Larry Rivers (1)

The renowned artist offers a humorous take on his own life, discussing among other topics his Bronx childhood, his jazz career, his legendary excesses, and his brief stint in the military.
What Did I Do? is the testimony of one of America's finest artists and includes memorable perceptions [and gossip] of friends, lovers, rivals, and the jazz and art worlds: Frank O'Hara, Terry Southern, Leo Castelli, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, John Ashbery, Clement Greenberg, Tibor de Nagy, Jackson show more Pollock, Delmore Schwartz, Rudy Burckhardt, Hans Hofmann, W.H. Auden, Miles Davis, Andy Warhol. Born Larry Grossberg in 1923 in the Bronx, NY, Rivers began his career in 1940 as a jazz saxophonist and composer, changed his name and became an American icon to artists everywhere. A great figurative painter, Rivers is also acclaimed as a precursor of pop art; an artist with an unashamed interest in sexuality and the private moment, he is also celebrated for bringing history back into contemporary painting. Candid, thoughtful, and funny, this book is among the finest of artists' memoirs. This edition includes 16 pages of color and 130 black-and-white illustrations. "What Did I Do? is the harrowingly true tale of a man whose early years were, by his own accounting, governed by often brutal instincts. He responds crazily, rashly to jazz and sex and drugs, and finally to paint, becoming Larry Rivers, one of the most humane and interesting and idiosyncratic visual artists of our time."—Kurt Vonnegut show less

Following an extended foreword by David C Levy are two essays: Larry Rivers - Painter of the Modern Life by Barbara Rose; and Larry Rivers and His "Smorgasbord of the Recognizable" by Jacquelyn Days Sewer. These are followed by the plates which run from pages 89 to 171; the book concludes with a Chronology, list of One-Man Exhibitions and finally Public Exhibitions.

The interesting essays provide quite personalised accounts of the artist, his life and his work, and both follow a chronological show more progression. They are illustrated throughout with photographs of Rivers and his friends and family as well as examples of his work. The plates are mostly produced to full page size, some occupying a double page; the concluding biography is illustrated with personal black and white photographs. About ninety full colour reproductions along with over fifty black and white images, mainly photographs, illustrate the book. The colour plates are very well produced, and a few of the black and white photos are reproduced full page or even double page size and are striking. This is altogether a most attractive generously sized volume, well designed and produced and with illuminating text; a very worth while book. show less