Browse O'Byrne, Robert

1-35 out of 35 article(s)

Title	Type	Date	Words
From the archives: Florence, celebrated as the cradle of the Renaissance in a show at the Palazzo Strozzi, has been lauded over the centuries by historians from Vasari to Berenson. The latter's partisan influence was noted by Alexander Watt in January 1950.		Apr 1, 2013	767
From the archives: the interpretation of art is not necessarily best left to the experts. Russell Warren Howe enjoyed a notorious reputation as a freelance hack, but his interview with Matisse in the February 1949 issue yielded intriguing insights.		Mar 1, 2013	772
From the archives: veteran critic Dave Hickey caused a storm last October when he dismissed today's commentators as a 'courtier class" A more measured appraisal of their much-debated role appeared in an anonymous editorial in the February 1967 issue.		Feb 1, 2013	772
Baedekers in hand: Robert O'Byrne investigates the origins of some of Europe's greatest museums and London's Royal Academy of Arts.	Book review	Jan 1, 2013	1127
From the archives: Peter Cannon-Brookes, writing on the Davies sisters in March 1979, declined to mention that the authenticity of their Turners was under scrutiny. With the paintings now confirmed to be Turner's work, how far is attribution a movable feast?		Jan 1, 2013	762
From the archives: the propaganda inherent in Socialist Realism has caused many commentators to dismiss it as kitsch. 'Perspex', writing in March 1945, was more circumspect--reflecting, perhaps, the uneasy political climate of the day.		Dec 1, 2012	774
From the archives: a Dali retrospective opens at the Pompidou Centre in Paris this month--32 years after his last solo show there. But at the time of the original exhibition, his glory days had long been over, wrote Stuart Preston in April 1980.		Nov 1, 2012	769
From the archives: the British government's export bar on Child with a Dove reflects its intriguing provenance. This tender, early Picasso so enchanted Samuel Courtauld that he retained the painting up to his death, wrote Horace Shipp in July 1954.		Oct 1, 2012	777
From the archives: the Venetian painter Francesco Guardi has long been overshadowed by his contemporaries. Writing in August 1965, Denys Sutton showed how to take Guardi seriously--by lightening up about him.		Sep 1, 2012	746
The 'Tiepolo of the Ritz': Robert O'Byrne reflects on an exhibition devoted to Jose Maria Sert that fails to place the artist within his full artistic context.		Jul 1, 2012	1218
From the archives: T. W. Earp, a contemporary of Tolkien at Oxford, is believed by etymologists to be the unfortunate source of the word 'twerp'--yet this often dismissed writer's dissection of Picasso, in the July 1931 issue, was extraordinarily perspicacious.		Jul 1, 2012	778
From the archives: the selection for the Royal Academy summer show has always provoked debate. Writing in June 1933, Herbert Furst rebuked the institution for its lack of radicalism--retracting his position the following year when confronted with Stanley Spencer.		Jun 1, 2012	782
From the archives: the Barnes Foundation is relocating to new premises in central Philadelphia--in violation of its founding principles. Writing in September 1991, Patricia Corbett insisted that this monument to an earlier age should be left intact.		May 1, 2012	779
From the archives: like the work of Damien Hirst today, Jacob Epstein's Genesis was the subject of a media furore in Britain in the 1930s. Writing in March 1931, Thomas Leman Hare mounted a defence of what now appears to be a rather innocuous sculpture.		Apr 1, 2012	791
From the archives: Lucian Freud had scant regard for his reputation in his own lifetime, and little interest in the work of his contemporaries. This rigorous pursuit of his ideals isolated him, wrote Giles Auty in March 1992--but it also emphasised his singularity.		Mar 1, 2012	792
From the archives: Charles Saatchi has claimed, somewhat controversially, that collectors today lack discernment, but it's not a new argument. Turner's patron, the Earl of Egremont, also made some poor choices, wrote Richard Walker in January 1953.		Feb 1, 2012	771
From the archives: a show at Brooklyn Museum presents the work of the key American artists of the 1920s, yet it seems recognition came later for many of them. Aside from Stefan Hirsch, all appear unknown to Walter Sinclair, writing in 1925.		Jan 1, 2012	756
From the archives: few long-dead artists captivate the contemporary imagination like Caravaggio. Denys Sutton, writing in December 1951, noted the theatricality of the baroque painter's work--and presaged the cult of Caravaggio that was to come.		Dec 1, 2011	766
From the archives: Chinoiserie, so beloved of the French in the 18th century, was a mere fad for the exotic, wrote Anita Brookner in November 1957. As the Chinese economy booms, will its 21st-century cultural exports enjoy any more longevity in the West?	Column	Nov 1, 2011	775
From the archives: is the work of the late fashion designer Alexander McQueen really deserving of a full-blown retrospective at the Met? Writing in December 1985, Frederick R. Bran& remembers Jacques Doucet--a couturier truly renowned for his art.		Oct 1, 2011	794
From the archives: 'my work won't last anyway,' said Andy Warhol. 'I was using cheap paint.' The Pop artist's legacy is now beyond doubt but, in the 1980s, his blankness left many critics bemused--including Mahonri Sharp Young, writing in June 1989.	Critical essay	Sep 1, 2011	764
From the archives: the Venice Biennale has missed significant art movements in its 116-year history Impressionism, for example, didn't arrive until 1903. In July 1966, Hugh Honour asked if it was finally up to speed with the artistic currents of the day.		Jul 1, 2011	789
From the archives: the impact of Liberty of London's opening in 1875 was discussed by Mario Amaya in February 1963--but the success of this Victorian retail emporium would not have been possible without the earlier efforts of the Aesthetic Movement.	Reprint	Jun 1, 2011	763
From the archives: the rich cultural life of turn-of-the-century Vienna in the last days of the Habsburg Empire has been neglected, lamented Denys Sutton in the October 1963 issue--an oversight redressed by a plethora of shows in recent years.		May 1, 2011	751
From the archives: Horace Shipp extolled the virtues of print publishing in the December 1950 issue, and there are more books on art published now then ever before. But can they compete with the innovations of our digital age, such as Google's Art Project?		Apr 1, 2011	786
From the archives: the romanticised notion of Gauguin as genius in flight from bourgeois society has long captured imaginations, including Alexander Wyatt's, writing in the October 1949 issue. But does this portrayal ignore Gauguin's French heritage?		Mar 1, 2011	766
From the archives: the glacial perfection of Neoclassicism has long had its admirers, including Denys Sutton, writing in the November 1963 issue. But the movement's pursuit of greatness had a darker undertow, as an exhibition at the Louvre reveals.		Feb 1, 2011	738
From the archives: should a portraitist flatter his subject? No, said Herbert Furst, in the January 1942 issue. Thirteen years later, the pseudonymous 'Perspex' begged to differ--and the prevailing view saw Sutherland's portrait of an ailing Churchill destroyed.		Jan 1, 2011	780
From the archives: scholars have argued over the attribution of Michelangelo's drawings for more than a hundred years. In the March 1975 issue, E.H. Ramsden joined the debate.		Dec 1, 2010	752
From the archives: just as the reputation of Dutch genre painter Gabriel Metsu has varied considerably, so have approaches to art history, as an article in the February 1926 issue of Apollo shows.		Nov 1, 2010	784
From the archives: an exhibition at the Guggenheim exploring European art of the inter-war period raises the interesting question of why so little of it was covered by Apollo at the time.		Oct 1, 2010	781
From the archives: as a major Monet show opens in Paris, it's hard to imagine a time when the artist needed reappraising, but in June 1960 his work was defended against that of Cezanne.		Sep 1, 2010	756
From the archives: in the September 1979 issue, Rene-Yvon Lefebvre d'Argence reviewed a major exhibition on Korean art, which strongly resonates with a current show at the Hermitage.		Jul 1, 2010	756
From the archives: in the November 1934 issue, editor Thomas Leman Hare extolled the virtues of antiques and dismissed contemporary furniture design as entirely without merit. There are lessons to be learnt here.		Jun 1, 2010	803
Irish art: pressure on supply at the top of the booming market for Irish paintings and watercolours is raising the prices of lesser known artists.		Sep 1, 2006	1171