Holbein's Sir Thomas More

If you are eager for **the next book by Hilary Mantel!**, this is probably not what you think it is.The first in a series of publications by the Frick Collection, each focusing on a masterwork from their collection, it is a slim but nicely presented hardback that opens with a 7-page essay by Mantel, and then continues to the art curator's scholarly study of the Holbein painting of Sir Thomas More in the Frick Collection. The primary focus of the book is thus this painting. and Mantel's is a short foreword on More himself.The study of the painting is quite well-done, with many good reproductions of both the More portrait, numerous other paintings and drawings by Holbein and other contemporary portraits by both Holbein and others. It is very good value for the number of illustrations and focus.. This initial book is on the famous portrait of Sir Thomas More, painted by Hans Holbein, and features a short intro by Hilary Mantel and then Frick curator Xavier F. Salomon's study of the painting itself (Unfortunately for Wolf Hall fans, the diptych in the series refers to the conservation between the two writers, not that of the two Holbeins in the Frick of Sir Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell.)Future publications in the series focus on Johannes Vermeer’s " Mistress and Maid" (curator by Peggy Iacono and director/writer/producer James Ivory), and on a pair of porcelain and gilt-bronze candlesticks by Pierre Gouthière (curator Charlotte Vignon and Edmund de Waal, author of The Hare with Amber Eyes).

Excellent production and a very enjoyable read.

This is an elegant, well-illustrated little book. It begins with the painting in question. Then, there is a short “letter” –– or rumination, if you will –– by Hilary Mantel about Sir Thomas More, the man of letters and controversy. Do not expect a hagiography. Nor should you expect a plot or the usual ficitonal devices. The letter is thought-provoking in very many ways, but it is not in the same genre as Ms. Mantel’s fiction. It's more of a speculative essay.Fortunately, the book also contains a lengthy essay by Xavier Salomon which explains the link between Thomas More, as an intellectual in England, and Holbein’s mentor Desiderius Erasmus. That understanding is critical to see why Holbein came to paint the More familyIn clear text, Mr. Solomon goes through the history of More’s relationship to Erasmus, Holbein’s early development as an artist in Switzerland and the development of the famous portrait of More as well as a much larger canvas depicting More’s family which was destroyed in a fire. I felt the essay was a superior product, although it was necessarily brief and took the form of a lengthy discussion of the history and provenance of the work .I thought it was a strong beginning to the series and I’m looking forward to future volumes.

Beautifully produced and illustrated combining and essay from Hilary Mantel, the historian who wrote "Wolf Hall" and Xavier F. Salomon of the Frick Museum .Matel's essay is short and in the form of a letter to- she REALLY doesn't like Thomas More but it's a very penetrating attempt to get inside a very complex man.Salomoin's essay is much longer and discusses the history of the paining and it's place in Holbein's career - really superbly written & illustratedThis is the first of what (hopefully) will be a series of similar collaborative efforts on teh great paintings in the Frick Collection - I can't wait for the next one

Great way to find an in depth appreciation of the work.