Christoph Irmscher

New biography offers well-crafted story of Louise Bourgeois’s rich life Knife-Woman is the fullest account to date of the life of one of the most influential artists of the last century

Louise Bourgeois had to wait till she was 70 to get a major retrospective. She never gave up; her quirky, provocative installations continue to inspire today. She fully deserves this major biography, "Knife-Woman," by Marie-Laure Bernadac. My review for The Art Newspaper.

Included in the excellent new issue of @washingtonmonthly.com!

I hope someone puts it up again over night and again and again… they can take down the flags but not erase their achievements.

Very pleased to be published in @washingtonmonthly.com today! And —“Bernie for Burlington”…what a fabulous biography!

A terrific experience to chair the @bookcritics.bsky.social nonfiction committee, with the amazing @gwinnma.bsky.social, @michaelschaub.bsky.social, Jacob Appel, Colette Bancroft, Iris Dunkle, Jonathan Leal. Congrats to all longlisted authors and all writers whose work we read during the last year!

This was a fun committee to serve on. Congratulations to all the winners—and, really, everyone who published a biography last year. I read so many books I loved, but we were only able to pick 10 for the longlist, alas! Many of your books I will carry with me for a while. Thank you!

Congratulations to these amazing writers! As a member of the @bookcritics.bsky.social fiction committee, I’ve felt so privileged to read your work!

My new review in @washingtonmonthly.com of Brian Soucek’s brilliant “The Opinionated University” published by @uchicagopress.bsky.social. All the arguments you need next time your administration decides to remain silent.

French novel explores art as seen through the eyes of a young girl The book provides a fresh—and refreshing—perspectives on famous works by the likes of Georgia O’Keeffe, Van Gogh and Goya

A fun crash course in art history in the guise of a novel: Thomas Schlesser's "Mona's Eyes" from @europaeditions.bsky.social. My review in @theartnewspaper.bsky.social: www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/12/02/f...

New book highlights Vorticism’s toxic side—and puts its women pioneers back in the frame James King’s study places Jessica Dismorr and Helen Saunders at the centre of the movement

A new book on the Vorticists finally puts the female artists front and center. My review of James King's "Our Little Gang" (@reaktionbools.co.uk) in @theartnewspapwr.bsky.social): www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/31/n...

Such a pleasure to speak with Anne Kim of @washingtonmonthly.com about the art of book reviewing.

Pontormo, Vasari and Michelangelo take leading roles in this 16th-century whodunnit Novelist Laurent Binet weaves a compelling tale of Renaissance Italy with this art historical murder mystery

Laurent Binet's brilliant art historical whodunnit "Perspectives" (@fsgbooks.bsky.social, @penguinbooksuk.bsky.social) makes the world of 16th-century Florence come alive. My review in The Art Newspaper: www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/01/p...

‘Stan and Gus’ Review: Monsters and Monuments Stanford White and Augustus Saint-Gaudens had ambitious visions for New York City—and towering egos to match.

New review in this week's @wsj.com of Henry Wiencek's "Stan and Gus" (@fsgbooks.bsky.social), a dual bio of Augustus Saint-Gaudens and the notorious Stanford White. Find out why I think a crab is the fitting symbol of their friendship:

www.wsj.com/arts-culture...

My take on Jonathan Aaron’s wonderful “Just About Anything” @cmupress.bsky.social in @ronslate.bsky.social’s “On the Seawall”: “Aaron’s poetry, for the length of a few lines, a handful of pages, persuades us that things or people that are gone aren’t, in fact, lost.” www.ronslate.com/on-just-abou...

‘The Shape of Wonder’ Review: Loving Their Lab Lives The pursuit of scientific knowledge through experiment demands training, rigor and precision. For some it is a deep source of joy.

My new review in @wsj.com--"The Shape of Wonder," @pantheonbooks.bsky.social, a very readable book, by astrophysicist Alan Lightman and abstronomer Martin Rees. Felt compelled to put in a reminder at the end that the humanities and arts are kind of cool, too: www.wsj.com/arts-culture...

Indiana’s Assault on Public Education Godfather of Trump University, Trump is insisting on his rules for private and public U.S. universities. RIGHT-WING AUTHORITARIANS such as Donald Trump and his MAGA minions drive their ideological …

If you‘re curious about what‘s happening to higher ed in my state (Indiana), here‘s an indispensable analysis, with plenty of evidence, by my colleague Purnima Bose: againstthecurrent.org/atc238/india...

I am so thrilled to have won one of the two 2025 Kukula awards, and congratulations to all the finalists and fellow award winner Ian Johnson. My deep gratitude to @washingtonmonthly.com for making this award possible—and to Kukula Kapoor Glastris, too, for her work. What a legacy!

When nature took flight In The Birds of America, a monumental achievement in every sense, John James Audubon wanted more than to illustrate nature. He made it come alive in his art, humbling mankind in the process.

Audubon is usually associated with largeness—here’s my view of him as a miniaturist, published in @engelsbergideas.bsky.social. engelsbergideas.com/essays/when-...

Very happy to be a finalist. Book reviewers often work in obscurity—it’s so great of @washingtonmonthly.com to recognize our work. Congratulations to all the other finalists!

Congrats to all the poetry finalists of @bookcritics.bsky.social! It has been such an honor to serve on this committee!

What a delight to serve on the autobiography committee of @bookcritics.bsky.social! Congrats to all our finalists!

It has been such an honor to serve on the biography committee of @bookcritics.bsky.social. Check out our excellent finalists below!

The finalists for the 2024 John Leonard Prize, given to an outstanding first book in any genre, are By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight For Justice on Native Land by Rebecca Nagle (Harper), Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls (MCD/Farrar, Straus and Giroux), Great Expectations by Vinson Cunningham (Hogarth), Miss May Does Not Exist: The Life and Work of Elaine May, Hollywood’s Hidden Genius by Carrie Courogen (St. Martin’s), Ward Toward by Cindy Juyoung Ok (Yale University), and When The Clock Broke: Con Men, Conspiracists, and How America Cracked Up in the Early 1990s by John Ganz (Farrar, Straus and Giroux).

We're excited to announce the shortlist for the 2024 John Leonard Prize, given to an outstanding first book in any genre! Congratulations to all of the finalists.

Congratulations to Lori Lynn Turner, the winner of the 2024 NBCC Service Award!

Congratulations to @thirdworldpress.bsky.social, the winner of the 2024 Toni Morrison Achievement Award!

We’re excited to announce that in honor of our 50th anniversary, we’ll be joined at the NBCC Awards ceremony by Maxine Hong Kingston!

So happy to have been involved in selecting this fabulous list of finalists! Congrats to all!

The stuff of nightmares: catalogue of Alfred Kubin’s work shines a light on his dark world The macabre artist’s blood-soaked prints and drawings at the start of the 20th century foretold future wars

A timely artist. My review of the Alfred Kubin exhibit at the Albertina in Vienna & the accompanying catalog. www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/01/08/t...

I served on the poetry committee of @bookcritics.bsky.social. It was an honor to help select our first-ever poetry longlist for 2024. Congratulations to all these wonderful writers!

Here is our first ever longlist for biography 2024 @bookcritics.bsky.social. Proud to be a member of our biography committee and to help select these wonderful titles. Congrats to the authors!