Bergson in Britain

Philosophy and Modernist Painting, c. 1890-1914

Charlotte de Mille author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Edinburgh University Press

Published:22nd Nov '23

Should be back in stock very soon

Bergson in Britain cover

Charlotte de Mille shows that the reception of the philosophy of Henri Bergson by British artists and critics was far more wide spread and of far greater importance in the UK than has been previously thought. Based on archival material in Paris and the US, not all previously accessed, along with primary UK sources, she opens new avenues of research and interpretation on the work of artists Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant, John Duncan Fergusson and artist-writers Roger Fry and Wyndham Lewis. De Mille demonstrates the profound impact of Bergson’s work in UK culture immediately prior to World War One. Her interdisciplinary approach integrates philosophy, art criticism and art history. An Epilogue considers the proximity of Bergson’s thought on temporality, perception, intuition and subjectivity to art history, from Alois Riegl and Aby Warburg, to practitioners today.

An incredible knowledge of Modernist art is intertwined here with scholarship in Bergsonian philosophy second to none. Not only has Charlotte de Mille forcefully demonstrated the importance of Bergson to British Modernism through figures such as Fry, Fergusson, and Lewis (among many others), she does so with a dexterity and aptitude for conceptual analysis that is dazzling. An extraordinary achievement. * John Ó Maoilearca, Kingston University *
Bergson in Britain interpolates the first synthetic study of the French philosopher’s multifaceted impact on the visual arts in Britain with an experimental form of art writing, building upon the author’s innovative interpretation of Bergson’s "philosophy of immanence." Based on extensive archival research, this timely book is certain to stimulate cross-disciplinary debate. * Mark Antliff, Duke University *

ISBN: 9781474492386

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

400 pages