Stephen Bann examines the arguments for the centrality of French modernist painting. He begins by focusing particularly on the notion of the modernist break, as it has been interpreted with regard to painters like Manet and Ingres. He argues that 'curiosity', with its origins in the seventeenth-century world-view can be a valid concept for understanding some aspects of contemporary art that contest the modern, suggesting ways of sidetracking the modern by adopting a lengthier historical view.

Stephen Bann, Margaret MacNamidhe

Series Preface Introduction, by Margaret MacNamidhe Ways Around Modernism 1. Strange Encounters Lunch on the Grass Lunch in the Studio Beyond Parody Renaissance to Modern Ingres meets Picasso Conclusion 2. Curiouser and Curiouser Modernism and Experiment Curiosity in Context Curiosity, Religion and Science Surrealism as Curiosity The Artist's Brief Seminar Index