Max Ginsburg

powerfully and subliminally present--social realism at its most confronting!

Social realist painter, Max Ginsburg's works are a wonderful commentary on the everyday life of inhabitants of New York. Full of life and vigour, executed powerfully they expose the viewer to the full range of emotions of his subjects, the slump of the worker's shoulder in Reading Break (1974), the delicacy of the face of Emily (2004) , to the reality of his nudes. His paintings are a celebration of the ordinary, of show more the everyday.
I loved his painting of his first wife Sonia peeling apples. Ginsburg brings that Degas ballet dancer pastel quality to this work. In his indoor family works the play of light and lightness are gently telling. I particularly liked the light in Early Morning (1977) where Ginburg's daughter is holding her doll.
Ginsburg's still life paintings just by their content are a commentary on everyday life of our times.
His 'workers' folio capture the moments between, revealing the simplicity of those moments between work and rest.
Ginsburg's War Pieta, contrasting with the old masters visions of the Madonna and Jesus, referencing the war in Iraq, captures you forcefully even as you try to run away from the reality it speaks to. Powerful, unrelenting and verifying the horror and tragedy of war and loss, it is juxtaposed against our memories of pietas that display a more subdued mourning Madonna.
Unfortunately I was only able to review a kindle copy. For sure I would be purchasing this as a book so that I could flip more readily between the pages, contrasting and observing, just enjoying!
Well worth the purchase!

A NetGalley ARC show less

These are some absolutely stunning paintings. From war, to the homeless, to rush hour and street vendors... The realism that Max Ginsburg can coax out of a few swipes of paint is amazing. There were several times I would turn the page, see a painting and immediately think it was actually a photograph, only to correct myself after a few more seconds of looking. What I found most striking were the detail pull-outs of the larger images. Here you can really see how the image is composed. Looking show more back and forth between these images, it is hard to believe they are one in the same. There are also sections of exposition on Ginsberg's life and technique, though I was not as interested in any of that so I mostly skipped over all but the individual notes of each painting. I am in awe of how artists can create pieces like these, and this is definitely an awe-inspiring collection of paintings by a contemporary painter.

Copy courtesy of Bookmasters, Inc, via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. show less