July 2023 MBR The Photography Shelf

The Photography Shelf

Alfredo Boulton
Idurre Alonso, editor
Getty Publications
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 500, Los Angeles, CA 90049-1682
www.getty.edu/publications
9781606068199, $60.00, HC, 288pp

https://www.amazon.com/Alfredo-Boulton-Looking-Venezuela-1928-1978/dp/1606068199

Synopsis: Alfredo Boulton (1908-1995) is considered one of the most important champions of modern art in Venezuela and a key intellectual of twentieth-century modernism. He was a pioneer of modern photography, an art critic, a researcher and historian of Venezuelan art, a friend to many of the great artists and architects of the twentieth century, and an expert on the imagery of the heroes of his country's independence.

Yet, Boulton is shockingly is not well known outside of his native land. The few exhibitions related to his work have focused exclusively on his photographic production; never has there been a project that looks at the full range of Boulton's efforts, foregrounding his influence on the shaping of Venezuelan art.

With the publication of "Alfredo Boulton: Looking at Venezuela, 1928-1978", Getty Museum art curator Idurre Alonso addresses these lacunae by analyzing Boulton's groundbreaking photographic practice, his central role in the construction of a modern national artistic canon, and his influence in formalizing and developing art history and criticism in Venezuela. Based on the extensive materials held in Boulton's archive at the Getty Research Institute, curator Alfredo Boulton brings together essays by leading scholars in the field to offer a commanding, original perspective on his contributions to the formation of a distinctive modernity at home and beyond.

Critique: It should be noted that "Alfredo Boulton: Looking at Venezuela, 1928-1978" is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the Getty Research Institute at the Getty Center from August 29, 2023, to January 21, 2024. This large format (8.50(w) x 10.75(h), 1.74 pounds) edition is profusely illustrated, impressively informative, and expertly presented account of the life and accomplishments of the Venezuela artist and photographer Alfredo Boulton and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Photography & Biography collections. It should be noted that "Alfredo Boulton: Looking at Venezuela, 1928-1978" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $57.00).

Editorial Note: Idurre Alonso (https://blogs.getty.edu/iris/author/ialonso) is curator of Latin American collections at the Getty Research Institute.

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