OSKAR KOKOSCHKA

It is impossible to pigeon-hole the artistic philosophy of Kokoschka into any one representative school. In the years before 1914, he was a pioneer of Expressionism, but since that time, he has evolved a technique and style that is decidedly his own. Bernhard Bultmann illustrates this evolution in a succinct text geared toward illuminating the many color reproductions included. As the influence of Van Gogh gives way to that of Tintoretto, as the artist's focus on linear composition broadens to include a graphic sense of color, his style emerges with force. His breathtaking views of the Swiss the Royal Gardens by the Thames, his sweeps of Hamburg and run t? with movement and color. For Kokoschka, was an intensely personal medium and just as his conception of a predatory beast captures the essance of , so his figure paintings reveal the most essential elements of his subjects. Since this is one of the few comprehensive studies of the artist, connolsseurs of every style will be interested. But for those with a preference for Noble, Viaminck or , for others who consider Roualt the master of primitive art, this should prove especially fascinating.