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Being Here
Being Here: The Life of Paula Modersohn-Becker | Marie Darrieussecq
5 posts | 2 read
Born in Germany in 1876, Paula Modersohn-Becker was the first female artist to paint herself not only naked but pregnant. Being Here is a moving account of the life of this ground-breaking Expressionist painter, by the acclaimed French writer Marie Darrieussecq. As her art evolves, Paula is torn between Paris and her home in northern Germany. In Paris she can focus on her work, and mix with artists like Rodin and Monet, or her close friend the poet Rainer Maria Rilke. But Germany is home, and thats where her painter husband Otto lives. Darrieussecq thrillingly describes Paulas discovery of her style and choice of subjectswomen, babies, domestic life. She tells the story of her fraught marriage, her ambivalence about combining her passion for her career as an artist with motherhood. And she recounts her tragic death at thirty-one, days after giving birth. Marie Darrieussecq is a French writer born in Bayonne in 1969. Her first novel, Pig Tales, was published in 1996 and subsequently translated into thirty-five languages. She has written some fifteen books for adults, including novels, short fiction, a play, and nonfiction works. In 2013 she was awarded both the Prix Mdicis and the Prix des Prix for her novel Men. Being Here, her biography of Paula Modersohn-Becker, was released in 2017. She is a regular contributor to contemporary art magazines in France and Britain and also writes for Libration and Charlie Hebdo. She lives in Paris. Marie Darrieussecq reads the testament of Modersohn-Beckerthe letters, the diaries, and above all the paintingswith a burning intelligence and a fierce hold on what it meant and means to be a woman and an artist. J.M. Coetzee A luminous tale about the courage of the lone female artist. Joan London There are few writers who may have changed my perception of the world, but Darrieussecq is one of them. The Times The internationally celebrated author who illuminates those parts of life other writers cannot or do not want to reach. Independent
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mirnas
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A biofictional account of Paula Becker's life. A late 19th century German painter fighting for her art in a conservative bourgeois environement. A must read!

La biographie fictionelle de Paula Becker. Son rêve est d'être à Paris et de peindre. Mais, d'autres choses sont exigées d'une jeune femme allemande bourgeoise vivante au début du XXe siècle. À lire!

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TheSloanRanger
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Polishing off some book reviews today, before a few friends come round to hang out with me and the dog.
Being Here is DIVINE 👌😍

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TheSloanRanger
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I've never read non-fiction like this. If it wasn't for the footnotes, it'd feel like a dreamy piece of fiction. Absolutely in love!

Snuggled up in bed while Wally watches the Hungary Grand Prix. Chester's on the bed, but don't tell Wally 😁 I'm normally pretty into F1 but I'm so tired from work that all that driving around was sending me to sleep!

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TheSloanRanger
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What an opening 😍

TheLondonBookworm Intriguing... 7y
TheSloanRanger @TheLondonBookworm It's such a beautiful book so far, can't quite believe it's non-fiction! 7y
8 likes2 comments
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TheSloanRanger
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Fantastic #bookmail today!
Being Here by Marie Darrieussecq, The Pacific Room by Michael Fitzgerald, and She Be Damned by M. J. Tjia.

Also picked up a new Pendo, as my old Samsung tablet is on the way out and I need an easy way to read all my non-Kindle digital books!