Master of Shadows
The Secret Diplomatic Career of the Painter Peter Paul Rubens
By Mark Lamster
(Nan A. Talese, Hardcover, 9780385523790, 336pp.)
Publication Date: October 20, 2009
Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook, Paperback
Categories: Europe - General, General, History - Renaissance
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Selected by Indie Booksellers for the November 2009 Indie NotablesThe true story of how seventeenth-century Europe's most famous painter doubled as a secret agent and negotiated a peace between superpowers.Peter Paul Rubens is best remembered as the Old Master with the penchant for fleshy, pink nudes whose popularity was eclipsed by that of Rembrandt van Rijn. In his time, however, Rubens had no equal; his contemporaries revered him as the greatest painter of his era, if not in all history. His undeniable artistic genius, bolstered by a modest disposition and a reputation as a man of tact and discretion, made him a favorite among monarchs and political leaders across Europe, and gave him perfect cover for the clandestine activities that shaped the landscape of seventeenth-century politics.In Master of Shadows, Mark Lamster tells the story of Rubens' life and brilliantly re-creates the culture, religious conflicts, and political intrigues of his time. Commissions to paint military and political leaders drew Rubens from his Antwerp home to London, Madrid, Paris, and Rome. The Spanish crown, recognizing the value of his easy access to figures of power, enlisted him into diplomatic service. His uncommon intelligence, preternatural charm, and ability to navigate through ever-shifting political winds allowed him to negotiate a long-sought peace treaty between England and Spain even as Europe's shrewdest statesmen plotted against him. Master of Shadows weaves a gripping drama of cloak-and-dagger diplomacy with an insightful, authoritative exploration of Rubens' art and the private passions that influenced it.
MARK LAMSTER writes on the arts and culture for many publications, including the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Metropolis, Print, and ID. His first book, Spalding's World Tour, was an Editor's Choice selection of the New York Times Book Review. He lives in New York City.
A Best Read of 2009
—Providence Journal
"A Fascinating study."
—The Telegraph (A Book of the Year)
"Mark Lamster is a brave writer....His affection for his subject is so complete—and completely convincing—his style is so gracefully unpretentious and his research is so thorough that Master of Shadows manages to be engaging, instructive and thought-provoking, all at once."
—The Los Angeles Times
"A different kind of artist's biography....Gripping reading."
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Highbrow and Brilliant
—New York Magazine Approval Matrix
"An exceptional book."
—Library Journal
A Daily Beast "Hot Read"
Selected as an Indie Next Notable Book for November 2009
"Rubens’s story surprises and dazzles."
—Kirkus
“In elegant brushstrokes, and using as his subject the painter/diplomat Rubens, Mark Lamster gives us here a vivid portrait of 17th century Europe and the political intrigue that led to the modern world.”
—Russell Shorto, bestselling author of The Island at the Center of the World
"Mark Lamster looks beyond Rubens's talent for era-defining sensual nudes and delves into his little-known career as a diplomat and spy. The result is an exhilarating portrait of an age as dramatic and richly toned as one of Rubens's gigantic canvases."
—Ross King, bestselling author of Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling
"This adroitly crafted biography of Rubens brings to life an artist so busy wheeling and dealing with the crowned heads of Europe that it's amazing he found the time to put brush to canvas. Lamster's account engages the student of history as much as it opens the eyes of those who love Rubens's art."
—Timothy Brook, author of Vermeer's Hat
"Master of Shadows is a fascinating account, as lively as it is informed. This utterly intriguing narrative has the knowledge and verve that infuse Rubens's brushstrokes; Lamster writes with the panache and enthusiastic engagement, as well as the capability, warranted by his marvelous subject.”
—Nicholas Fox Weber, author of Le Corbusier and The Bauhaus Group
“Imagine that Pablo Picasso, in addition to painting the most famous masterpieces of the 20th century, had also devoted decades of his life to secret diplomacy aimed at preventing another world war. That is exactly what Peter Paul Rubens, the most revered painter of his era, did in 17th-century Europe. Mark Lamster tells this little-known story with a combination of brio and historical erudition bound to appeal to anyone who cares about beauty, passion, war and peace. I couldn't put it down.”
—Susan Jacoby, bestselling author of The Age of American Unreason
“Art, war, diplomatic intrigue, secret spy missions-all rendered with the erudition of a scholar and the deft touch of a gifted writer. This is exactly what popular history should be. I was utterly transfixed by this book.”
—Jonathan Mahler, bestselling author of The Challenge: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld
“Piercing the darkened, secret world of agents, operatives, and diplomats is a difficult task at the best of times-and in Rubens's case, one thought impossible-but Mark Lamster brilliantly succeeds at shedding light on this most enigmatic, and aptly dubbed, Master of Shadows.”
—Alexander Rose, author of Washington's Spies
"Mark Lamster, a master of vivid writing, provides a highly readable account of the national rivalries and endemic warfare that fostered secret diplomacy in seventeenth-century Europe. Master of Shadows is a page-turner not to be missed.”
—Lita-Rose Betcherman, author of Court Lady and Country Wife
“Rubens's story surprises and dazzles.”
—Kirkus Reviews
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