Lempicka

A femme fatale to equal Greta Garbo and Mae West, and a fashion icon in her own lifetime, this exhibition catalog is dedicated to the artist as well as the concept of the modern woman she represented. Born in 1898 in Warsaw, Lempicka fled during the Bolshevik Revolution, arriving in Paris in 1918 where she began painting under Andre Lhote. Influenced by a trip to Italy, she combined neo-cubism and Renaissance influences, reducing the harmony of her colors to the essential and tightly framing her portraits in order to give the figures energy and stature. In 1933 she married her best client, Baron Raoul Kuffner de Dioszegh, and in 1939 they left for America where Tamara conquered New York and Los Angeles exhibiting in important galleries.Divided into three sections, the book focuses on her distinctive artistic style, and on her fascination with the female form, which she glorified in paintings such as her famous Beautiful Rafaela, Portrait of a Young Girl in a Green Dress, and Portrait of Suzi Solidor. In the third section, author Emmanuel Breon and the artist's granddaughter unveil the legend of Lempicka, illustrated with rare and sultry archival photographs of the artist. The appendixes include a detailed illustrated chronology and a catalog of works. The book's modern design reflects the Art Deco style and makes Tamara de Lempicka an attractive addition to the library of Lempicka and Art Deco fans.

Emmanuel Breon is curator at the Musee des Annees 30 in Boulogne-Billancourt, France, and the author of a number of works on art and decorative arts from the period between the great wars including Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann: The Designer's Archives (Flammarion, 2004).