The Artist’s Voice

To quote Robert Hughes, “All critics concerned with American painting will be Kuh’s debtors from now on.” Interviewed in the 1960s, the painters and sculptors Katharine Kuh spoke with provide insights into their work that remain illuminating and relevant. The author allows the artists to comment — in their own words — on their inspirations, philosophies, and creative processes and to debunk common myths about their work. Sometimes the results are surprising: abstract painter Josef Albers confesses to being a realist, while realist painter Ivan Albright firmly denies the charge. Marcel Duchamp professes surprise over the controversy stirred by his Nude Descending a Staircase, and Edward Hopper insists that his supposed themes of loneliness and nostalgia are entirely unintentional.