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The Blazing World (2014)

by Siri Hustvedt(Favorite Author)

3.64 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1476747237 (ISBN13: 9781476747231)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Simon & Schuster

review 1: Though this was a Man Booker longlist title and therefore not part of my self-propelled assignment, it sounded too compelling to pass up. Though at times somewhat convoluted, this is an astounding feat of concept and imagination. Hustvedt’s character is an artist whose more famous husband, a gallery owner and art collector with an interesting private life, has died. Feeling that her identity as an artist had not been taken seriously by a world that recognized her as a “wife of” and “mother of,” she buys a building in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and sets out to devote herself to art. Her nurturing instincts cause her to take in some strays even as she tries to intentionally be more selfish and focus on her own art. She comes up with the concept of choosing a series of thr... moreee male artists who will be her “masks” in the art world, presenting her work as theirs in a grand experiment to see how her work is received if thought of as created by a man. One of the remarkable things about this novel is the creation by Hustvedt of a whole imaginary body of work by the main character – work that feels wholly real and visible, and extremely female. The telling of this tale unfolds in a series of narratives from different perspectives, as well as newspaper articles, journal essays, and interviews. Hustvedt herself plays a cameo role, being mentioned in one of the essays. The gentle lampooning of over-inflated art world egos, theory, and language is employed to wonderful effect. The Blazing World raises many important questions about women, art-making, fame, disappointment, anger, and love that stayed with me long after I finished this powerful novel.
review 2: Tämä oli nyt kuin pitkitetty akateeminen vitsi hyvänä pitämästäni "Kaikki mitä rakastin" -kirjasta. Intelletkuellius meni överiksi, ja minua todella häiritsi, että taideteokset olivat kirjoissa niin identtisiä. En myöskään oikein teidä, oliko tämä tarkoitettu sukupuolitutkimuksen pastissiksi vai mitä. Viimeinen luku, joka oli oikasti ainoa aito, pelasti tälle minulta toisen tähden. less

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