Axel Madsen was a writer whose work frequently explored themes of sexuality and homosexuality in art and culture. He became known for his detailed and insightful artist biographies, examining their creative processes and personal lives. His writing was distinguished by its ability to uncover the hidden motivations and societal pressures that shaped his subjects' artistic journeys. Madsen's work offers a deep look into the intertwining of personal and artistic lives.
Sonia Delaunay, wife of painter Robert Delaunay, and co-founder of the Orphist school in 1910, was the center of a brilliant circle in Paris. Madsen offers a rich and compelling look at this fascinating and influential woman, the first living female artist to have a retrospective show at the Louvre.
Coco Chanel's genius for fashion may have been distilled in simplicity, but her life was an extravaganza. A brilliant array of luminaries fell under her spell - Picasso, Churchill, cocteau- lovers included the Grand Duke Dmitri; the English roue, Boy Capel; a French poet- a German spy and the Duke of Westminster, who offered to leave his wife for her permanently, if she would bear him an heir. Paradoxically, though she might have been regarded in some lights as a pioneering feminist - sacrificing marriage to a revolutionary career in couture - Chanel was utterly baffled by the idea of women's politics. Educated women? 'A woman's education consists of two lessons- never leave the house without stockings, never go out without a hat.' Chanel's rise from penniless orphan to millionaire designer - 'inventing' sportswear, the little black dress and No 5 - makes compelling reading, not least because she was inclined to design her own life as deftly as she did her fashions. Axel Madsen negotiates Chanel's smoke screens with skill, bringing this tantalising woman to life in all her alluring complexity.
The story of the Fields family explores the extremes of rebellion and folly among its descendants, from a son possibly shot by a chorus girl to a great-great grandson who built Hollywood dreams with his fortune. It provides a fresh perspective on wealth, success, and the darker side of the American dream.
An incisive biography explores the life of actress Barbara Stanwyck, her rise to stardom, her marriages, and her part the McCarthy hearings of the 1950s. Reprint.
Hollywood's Greatest Secret : Female Stars who Loved Other Women
This is the documented story of some of the most glamorous women in the world who lived two lives--in public as larger-than-life romantic heroines of the screen, and in private as lesbians or bisexuals. From the early years of the "talkies" through the beginning of the 1950s, they were secretly known as the Sewing Circle, and this is their story. Among them were Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Tallulah Bankhead, Katherine Cornell, Barbara Stanwyck, and Joan Crawford. Others whose secret lives are divulged for the first time: Maude Adams, Lynn Fontanne, Myrna Loy, Edith Head, Janet Gaynor, Jill Esmond, Elsa Lanchester, Isadora Duncan, Laurette Taylor, Libby Holman, Marjorie Main, Agnes Moorehead, and Dame Judith Anderson.--Publisher description.
A biography of Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, who revolutionized fashion and was a force and legend in her time.