From Library Journal
Peggy Guggenheim (1898-1979) is of legendary and outrageous importance to modern art as indefatigable seductress, savior, muse, and collector. Tacou-Rumney is a granddaughter-in-law and an able journalist whose essay and picture research does justice to "the last Dogaressa" and also to the memory of her lesser-known daughter, the artist Pegeen Guggenheim. One volume of Peggy's published memoirs is still available as Art of This Century (Ayer, 1968. reprint), but the photos and commentary here provide fascinating details?from her bohemian exploits to deadly serious efforts to protect artists and their families during World War II. Indeed, Peggy attracted nearly all the international cultural elite of the time and along the way built a collection of breadth and quality. This loving but honest biography is highly recommended for art collections concerned with the modern period.?Mary Hamel-Schwulst, Towson State Univ., Md.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
The most striking aspect of this highly entertaining volume is its wealth of never-before-published photographs documenting intrepid art collector Peggy Guggenheim's flamboyant and influential life. Many are family photographs, and the author, who is married to Guggenheim's grandson, writes commentary every bit as lively as the pictures it accompanies. There's Guggenheim as a pampered but moody child, then as a young, dramatically attired expatriate in Paris during the heady 1920s. Modern art, as Tacou-Rumney so eloquently explains, was the key that unlocked Guggenheim's unique sensibilities and focused her quest for adventure. Guggenheim began collecting early on, supporting the unprecedented work of her friends and lovers, a remarkable group that constituted a virtual who's who in modern art, including Marcel Duchamp, Yves Tanguey, Max Ernst, and Constantin Brancusi. Whether she was partying in Paris, hanging a show in her New York gallery, or entertaining celebrities at her palazzo in Venice, Guggenheim was always a step ahead of everyone else in recognizing artistic originality, excellence, and significance. Donna Seaman


Book Description
One woman of the 20th century who continues to fascinate and achieve an ever-growing popularity is Peggy Guggenheim. Here, at last, is the re-publication of her personal biography. Art patron extraordinaire, who effortlessly combined the personal and professional (indeed, they were almost indistinguishable), her life was marked by drama and adventure. Every aspect of that extraordinary life is reproduced in this lavishly illustrated volume, beginning with her privileged childhood as a member of the wealthy and powerful Guggenheim family and ending with her settling in her Venetian palazzo on the Grand Canal. Whether posing for Man Ray or Berenice Abbott; keeping company with James Joyce, Samuel Beckett or marrying Max Ernst; helping Jackson Pollock, Robert Motherwell or Mark Rothko to become major figures; Peggy Guggenheim had a lifetime of historic interludes with some of the most notable artists of the 20th century. Illustrated with both momentous and casual moments, here are the most private and revealing parts of Guggenheim's exceptional life.



Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

FROM THE PUBLISHER