) never satisfactorily explains what transformed the youthful painter, amiable and generous, into a vitriolic, jealous poseur, yet this portrait is convincing. Illustrations. (July)

Library Journal

Fleming has written a number of popular biographies on eminent Victorian artistic and literary figures, including a previous study of Whistler ( The Young Whistler , LJ 1/15/79). The author justifies his return to an examination of the artist's whole career by claiming to have uncovered new biographical evidence. Despite Fleming's assertions, these revelations, while interesting, do not constitute the ``radical reinterpretation'' claimed by the book's publicists. What emerges is not so much a different as a deeper attempt at characterization. Fleming creates a careful type of ``psychobiography'' that never degenerates into untoward speculation. Whistler's childhood, early art training, and relentless critic-baiting are especially well treated. While this biography is an appropriate purchase for specialized art collections, its lively, informative text makes it an attractive acquisition for public libraries that do not have Roy McMullen's Vic torian Outsider ( LJ 9/1/73) or Stanley Weintraub's Whistler: A Biography ( LJ 10/1/73).-- Paula A. Baxter, NYPL