Wifredo Lam and the International Avant-Garde, 1923-1982 (Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Series in Latin American and Latino Art and Culture)
This monograph offers an unprecedented opportunity to reconsider Wilfredo Lam's (1902-82) work and sphere of influence after 1947, a period of productivity traditionally relegated to footnote status in previous analyses of his career. The study contemplates his late-career work in relation to his early development, from his 15-year sojourn in Madrid, to his close relationship with Picasso and the surrealist luminaries in Paris, to his turn from European simulated exoticism toward an authentic cultural lexicon that fed the political activism of traditionally marginalized Cuban Africans. The book also serves as a valuable window into the complexities of exile culture, as Lam's lengthy stay in and subsequent flight from Europe ultimately had profound generative effects on both his own work and the course of modern art. Executive director of the Studio Museum in Harlem, Sims (Stuart Davis) demonstrates Lam's international legacy, revealing his participation in or influence on the European and American avant-garde movements in subsequent decades. Sims considers the fate of Primitivism and Surrealism after World War II and evaluates the significance of Lam's work for the story of modern art. Recommended for collections focusing on modern and contemporary art.Savannah Schroll, Smithsonian Inst. Libs., Washington, DCCopyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.