In this, his first novel, Robert Metzger has achieved an intriguing work -- an 'autobiography' of a celebrated society portraitist who, incidentally, happens to be the most celebrated art forger of the twentieth century. Set in New York City, and spanning the period from the mid-fifties to the eighties, the story centres around the forgery and marketing of a series of paintings by an Impressionist 'master', Jean-Jacques Caillou (1839-1870), unknown before his discovery by the forger. The forger, Jack Birnbaum, is driven by his resentment at not being recognised in his own right as a painter of significant stature, and by his belief that he is fulfilling, in a manner of speaking, the promise of the painter Caillou, who died too young. As Birnbaum reflects on his own life, a recurrent theme is the mythology of 'calling' or 'lifework'. An intelligent and acute observer of others, and not without significant self-knowledge, Birnbaum realises how the Caillou forgeries fit into his own life as a substitute fulfillment.
| ISBN | 0913720879 | | Pages | 245 | | ISBN13 | 9780913720875
(What's this?) | | Volumes | 1 | | Publisher | Beil (Frederic C.) Publisher,US | | Weight (grammes) | 625 | | Imprint | Beil (Frederic C.) Publisher,US | | Published in | Savannah, GA | | Format | Hardback | | Height (mm) | 235 | | Publication date | 01 Jan 1996 | | Width (mm) | 160 | | Library of Congress | 93037721 | | Spine width (mm) | 25 | | DEWEY | 813.54 | | Academic level | General | | DEWEY edition | DC21 | |
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