An Object of Beauty

The latest novel by actor / comedian Steve Martin is something very peculiar. I hadn't read any of his books before but I wanted to find out if, like so many actors turned author, he could actually deliver (as opposed to Ethan Hawke for example). An Object of Beauty is a without a doubt a very beautiful book, literally, if you get the hardback version at least, which is filled with lovely reproductions of the paintings that are mentioned in the story. The paperback version is pretty basic.

An Object of Beauty follow Lacy Yeager's career over the past 20 years as she takes the New York art scene by storm. There isn't a lot of plot or character development to tell you the truth, none actually but what makes this book interesting is Martin's depiction of the contemporary art world. It's fascinating to see how this world has evolved over the past two decades, how the economic crisis affected the art scene, how auction houses work, the value of beauty, the importance of modern American art,... if I'm boring you already than this book is not for you. If you're not interested in art, don't go there because that's all this novel has to offer.

Lacy Yeager seriously got on my nerves to be honest, because she's not particularly likable nor is she despicable, she's somewhere in that dangerous grey area where you just don't care. Instead of creating an actual human being, Martin has created a reflection of the zeitgeist which works well in this satire just try not to take anything seriously.

I expected more from Martin, a lot more. He is a good writer and was able to give a clear picture of something he truly cares about. As a non-fiction book, it would probably have been a lot better because the characters are flat and the story consists of Daniel Franks, a guy Lacy met at college who secretly loves her, telling us what happened to the object of his affection over the past years, so as a novel it doesn't really work. I am however intrigued by Martin. He's shown a lot of potential as an author and as an art connoisseur, it's just hard mixing both.