Overview

""Through masterful research and sparkling prose, The Club feels like an exclusive invitation to a Parisian enclave during an era of artistic and social transformation."" -Michael Finkel, #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Art Thief A deliciously entertaining, never-before-told history of a residence for American women artists in Paris from 1893 to 1914. In Belle Époque Paris, the Eiffel Tower was newly built, France was experiencing remarkable political stability, and American women were painting the town and gathering at a female-only Residence known as The American Girls' Club in Paris. Opened in 1893, The Club was the center of expatriate living and of dedication to a calling in the fine arts, and singularly harbored a generation of independent, talented, and driven American women. Now in The Club, curator, art historian, and podcast host Jennifer Dasal presents the never-before-told story of the Club, the philanthropists who created it, and the artists it housed. These women forged connections in the arts and letters with luminaries like Auguste Rodin and Gertrude Stein or became activists through their relationships with the likes of Emmeline Pankhurst. But just as importantly, these women's lives revealed the power of the Club itself, and the way that having a safe home for single women of ambition allowed them to grow as teachers, artists, suffragists, and people. For readers interested in women's lives as captured in books like The Barbizon, art history buffs who loved Ninth Street Women, and armchair travelers longing to visit Belle Époque Paris, The Club is a captivating, colorful new history.

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9781639731305

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Reviews

""Through masterful research and sparkling prose, The Club feels like an exclusive invitation to a Parisian enclave during an era of artistic and social transformation."" --Michael Finkel, #1 New York Times best-selling author of THE ART THIEF ""Jennifer Dasal's captivating history immerses readers in late 19th and early 20th-century Paris, where the struggles and successes of the American Girls' Club resident artists resonate powerfully with contemporary issues."" --Sean Fitzgibbon, author of WHAT FOLLOWS IS TRUE: CRESCENT HOTEL ""Jennifer Dasal has written a true gift to the story of art history, one she delivers with passion and scrupulous research, shining a light on the untold story of American woman artists of Belle Epoque Paris and the world surrounding them. The Club is an essential addition to any library of art history."" --Jeff Lanier, author of FOR THE MINDS AND WILLS OF MEN ""The story of Paris as central to the history of art is a familiar one we might think we know. Enter Jennifer Dasal's eye-opening account of the Club, a place thriving in the heart of Belle Époque Paris and beyond where American women seeking education and opportunity so often denied them at home found art, friendship and mutual support for their unprecedented work, and lives. The Club was essential to generations of pioneering American women artists, and so is Dasal's wonderful book in bringing their stories to new light."" --Bridget Quinn, author of PORTRAIT OF A WOMAN ""Dasal brings to light a cast of talented, courageous women whose lives, and art, defied expectations; her engaging history pays homage to the singular space that nurtured them. A fresh look at female artists."" --Kirkus Reviews ""Evocative . . . Bring[s] the era to vivid life . . . Readers will be engrossed."" --Publishers Weekly ""Engaging . . . Dasal does an excellent job of placing these adventuresome artists into the social milieu of their era . . . Thoroughly researched . . . this book will appeal to readers interested in history, art, and sociology."" --Library Journal ""ArtCurious unspools like a juicy novel, detailing the backstories of several art history notables, their families, mentors, fellow artists, lovers and more . . . All this adds up to a fascinating, lively take on a topic that is too often reduced to dry facts. Art history buffs or anyone who likes a good thriller will find ArtCurious a welcome escape."" --BookPage ""Dasal reveals in this entertaining survey the weird, wacky, and unbelievable backstories of some of the world's greatest artists and most famous works of art . . . Both art aficionados and novices will find something to appreciate in this offbeat and informative outing."" --Publishers Weekly, Starred Review on ARTCURIOUS ""A wildly entertaining and surprisingly educational dive into art history as you've never seen it before."" --Shelf Awareness on ARTCURIOUS

Author Information

Jennifer Dasal is the creator and host of the ArtCurious podcast, which has been featured in multiple local and national publications and websites, including O, the Oprah Magazine, PC Magazine, ArtDaily, NPR, Salon and more. She is also the author of ArtCurious: Stories of the Unexpected, Slightly Odd, and Strangely Wonderful in Art History. She holds an MA in art history from the University of Notre Dame and a BA in art history from the University of California, Davis. Dasal is the former curator of modern and contemporary art at the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, where she worked for thirteen years. She lectures frequently on art both locally and nationally. Dasal lives in Wendell, North Carolina with her family.

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