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Title: A Cautionary Word
Review: My main gripe with this book is the terrible quality of the reproductions. They are so bad I bought a $10 Caravaggio book from Taschen and tried to cross-reference. Awkward, but better than relying on the fuzzy reproductions in this book. Robb points out that the life of Caravaggio remains mysterious. Robb's version of it is exactly that: his version. He takes great pains to back up his opinions, but apparently he did his own translations. Did anyone edit his translations? The biographical elements of this book I find questionable, and to some extent he admits that they are. On a more positive note, however, Robb's commentary on the major paintings is thoughtful and fascinating. If this book remains in publication, better reproductions would certainly be helpful.
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