Description
Journeying to a remote French island to sit for a portrait that is painted by his tormented artist friend, an influential London art critic recalls the early years of their friendship, his own influence over aspiring artists, and the power struggle between subject and artist in the course of the sitting. By the author of An Instance of the Fingerpost. Reprint. 100,000 first printing.
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A national bestseller from acclaimed author Iain Pears, The Portrait is a novel of suspense and a tour de force.An art critic journeys to a remote island off Brittany to sit for a portrait painted by an old friend, a gifted but tormented artist living in self-imposed exile. The painter recalls their years of friendship, the gift of the critic's patronage, and his callous betrayals. As he struggles to capture the character of the man, as well as his image, on canvas, it becomes clear that there is much more than a portrait at stake...Iain Pears's An Instance of the Fingerpost and The Dream of Scipio are also available from Riverhead Books.
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