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The Lives of the Artists
- Narrated by: Neville Jason
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
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Publisher's summary
An Italian Mannerist architect and painter, Giorgio Vasari was acquainted with many of the most famous artists of his day. He is best-known today for his biographies of artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, Titian and Giotto. This recording is read with clarity and authority by Neville Jason.
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Giorgio Vasari (1511-74) was born during one of the greatest eras of art, and five centuries later his work gives readers a contemporary window on the Renaissance. In these excerpts from his massive work, Vasari not only describes the artists’ major works, but shares personal reflections about the men themselves. Narrator Neville Jason, who also has chosen and abridged the selections, is skillful with the Italian and clearly shares Vasari’s ear for entertaining anecdotes.
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- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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This enthralling book charts the family's huge influence on the political, economic, and cultural history of Florence. Beginning in the early 1430s with the rise of the dynasty under the near-legendary Cosimo de Medici, it moves through their golden era as patrons of some of the most remarkable artists and architects of the Renaissance, to the era of the Medici Popes and Grand Dukes, Florence's slide into decay and bankruptcy, and the end, in 1737, of the Medici line.
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Laundry list of names
- By Elizabeth W on 01-02-17
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The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini
- By: Benvenuto Cellini
- Narrated by: Robert Whitfield
- Length: 15 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Master Italian sculptor, goldsmith, and writer Benvenuto Cellini is best remembered for his magnificent autobiography. In this work, which was actually begun in 1558 but not published until 1730, Cellini beautifully chronicles his flamboyant times. He tells of his adventures in Italy and France, and his relations with popes, kings, and fellow artists.
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The problem is with Cellini himself.
- By Leslie Ross on 06-07-10
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The Vanishing Velázquez
- A 19th Century Bookseller's Obsession with a Lost Masterpiece
- By: Laura Cumming
- Narrated by: Siobhan Redmond
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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When John Snare, a 19th-century provincial bookseller, traveled to a liquidation auction, he stumbled on a vivid portrait of King Charles I that defied any explanation. The Charles of the painting was young - too young to be king - and yet also too young to be painted by the Flemish painter to which the work was attributed. Snare had found something incredible - but what? His research brought him to Diego Velázquez, whose long-lost portrait of Prince Charles has eluded art experts for generations.
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A fascinating study of art history
- By Ron on 07-02-16
By: Laura Cumming
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The Medici
- Power, Money, and Ambition in the Italian Renaissance
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 16 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Against the background of an age that saw the rebirth of ancient and classical learning, Paul Strathern explores the intensely dramatic rise and fall of the Medici family in Florence as well as the Italian Renaissance, which they did so much to sponsor and encourage. Interwoven into the narrative are the lives of many of the great Renaissance artists with whom the Medici had dealings, including Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Donatello as well as scientists like Galileo and Pico della Mirandola.
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Fun Story Bad History
- By Elizabeth Barrett on 05-09-16
By: Paul Strathern
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Iberia
- By: James A. Michener
- Narrated by: Larry McKeever
- Length: 37 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Spain is an immemorial land like no other, one that James A. Michener, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author and celebrated citizen of the world, came to love as his own. Iberia is Michener’s enduring nonfiction tribute to his cherished second home. In the fresh and vivid prose that is his trademark, he not only reveals the celebrated history of bullfighters and warrior kings, painters and processions, cathedrals and olive orchards, he also shares the intimate, often hidden country he came to know, where the congeniality of living souls is thrust against the dark weight of history.
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Michener's Masterpiece
- By ahusmc on 09-14-17
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The Swerve
- How the World Became Modern
- By: Stephen Greenblatt
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Nearly six hundred years ago, a short, genial, cannily alert man in his late 30s took a very old manuscript off a library shelf, saw with excitement what he had discovered, and ordered that it be copied. That book was the last surviving manuscript of an ancient Roman philosophical epic by Lucretius—a beautiful poem containing the most dangerous ideas: that the universe functioned without the aid of gods, that religious fear was damaging to human life, and that matter was made up of very small particles.
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Very compelling history, a less compelling thesis
- By A reader on 05-01-12
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The Ugly Renaissance
- Sex, Greed, Violence and Depravity in an Age of Beauty
- By: Alexander Lee
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 15 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Renowned as a period of cultural rebirth and artistic innovation, the Renaissance is cloaked in a unique aura of beauty and brilliance. Its very name conjures up awe-inspiring images of an age of lofty ideals in which life imitated the fantastic artworks for which it has become famous. But behind the vast explosion of new art and culture lurked a seamy, vicious world of power politics, perversity, and corruption that has more in common with the present day than anyone dares to admit.
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Author falls into the pit he digs for others
- By Sean on 01-23-16
By: Alexander Lee
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Paris to the Past
- Traveling Through French History by Train
- By: Ina Caro
- Narrated by: Christa Lewis
- Length: 14 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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In one of the most inventive travel books in years, Ina Caro invites listeners on 25 one-day train trips that depart from Paris and transport us back through 700 years of French history. Whether taking us to Orléans to evoke the visions of Joan of Arc or to the Place de la Concorde to witness the beheading of Marie Antoinette, Caro animates history with her lush descriptions of architectural splendors and tales of court intrigue. "[An] enchanting travelogue" (Publishers Weekly), Paris to the Past has become one of the classic guidebooks of our time.
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Day Trip From Paris?... Look No Further!
- By Simone on 11-19-13
By: Ina Caro
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The Buried Book
- The Loss and Rediscovery of the Great Epic of Gilgamesh
- By: David Damrosch
- Narrated by: William Hughes
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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One day in 1872, self-taught Assyriologist George Smith was sifting through a pile of clay tablets when he realized he was reading about "a flood, storm, a ship caught on a mountain, and a bird sent out in search of dry land". This is the riveting story of the discovery of the world's first literary epic, the "Epic of Gilgamesh".
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interesting- but not for everyone
- By J Michael on 07-16-08
By: David Damrosch
What listeners say about The Lives of the Artists
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Sam
- 11-30-17
I cannot recommend this more highly...
Giorgio Vasari describes the art, artists, and contemporary events of the Italian Renaissance as only an actual artist of the time could do. The narration is wonderful, the speaker's voice both melodious and interesting. I appreciated the music played between each chapter, as it added to the atmosphere of stories being told about artists by someone who actually knew and worked with them.
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- Marc Degani
- 05-12-23
really surprised
i knew about the reputation of the book but thought I wouldn't be able to stay awake reading biographies of multiple artists so i thought I'd give the audiobook a shot. I'm glad i did, the narrator was excellent, he moved about the story quickly with different intonations to keep your interest.
The book itself is excellent, it's pretty amazing to hear the biographies of the most famous artists of the Renaissance told by someone who either knew them personally or indirectly. His facts are obviously embellished at times but I enjoyed that part too, I found it funny.
i discovered a lot about artists I had never heard of and others I knew about.
very highly recommended.
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- MistyKat
- 01-17-12
Excellent if the music was removed.
Would you listen to The Lives of the Artists again? Why?
Yes. As Vasari lived in the time of the Master artists, and gave his view of how they were perceived in his day.
Who was your favorite character and why?
Vasari himself, the way he talks about other artist; 'Leonardo da Vinci was frivolous'; could not complete anything before moving on to something else, or the artist that boiled 50 eggs at a time for eating, whilst he was making his egg mixture for tempera!
Which scene was your favorite?
I haven't finished the book yet. But there is a lot to take in, which makes you want to stop pause and talk about. I will definitely be listening to this book a few more times, start to finish, to learn a lot of past artist names, the way they perceived art and the way they were treated by their own people of their time.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
Vasari's View
Any additional comments?
The music between chapters is the real killer of the book. If the music went for 2 - 5 seconds and at a lower decibel, it may be bearable. Instead it last for up to 25 seconds by this stage I’m murderous. Only a Classis organ player would enjoy that part.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Ksel
- 11-20-16
Great performance
Performance and translation of this great work are wonderful. Highly recommended to all art lovers.
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- Melissa Robinson
- 07-15-16
Best version I have found!
I have tried to read this several times but the interpretations were tedious and boring. This version is more accessible and allows Vasari's charm and humor to shine. Loved it.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Tony DiBiasio
- 08-20-12
A Personal History
Where does The Lives of the Artists rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
As an educational read it ranks near the top.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Lives of the Artists?
The very human tendencies of some of the most brilliant artists of all time. Like the fact that Donatello, I believe, eschewed money to the extent that he hung from the ceiling of his studio a basket where he placed all his commissioned earnings. The money was there for anyone working for him to take as needed, for personal or artistic needs.
What about Neville Jason’s performance did you like?
A nice voice that gives a very continental flavor to the story.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
It affirmed for me the great glory of the genius of the Renaissance artists from Cimabue to Giotto, to Donatello through to DaVinci and Michelangelo.
Any additional comments?
It was a step back in time. However, comments at the end may have been helpful to identify where many of these masterpieces are today. Vasari was giving a contemporary account. Now the works of art he describes are now housed in some of the most famous museums in the world.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Karahann Kiser
- 05-15-19
Dry presentation, limited perspective of art.
I am an art history buff and a professor of design. This book, while it discusses the lives and careers of many great artists, is incredibly dry and small-minded when it comes to addressing art. There is a turn to all of it that art being about representing nature in lieu of the broad spectrum of human expression. Clearly this was written by someone who knows about history, but does not practice art. I would not recommend this performance or this title, it was difficult to wade through the conservatism and viewpoint of art.
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3 people found this helpful