311 pages
English language
Published July 10, 2011 by Phoenix.
Lacey Yeager is beautiful, captivating, and ambitious enough to take the New York art world by storm. She begins her career at Sotheby's, amidst the winks and nods of the fabulously wealthy. But hungry for more - and pursued by a whiff of scandal - Lacey migrates to edgy Downtown, watching Hirsts and Warhols multiply in value before her eyes. Charming men and women, old and young, rich and even richer, Lacey's ascendancy seems assured. But when the art world bubble looks set to burst, a secret from her past rears its head, threatening to undermine everything she has worked for.
As a middle-aged man, the character of Lacey appealed to me, as it obviously did to middle-aged Steve Martin. It is fun to be a fly on the wall as the rich and filthy rich buy and sell the most expensive paintings in the world in late 1990s NYC and Europe. But the endless shenanigans of this entirely self-involved group of snobs get rocked by world events and nothing is the same after that.
I am a huge fan of Steve Martin in all his iterations, but I've been especially impressed by his writing. An Object of Beauty didn't quite top Shopgirl for me, but I really enjoyed it. As someone who has studied Art History and interned at an auction house, I loved Steve Martin's insights in to the art world with its changing and idiosyncratic trends, as well as the personal stories of Lacey and Daniel. I had never really thought about how art trends are connected to (and determined by!) the political and financial climate in a practical way - in school, the connection between art movements and politics always seemed more theoretical or reactive to me. This book has drastically altered my viewpoint in this area, and was a smart and reflective read that was beautifully written.
After really enjoying Shopgirl and The Pleasure of My Company, I guess my expectations were just way too high for this. Bah.
