The Vanishing Man

The Vanishing Man
ISBN-10
0701188448
ISBN-13
9780701188443
Series
The Vanishing Man
Category
Biography
Pages
304
Language
English
Published
2016-01-07
Publisher
Chatto & Windus
Author
Laura Cumming

Description

*BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week* "The Vanishing Man is a riveting detective story and a brilliant reconstruction of an art controversy, but it is also a homage to the art of Velázquez, written by a critic who remains spellbound by his genius, as readers will be spellbound by this book" - Colm Tóibín In 1845, a Reading bookseller named John Snare came across the dirt-blackened portrait of a prince at a country house auction. Suspecting that it might be a long-lost Velázquez, he bought the picture and set out to discover its strange history. When Laura Cumming stumbled on a startling trial involving John Snare, it sent her on a search of her own. At first she was pursuing the picture, and the life and work of the elusive painter, but then she found herself following the booksellerâe(tm)s fortunes too âe" from London to Edinburgh to nineteenth-century New York, from fame to ruin and exile. An innovative fusion of detection and biography, this book shows how and why great works of art can affect us, even to the point of mania. And on the trail of John Snare, Cumming makes a surprising discovery of her own. But most movingly, The Vanishing Man is an eloquent and passionate homage to the Spanish master Velázquez, bringing us closer to the creation and appreciation of his works than ever before.

Other editions

Similar books

  • The Biography Book: A Reader's Guide to Nonfiction, Fictional, and Film Biographies of More Than 500 of the Most Fascinating...
    By Daniel S. Burt

    ... for the general reader . nology uphold Rooseveldt's New Deal legislation . ... Louis D. Todd , A.L. Justice on Trial : The Case of Louis D. Bertolt ...

  • People in History: N-Z
    By Susan K. Kinnell

    ... Michael Edward 3394 Bell , Millicent 3488 3489 Bell , Robert H. 2331 Bell , Susan N. 3684 Bell , Virginia 5284 Bell , Whitfield J. , Jr. 979 3195 3919 Bell , William Gardner 3500 Bellamy , Donnie D. 6899 Bellamy , Marjory 473 Belman ...

  • The Risks of Knowledge: Investigations Into the Death of the Hon. Minister John Robert Ouko in Kenya, 1990
    By David William Cohen, E. S. Atieno Odhiambo

    Minister John Robert Ouko in Kenya, 1990 David William Cohen, E. S. Atieno Odhiambo. ed., Democracy and Difference: Contesting the Boundaries ... Ogot, Bethwell A., and William R. Ochieng, eds. Decolonization and Independence in Kenya.

  • Her Way: A Guide to Biographies of Women for Young People
    By Mary-Ellen Siegel

    ELLEN CRAFT c . 1826 – c.1897 Fugitive slave , abolitionist Light - skinned Ellen Craft and her husband escaped from slavery by travelling north in disguise . Ellen Craft dressed as a man and assumed the role of a deaf and ill white ...

  • Vasco Da Gama and the Sea Route to India
    By William H. Goetzmann, Rachel A. Koestler-Grack

    This Portuguese navigator's initial voyage to India in 1497-1499 opened up the sea route from Western Europe to the East by way of the Cape of Good Hope.

  • Newsmakers '07: Cumulation
    By Laura Avery

    ... W. James 2006 : 3 Mellinger , Frederick Obituary 1990 : 4 Mello , Dawn 1992 : 2 Melman , Richard Brief Entry 1986 ... Les 2004 : 2 Moreno , Arturo 2005 : 2 Morgan , Dodge 1987 : 1 Morita , Akio 1989 : 4 Morita , Akio Obituary 2000 ...

  • The Name's Familiar: Mr. Leotard, Barbie, and Chef Boyardee
    By Lee, Laura

    Paulmier , Madeleine Madeleine Paulmier was a pastry cook in 19th century Comercy , France . She concocted a small shell - shaped cake that we know today as madeleines . Phillips , Charles Henry Charles Henry Phillips moved from England ...

  • Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
    By Anne M. Todd, Daniel E. Harmon

    Belt, Don, ed. The World of Islam. National Geographic Society, 2001. Daniel, Elton L. The History of Iran. Greenwood Press, 2001. Gordon, Matthew. Ayatollah Khomeini. Chelsea House Publishers, 1988. Greenblatt, Miriam. Iran.

  • Susan B. Anthony: Activist
    By Anne Todd

    A biography of Susan B. Anthony, a women who worked to bring equality to women and African Americans.

  • Who's Who in the Midwest

    Office : State Police Dept 714 S Harrison Rd East Lansing MI 48823 DAVIS , JOHN RAYMOND , physical education teacher ; b . Chgo . , Aug. 23 , 1940 ; s . William Meade and Ruby Elvira ( Pearson ) D .; m . Judith Anne Osborn , Aug.