The Portrait
by Pears, Iain
- Used
- Fine
- Hardcover
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- Fine/Fine
- ISBN 10
- 1573222984
- ISBN 13
- 9781573222983
- Seller
-
Santa Barbara, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Riverhead Books; Penguin, 2005. 211 pages; 20 cm. SIGNED. Boldly signed by the author on the flyleaf, no dedication. A fine copy of the first printing. Dust jacket protected in a mylar book cover. "A perfectly rendered short novel of suspense about a painter driven to extremes. An influential art critic in the early years of the twentieth century journeys from London to the rustic, remote island of Houat, off France's northwest coast, to sit for a portrait painted by an old friend, a gifted but tormented artist living in self-imposed exile. Over the course of the sitting, the painter recalls their years of friendship, the double-edged gift of the critic's patronage, the power he wielded over aspiring artists, and his apparent callousness in anointing the careers of some and devastating the lives of others. The balance of power between the two men shifts dramatically as the critic becomes a passive subject, while the painter struggles to capture the character of the man, as well as his image, on canvas. Reminiscing with ease and familiarity one minute, with anger and menace the next, the painter eventually reveals why he has accepted the commission of this portrait, why he left London suddenly and mysteriously at the height of his success, and why now, with dark determination, he feels ready to return. Set against the dramatic, untamed landscape of Brittany during one of the most explosive periods in art history, The Portrait is rich with atmosphere and suggestion, psychological complexity, and marvelous detail. It is a novel you will want to begin again immediately after turning the last chilling page, to read once more with a watchful eye and appreciate the hand of an ingenious storyteller at work. / Iain Pears is the author of the New York Times bestseller An Instance of the Fingerpost and the national bestseller The Dream of Scipio, as well as a series of acclaimed detective novels, a book of art history, and countless articles on artistic, financial, and historical subjects." - Publisher.. SIGNED. 1st. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 8vo. Collectible.
Synopsis
Iain Pears is the author of the New York Times bestseller An Instance of the Fingerpost and the national bestseller The Dream of Scipio , as well as a series of acclaimed detective novels, a book of art history, and countless articles on artistic, financial, and historical subjects. He lives in Oxford, England.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- LEFT COAST BOOKS (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 076489
- Title
- The Portrait
- Author
- Pears, Iain
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Jacket Condition
- Fine
- Edition
- 1st
- ISBN 10
- 1573222984
- ISBN 13
- 9781573222983
- Publisher
- Riverhead Books; Penguin
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 2005
- Size
- 8vo
- Keywords
- COLLECTIBLE
- Bookseller catalogs
- XXX / COLLECTIBLES; Genre & Subject / Portraiture; Novels, Art;
Terms of Sale
LEFT COAST BOOKS
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including original shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
LEFT COAST BOOKS
Biblio member since 2016
Santa Barbara, California
About LEFT COAST BOOKS
Established in Santa Barbara, California, in 2004, Left Coast Books specializes in ART BOOKS, offering thousands of titles on painting, sculpture, graphic arts, architecture, design, photography, film, video, and performance art. We also sell classics, literature, history, and a broad variety of useful academic books.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes: