In Montparnasse: The Emergence of Surrealism in Paris, from Duchamp to Dali

(Paperback)

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An absorbing, gossipy account of the birth of Surrealism and the painters, writers, and artists who lived, loved and worked in 1920s Paris During the 1920s, in the Parisian neighbourhood of Montparnasse, a unique flowering of avant-garde artistic creativity became the cradle of Dada and Surrealism. In this crowd biography, Sue Roe tells the story - from Duchamp to Dali, via Man Ray and Max Ernst - of the salons and cafes, alliances and feuds, love affairs and scandals, successes and suicides of one of the most important and long-lasting artistic achievements of the twentieth century.

Reviews

Highly colourful . . . they're all here, the big names of the time - behaving badly, and, at times, quite madly too * Rachel Cooke, Observer *
Roe is a talented writer, fascinated by la vie Boheme . . . She can find phrases that perfectly capture the feeling of a neighbourhood * John Carey, Sunday Times *
Brings together some of the chief protagonists in one of the 20th century's most inventive art movements. A vivid read * Radio Times *
She vividly charts the birth of surrealism . . . a tale rich in absurdity and outlandish characters, from Cocteau and Max Ernst to Dali and Picasso * Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times *
Sue Roe describes with plenty of colour how surrealism was born and developed in Montparnasse . . . Roe marshals [the figures behind dada and surrealism] with great finesse * The Times *
Enjoyable, engaging, rollicking - the storytelling is lively * Spectator, on In Montmartre *
Admirable. What an eye for art Roe has. Brilliant * Guardian, on In Montmartre *
An elegant synthesis of complex material... it excels: Roe is a skilled and graceful writer. * The Telegraph on 'In Montmartre' *
Lively and engaging... in her entertaining, ingeniously structured account Roe brings Montmartre's heyday back to life. * The Sunday Times on 'In Montmartre' *
[Roe]skilfully weaves her descriptions of artworks into her romp through the artists' struggles and fractious relationships. * The Times on 'In Montmartre' *
A colourful narrative describing the travails and triumphs of an equally colourful cast. * New Statesman on 'In Montmartre' *
With evocative imagery Roe sketches out the intensely visual spectacle on which Montmartre's artistic community was able to draw * Financial Times on 'In Montmartre' *

Author Bio

Sue Roe is the author of several books, including the bestselling crowd biographies In Montmartre and The Private Lives of the Impressionists, and a widely praised work on the artist Gwen John. She is a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. She lives in Brighton.