Muse

Uncovering the Hidden Figures Behind Art History's Masterpieces

Ruth Millington

• Publisher: Pegasus Books
• Year: 2022
• eBook ISBN:
  9781639361564
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art & Politics

The fascinatingtrue stories of thirtyincrediblemuses—and their role in some ofart history's most well-known masterpieces. We instantly recognize many of their faces from the world's most iconic artworks—but just who was Picasso's 'Weeping Woman'? Or the burglar in Francis Bacon's oeuvre?Why was Grace Jones covered in graffiti? Far from posing silently, muses have brought emotional support, intellectual energy, career-changing creativity, and practical help to artists. However, the perception of themuseis that of a passive, powerless model (usually young, attractive, and female)at the mercy of an influential and older male artist. Could this impression be incorrect and unfair? Is this trope a romanticized myth? Have people embraced, even sought, the status ofmuse? Most importantly, where would artists be without them? In Muse, Ruth Millington's goal is to re-assess and re-claim that word in a celebratory narrative that takes ownership and demonstrates how outdated the common perception of that word is. Muse alsoexplores the idea of 'muse' in a different way and includes performance artists and celebrities, iconic figures we perhaps haven't considered before asmuses, such as Tilda Swinton and Grace Jones. By delving into the real-life relationships that models have held with the artists who immortalized them, it will expose the influential and active part they have played in contributing to the artwork they inspired, and explore the various ways people have subverted stereotypical 'muse' roles.From job supervisors to homeless men in Harlem, Muse will reveal the unexpected, overlooked, and forgotten models of art history. Through the stories of thirty remarkable lives, from performingmuses tomuses who have been turned into messages, this book will deconstruct reductive stereotypes of themuse, and reframe it as a momentous and empowered agent of art history.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Muse (noun): The Source of an Artist’s Inspiration
• Introduction
• 1. The Artist as Muse
• 2. The Self as Muse
• 3. Family Albums
• 4. For the Love of the Muse
• 5. Performing Muse
• 6. Muse of a Movement
• 7. Muse as Message
• Epilogue: The Muse Manifesto
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Bibliography
• Copyright