The Michael Werner Collection: I sat Beauty on my knees ... And I reviled her. ARTHUR RIMBAUD

This catalogue presents over 800 artworks from the collection of Germany's most internationally renowned art dealer, Michael Werner, part of which belong to his donation to the Musee d'art moderne de la Ville de Paris. This is a collection that stands out for its commitment to trends defying accepted art canons and, especially, to the work of the `painter-sculptor' ranging freely and impartially through the fields of painting, sculpture and drawing. Rather than focusing on avant-garde movements, the exhibition takes an idiosyncratic look at the art of the 20th century and offers a novel reading of the modern and the contemporary. Thirty-nine artists are represented in twenty chapters, where they are juxtaposed with quotations by contemporary critics. Texts by Pierre Rosenberg, Eric Darragon and Fabrice Hergott focus on the collector, while essays by Pamela Kort, Wolfgang Kersten and Ulrich Leben explore the historical context of the collection. The appendix lists the works in the collection, all the Michael Werner Gallery shows from 1963, and a bibliography of its numerous publications.

About Fabrice Hergott