LWD Art Appreciation ~ September 2024

Welcome to the September edition of the LWD Art Appreciation series! This month we will enjoy the talents of Flannery O’Connor, Amedeo Modigliani, and Dave Brubeck. Then we’ll enjoy a 1939 film starring Deanna Durbin and Robert Stack.

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ART APPRECIATION
SEPTEMBER 2024

What have been your favorite art appreciation selections so far this year? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

SHORT STORY

“Flannery O’Connor (born March 25, 1925, Savannah, Georgia, U.S.—died August 3, 1964, Milledgeville, Georgia) was an American novelist and short-story writer whose works, usually set in the rural American South and often treating of alienation, concern the relationship between the individual and God.” Britannica

A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND by Flannery O’Connor

An essential collection of classic stories that established Flannery O’Connor’s reputation as an American master of fiction―now with a new introduction by New York Times bestselling author Lauren Groff In 1955, with the title story and others in this critical edition, Flannery O’Connor firmly laid claim to her place as one of the most original and provocative writers of her generation. Steeped in a Southern Gothic tradition that would become synonymous with her name, these stories show O’Connor’s unique view of life―infused with religious symbolism, haunted by apocalyptic possibility, sustained by the tragic comedy of human behavior, confronted by the necessity of salvation. These classic stories―including “The Life You Save May Be Your Own,” “Good Country People,” and “The Displaced Person,” among others, are sure to inspire future generations of fans and remind existing readers why she remains a master of the short story.

You may read it online (free) here:

A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor

ARTIST

Amedeo Modigliani

In endless odes to the female form, Amedeo Modigliani (1884–1920) traced elongated bodies, almond eyes, and his own name into art history. His languid female subjects are as instantly recognizable as they are startling, sensual, and swan-necked.

Modigliani’s unique figuration corresponded to his own personal idea of beauty, but drew upon a rich variety of visual influences, including contemporary Cubism, African carvings, Cambodian sculptures, and 13th-century painting from his native Italy. Although most renowned for his nude females, he applied similar stylistic techniques to portraits of male artistic contemporaries such as Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau, and Chaïm Soutine.

With key works from his highly individualistic repertoire, this book introduces Modigliani’s brief but revered career at the heart of Paris’s early modernist hotbed.

JAZZ COMPOSER

DAVE BRUBECK

Dave Brubeck, Whose Distinctive Sound Gave Jazz New Pop, Dies at 91 (Dec. 5, 2012)

In a long and successful career, Mr. Brubeck brought a distinctive mixture of experimentation and accessibility that won over listeners who had been trained to the sonic dimensions of the three-minute pop single.

Mr. Brubeck experimented with time signatures and polytonality and explored musical theater and the oratorio, baroque compositional devices and foreign modes. He did not always please the critics, who often described his music as schematic, bombastic and — a word he particularly disliked — stolid. But his very stubbornness and strangeness — the blockiness of his playing, the oppositional push-and-pull between his piano and Paul Desmond’s alto saxophone — make the Brubeck quartet’s best work still sound original.

Spotify Playlist:

Time Out: The Dave Brubeck Quartet

SCREWBALL COMEDY

First Love

Deanna Durbin and Robert Stack star in First Love, a critically acclaimed “modern day” version of a Cinderella story. A young orphan named Connie (Durbin) returns to live with her wealthy uncle (Eugene Pallette) and his snobbish family in New York after finishing her school. The story follows the magical scenes of Cinderella, including a jealous debutante cousin (Helen Parrish), a grand ball, a handsome love interest, and even a beautiful gown. When Connie is suddenly excluded from the party, it’s the service staff that jumps into action, pooling their resources to get her to the ball and back by midnight.