Richard Speer

From the Heart: Sculpture of Martin Eichinger Richard Speer

Technical mastery and a visionary worldview meet in the narrative Romantic sculpture of Martin Eichinger. For half a century, this ambitious artist and Renaissance Man has created compelling visual rhapsodies, primarily in cast bronze, that tackle the most significant ideas of our time, even as they speak to the ages: the glories of science, technology, and human aspiration; the enduring potency of myth; the allure and complexity of strong women; the pull of far-flung locales and cultures; and the dynamics of romantic relationships. Honored by the National Endowment for the Arts, awarded prestigious commissions, his works collected by royalty, connoisseurs, and cultural/educational institutions the world over, he has enjoyed a caliber of success many artists only dream of.

In this comprehensive monograph, art critic Richard Speer traces Eichinger's trajectory from boyhood in the Midwest, his evolution as a thinker and young sculptor, and the trailblazing career he forged in adulthood, centered in his sprawling, Italianate studio in Portland, Oregon. Interviews with colleagues, friends, family members, and the women in his life flesh out a portrait of the artist as an activist, deploying his formidable technique and dramatically spiraling compositions in the service of positive values and sociopolitical change. "I want to make things that are beautiful," he reflects, "but I'm not interested in beauty alone. I want the beauty to say something."

Illustrated with stunning color plates and enlivened by the artist's original poetry and passionate convictions about art's role in the history of civilizations, From the Heart: The Sculpture of Martin Eichinger celebrates the life's work of a modern mythmaker.