Radical Art and the Formation of the Avant-Garde

“Radical Art and the Avant-Garde . . . brilliantly charts the joints and interstices of modernity’s foundations, an estimable contribution to art history and a roadmap to understanding our own unsettled era.”—Hamilton Cain, On the Seawall

‘There is no more sophisticated and compelling historian of the avant-garde now at work than David Cottington. This is a sustained, elegant, and erudite account of its subjects, wide-ranging, unfailingly insightful, and certain to be the standard work.’ – David Peters Corbett, The Courtauld Institute of Art

‘A subtle and multifaceted exploration of how early twentieth-century avant-gardes coalesced in the distinctive cultural and political circumstances of pre-World War I London and Paris, Cottington’s wide-ranging book makes a groundbreaking contribution to our understanding of critically important episodes in the history of art.' – Nancy J. Troy, Stanford University

‘Cottington’s new and unparalleled study lays bare the social conditions that led to the rise of the radical artistic avant-garde. A formidable book indispensable to all readers interested in the social history of modern art.’ – Sascha Bru, University of Leuven