As the title implies, "The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone" by Olivia Laing is a book that delves into the exploration of loneliness through art and the lives of artists who have experienced isolation. Laing weaves her narrative around artists such as Edward Hopper, Andy Warhol, and Henry Darger, discussing the causes and consequences of loneliness. She combines personal experiences with deep research to provide insight into how loneliness can be expressed through art and how it impacts individuals in urban environments.
Laing's writing style in "The Lonely City" has been described as beautifully written, insightful, and emotional. She blends personal experiences of loneliness with psychological theories and examinations of artists who embody loneliness in their work. The book offers a mix of memoir and art history, exploring themes of connection, empathy, and the impact of isolation on creativity, all while maintaining a focus on the topic of loneliness.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include discussions of loneliness, mental illness, and references to the AIDS crisis.
From The Publisher:
Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism
#1 Book of the Year from Brain Pickings
Named a best book of the year by NPR, Newsweek, Slate, Pop Sugar, Marie Claire, Elle, Publishers Weekly, and Lit Hub
A dazzling work of biography, memoir, and cultural criticism on the subject of loneliness, told through the lives of iconic artists, by the acclaimed author of The Trip to Echo Spring.
When Olivia Laing moved to New York City in her midthirties, she found herself inhabiting loneliness on a daily basis. Increasingly fascinated by the most shameful of experiences, she began to explore the lonely city by way of art. Moving from Edward Hopper's Nighthawks to Andy Warhol's Time Capsules, from Henry Darger's hoarding to David Wojnarowicz's AIDS activism, Laing conducts an electric, dazzling investigation into what it means to be alone, illuminating not only the causes of loneliness but also how it might be resisted and redeemed.
Humane, provocative, and moving, The Lonely City is a celebration of a strange and lovely state, adrift from the larger continent of human experience, but intrinsic to the very act of being alive.
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1 comment(s)
This is quite an abstract book, very much centering on well known artists from New York City, such as Andy Warhol and Edward Hopper. It discusses the ways in which such people have expressed their experiences of loneliness in their work and it talks about the effect that the AIDS epidemic had in marginalising and isolating members of NYCs populations and the like. It also talks about the impact modern technology and in particular the internet and social media has had on those who feel disconnected and left out by society.
It is quite a grim read at times. Its not an especially easy read and I found it a bit too depressing at points, although it became more interesting in other chapters, depending on what it was focussing on. I wasn't especially familiar with some of the artists mentioned but I think I understood the main points made. It was perhaps a bit too specialised for me but I imagine that people studying American art or perhaps people who study sociology would find this paeticularly interesting.
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About the Author:
OLIVIA LAING is a writer and critic. Her first book, To the River, was published by Canongate in the U.K. to wide acclaim and shortlisted for the Ondaatje Prize and the Dolman Travel Book of the Year. She has been the deputy books editor of the Observer, and writes for the Guardian, New Statesman, and Granta, among other publications. She is a MacDowell and Yaddo Fellow, and the 2014 Writer in Residence at the British Library. Her critically acclaimed book,The Trip to Echo Spring: On Writers and Drinking, is published by Picador.
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