The Art of the Woman: The Life and Work of Elisabet Ney (Women in Texas History Series, sponsored by the Ruthe Winegarten Memorial Foundation) - Softcover

Cutrer, Emily Fourmy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1623494249 ISBN 13: 9781623494247

Publisher: Texas A&M University Press, 2016

Synopsis

The Art of the Woman explores the life of German-born Elisabet Ney, a flamboyant sculptor who transfixed the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and left the court of the half-mad Ludwig of Bavaria to put down new roots in Texas. Born in 1833, Ney gained notoriety in Europe by sculpting the busts of such figures as Ludwig II, Schopenhauer, Garibaldi, and Bismarck. In 1871 she abruptly emigrated to America and became something of a recluse until resuming her sculpting career two decades later. In Texas, she was known for stormy relationships with officials, patrons, and women’s organizations. Her works included sculptures of Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin and are exhibited in the state and US capitols as well as the Smithsonian.

 Emily Fourmy Cutrer’s biography of Ney makes extensive use of primary sources and was the first to appraise both Ney’s legend and individual works of art. Cutrer argues that Ney was an accomplished sculptor coming out of a neglected German neoclassical tradition and that, whatever her failures and eccentricities, she was an important catalyst to cultural activity in Texas.

About this title

About the Author:

EMILY FOURMY CUTRER is president of Texas A&M University–Texarkana.

From Publishers Weekly:

Eccentric, aloof German-American sculptor Elisabet Ney (1833-1907) made her way in a man's world by promoting an image of herself as a romantic rebel. She has inspired novels, plays and biographies, but much of this literature, according to Cutrer, perpetuates unfounded mythssuch as the belief that she fled Germany because she was a secret agent of Bismarck. Her busts of Garibaldi, Schopenhauer and half-mad Ludwig of Bavaria never broke out of the neoclassical mold. Emigrating to Texas in 1871, she and her physician husband bought a decrepit, isolated plantation. Cutrer's rigorous biographical-critical study paints a vivid picture of this adventurous woman's frustrating existence as a frontier artist, ever short on sculptor's supplies and appreciation. Lady MacBeth, the piece that crowned her career in the U.S., is a moving exploration of a woman's grief that may reflect Ney's own private anguish. Illustrations not seen by PW.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1623494249
• ISBN 13: 9781623494247
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 292