Art at Lincoln Center: The Public Art and List Print and Poster Collections - Hardcover

by Charles A. II Riley (Author)

Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Lincoln Center

Twentieth-century masterpieces from two world-renowned collections

From their inception, the Lincoln Center Public Art Collection and the List Print and Poster Collection have looked toward the future, anticipating with uncanny accuracy both the most significant developments in the art of our time and the artists who would lead the way to them.

Art at Lincoln Center is the first book ever to offer a spectacular and comprehensive tour of both outstanding collections, each of which features numerous masterpieces from the greatest artists of the twentieth century. This elegant, full-color volume includes pieces by Jasper Johns, Marc Chagall, Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, Auguste Rodin, Helen Frankenthaler, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and many others.

As fascinating as the art itself are the stories of the creation of these two astounding collections. This compelling account takes you backstage to witness the conception and development of one of the great art projects in history. Revisiting an era before art auctions were reported in the business section and Christie's and Sotheby's were featured on the evening news, you'll meet the architects, collectors, benefactors, and advisors who made art a presence at Lincoln Center, including Philip Johnson, Vera List, Museum of Modern Art director Albert Barr, and many more. You will join these heroes of Modernism as they take on conservative politicians and critics in a suspenseful struggle peppered with provocative issues, inspiring discoveries, and still-relevant discussions about the relationship of fine art to the larger world.

You will also find engaging anecdotes about a number of major works and the artists who created them--including the stories behind Marc Chagall's gigantic paintings, which adorn the front of the Metropolitan Opera House; Henry Moore's Reclining Figure, the centerpiece of Lincoln Center's outdoor collection; and how a breakthrough work by a little-known downtown artist named Jasper Johns became a landmark for an uptown institution.

Complete with a catalogue raisonné of the entire List Print and Poster Collection, Art at Lincoln Center is an indispensable addition to the artbook collection of Lincoln Center patrons, art connoisseurs, print and poster collectors, and anyone interested in the ideals and realities of art in public places.

Front Jacket

From their inception, the Lincoln Center Public Art Collection and the List Print and Poster Collection have looked toward the future, anticipating with uncanny accuracy both the most significant developments in the art of our time and the artists who would lead the way to them.

"Art at Lincoln Center" is the first book ever to offer a spectacular and comprehensive tour of both outstanding collections, each of which features numerous masterpieces from the greatest artists of the twentieth century. This elegant, full-color volume includes pieces by Jasper Johns, Marc Chagall, Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, Auguste Rodin, Helen Frankenthaler, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and many others.

As fascinating as the art itself are the stories of the creation of these two astounding collections. This compelling account takes you backstage to witness the conception and development of one of the great art projects in history. Revisiting an era before art auctions were reported in the business section and Christie's and Sotheby's were featured on the evening news, you'll meet the architects, collectors, benefactors, and advisors who made art a presence at Lincoln Center, including Philip Johnson, Vera List, Museum of Modern Art director Albert Barr, and many more. You will join these heroes of Modernism as they take on conservative politicians and critics in a suspenseful struggle peppered with provocative issues, inspiring discoveries, and still-relevant discussions about the relationship of fine art to the larger world.

You will also find engaging anecdotes about a number of major works and the artists who created them-including the stories behind Marc Chagall's gigantic paintings, which adorn the front of the Metropolitan Opera House; Henry Moore's "Reclining Figure," the centerpiece of Lincoln Center's outdoor collection; and how a breakthrough work by a little-known downtown artist named Jasper Johns became a landmark for an uptown institution.

Complete with a catalogue raisonne of the entire List Print and Poster Collection, "Art at Lincoln Center" is an indispensable addition to the artbook collection of Lincoln Center patrons, art connoisseurs, print and poster collectors, and anyone interested in the ideals and realities of art in public places.

Back Jacket

Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Lincoln Center

Twentieth-century masterpieces from two world-renowned collections

Praise for "Art at Lincoln Center"

"Perhaps no cultural institution in America has the significant breadth of Lincoln Center. A forerunner in the presentation of opera, ballet, music, and theatre, it is no less remarkable for its burgeoning art collection and its long history of working with many of the most prominent visual artists of America. The artwork in its collection is as varied in media and expression as the artists themselves: Elie Nadelman, Jasper Johns, Helen Frankenthaler, David Hockney, John Currin, and Marc Chagall, to name but a few, are the artists whom Lincoln Center has worked with in its mission to bring the finest of the arts to an appreciative, worldwide public."

-Donald Marron

President Emeritus, Museum of Modern Art

"For the last forty years, the Lincoln Center/List Print and Poster Collection has provided Lincoln Center with an ongoing endowment that benefits the patrons and the artists equally. It is truly unique. I am proud that I have been asked to contribute twice to this program, and I know that all the artists who have participated feel the same way. The quality of the works donated to Lincoln Center is an enduring legacy of the great programming and the devotion of Lincoln Center to the marriage between the visual arts and the performing arts."

-Donald Sultan

Contributing Artist, Lincoln Center List Art Collection

"The creation of the Lincoln Center public art collection was a unique labor of love on the part of the Lists and the other art world visionaries who supported their effort. The important artworks located across the Lincoln Center campus, from Calder to Chagall, form a first-rate collection that has been overlooked for too long. The founders of Lincoln Center wanted not only the best in the performing arts but also the highest quality in the visual arts."

-Agnes Gund

President Emerita, Museum of Modern Art

Author Biography

Charles A. Riley II, a professor of English at Baruch College at the City University of New York, is the author of "The Art of Peter Max, The Saints of Modern Art, " and "The Jazz Age in France." He has appeared on CNN, NBC, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and Fox News.