All the Beauty in the World: A Museum Guard’s Adventures in Life, Loss and Art
£15.20£19.00 (-20%)
**A Financial Times Best Book of 2023**
‘A work as luminous as the old masters’ paintings’ Daily Mail
A revelatory portrait of life in a great museum and the moving story of one guard’s quest to find solace and meaning in art
Millions of people climb the grand marble staircase into New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art every year. Patrick Bringley never thought he’d be one of them. But when his brother was diagnosed with fatal cancer he quit his journalism job, and sought peace in the most beautiful place he knew.
To his surprise, this temporary refuge becomes his home away from home for a decade. Bringley enters the museum as a ghost, silent and almost invisible, but soon finds his voice and place among the lively subculture of museum guards. As his bonds with colleagues and the art grow, he learns how fortunate he is to be walled off in this little world and how much it resembles the best aspects of the larger world to which he gradually, gratefully returns.
‘Wonderful’ Sunday Times
‘Consoling and beautiful’ Guardian
‘Marvellous’ Daily Telegraph
Read more
Additional information
| Publisher | Bodley Head, 1st edition (16 Mar. 2023) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Hardcover | 240 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1847926673 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1847926678 |
| Dimensions | 16.4 x 3 x 21.8 cm |
by A Z WRIGHT
A wonderful book that I galloped through. He reminded me that simply looking is the key to both learning about and enjoying art. I wish I could see the art in real life , but the links from his website are the next best thing. Totally recommended to anyone who in interested in art or memoirs.
by holly bird
Patrick Bringley wanted a job where he could stand still and think after the death of his brother. So he took a job at the Metropolitan Museum in New York as a room guard. He had a lot of time to study the art and he takes us on his own tours round the museum, interposed with his own personal journey. He recounts stories from the standpoint of a museum guard and introduces us, not only to his fellow workers, but to the different rooms and his own favourite artefacts.He writes gently and eloquently and knowledgeably and informatively. A beautiful meditation.
by Mrs. K. A. Wheatley
A fascinating delve into the world of a guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Bringley spent ten years of his life as a Met Museum guard after the death of his brother left him in a precarious mental state that saw him quit his job for something he could do where he could fade into the background and have time to process his grief. This is part memoir, part tour and all wonderful. Bringley has the knack of bringing some of the most revered art pieces in the world into a human and humane sphere.
by Calum Falconer
Delightful.
As a former gallery guard I identified with the material and the way you have a lot of time to think and contemplate the artworks. I would have liked a little more story telling about the brother and how his death shifted the author’s perspective.
by sugarbelle
Wow! What a fantastic book. One of the best books I’ve ever read, and I’ve been an avid reader from childhood. This was not just something to read, but an immersive experience. I really felt like I was there, walking through the galleries at the Met, drinking in all the amazing art works. I’m also an artist, but this really broadened my horizons and opened my eyes to art in a way I’d never thought of before. Now I have a deep longing to also be a Met guard, and a sadness knowing that will never be…. But I’m so grateful to the author for sharing his story and enriching my life with his thoughts on life and art. Amazing writer, amazing book!!
by Michael Wild
Hugely self indulgent and introspective but, with so much writing focused on superficialities, it is a relief to meet with a deeply personal view.
A similarly personal experience to Edmund De Waal’s ‘The Hare with Amber Eyes’.
by Kindle Customer
Interesting, moving, informative. Lovely little book. Read it! Keep it as a reference! Recommended on many different levels – intellectual and full of kindness.