B. H. Friedman
Encyclopedia
Bernard Harper Friedman better known by his initials "B. H.", was an American author and art critic
who wrote biographies of Jackson Pollock
and Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
, a number of novels that combined his experiences in the worlds of art and business, as well as an autobiographical account of his use of psychedelic drug
s with Timothy Leary
.
Friedman was born on July 27, 1926, in Manhattan
, New York City
, the son of Leonard and Madeline Copland (Uris) Friedman. He enrolled at Cornell University
before enlisting in the United States Navy
during World War II
, serving from 1944 to 1946. He returned to Cornell after completing his military service and earned his undergraduate degree in literature in 1948. He married his second cousin, Abby Noselson, in 1948 while he was in college. Friedman went into the real estate business owned by his uncles Percy and Harold Uris
, working his way up to become a director of the Uris Buildings Corporation.
After publishing his first novel, Circles, in 1962, a story based on life in the art world in New York City and The Hamptons, he left the real estate business to focus on his writing. He wrote Jackson Pollock: Energy Made Visible, published in 1972, a book considered to be the first biography of the artist and called "a book that everyone interested in the social history of modern art will want to read" by reviewer Hilton Kramer
in The New York Times
. Frustrated by perceived snubs from the major book publishing firms, he joined other authors, such as Mark Jay Mirsky
and Ronald Sukenick
, to form the Fiction Collective in 1974, a not-for-profit publishing group intended to "make serious novels and story collections available in simultaneous hard and quality paper editions" and to "keep them in print permanently." Friedman's 1978 book Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney: A Biography provided an account of the life of the artist, art collector and patron of the arts. His 2006 autobiographical account Tripping recounts his experiences using psychedelic drugs together with Timothy Leary.
Friedman died in Manhattan at the age of 84 on January 4, 2011, due to pneumonia
. He was survived by a daughter, a son and two grandchildren. His wife Abby died in 2003. His younger brother, novelist Sanford Friedman
, was born in 1928 and died in 2010.
Art critic
An art critic is a person who specializes in evaluating art. Their written critiques, or reviews, are published in newspapers, magazines, books and on web sites...
who wrote biographies of Jackson Pollock
Jackson Pollock
Paul Jackson Pollock , known as Jackson Pollock, was an influential American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. During his lifetime, Pollock enjoyed considerable fame and notoriety. He was regarded as a mostly reclusive artist. He had a volatile personality, and...
and Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City...
, a number of novels that combined his experiences in the worlds of art and business, as well as an autobiographical account of his use of psychedelic drug
Psychedelic drug
A psychedelic substance is a psychoactive drug whose primary action is to alter cognition and perception. Psychedelics are part of a wider class of psychoactive drugs known as hallucinogens, a class that also includes related substances such as dissociatives and deliriants...
s with Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary
Timothy Francis Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for his advocacy of psychedelic drugs. During a time when drugs like LSD and psilocybin were legal, Leary conducted experiments at Harvard University under the Harvard Psilocybin Project, resulting in the Concord Prison...
.
Friedman was born on July 27, 1926, in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the son of Leonard and Madeline Copland (Uris) Friedman. He enrolled at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
before enlisting in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, serving from 1944 to 1946. He returned to Cornell after completing his military service and earned his undergraduate degree in literature in 1948. He married his second cousin, Abby Noselson, in 1948 while he was in college. Friedman went into the real estate business owned by his uncles Percy and Harold Uris
Harold Uris
Harold D. Uris was an American builder, real estate investor and philanthropist. After earning a civil engineering degree from Cornell in 1925, Harold joined his brother, Percy, who had a 1920 business degree from Columbia University, and their father, Harris, founder of an ornamental ironwork...
, working his way up to become a director of the Uris Buildings Corporation.
After publishing his first novel, Circles, in 1962, a story based on life in the art world in New York City and The Hamptons, he left the real estate business to focus on his writing. He wrote Jackson Pollock: Energy Made Visible, published in 1972, a book considered to be the first biography of the artist and called "a book that everyone interested in the social history of modern art will want to read" by reviewer Hilton Kramer
Hilton Kramer
Hilton Kramer is a U.S. art critic and cultural commentator.Kramer was educated at Syracuse University, Columbia University, Harvard University, Indiana University and the New School for Social Research. He worked as the editor of Arts Magazine, art critic for The Nation, and from 1965 to 1982,...
in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. Frustrated by perceived snubs from the major book publishing firms, he joined other authors, such as Mark Jay Mirsky
Mark Jay Mirsky
Mark Jay Mirsky is an American writer and professor of English at City College of New York.His first three novels present a humorous and scathing portrait of the Jewish community of and around Blue Hill Avenue in Dorchester...
and Ronald Sukenick
Ronald Sukenick
Ronald Sukenick was an American writer and literary theorist.-Life:Sukenick studied at Cornell University, and wrote his doctoral thesis on Wallace Stevens, at Brandeis University ....
, to form the Fiction Collective in 1974, a not-for-profit publishing group intended to "make serious novels and story collections available in simultaneous hard and quality paper editions" and to "keep them in print permanently." Friedman's 1978 book Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney: A Biography provided an account of the life of the artist, art collector and patron of the arts. His 2006 autobiographical account Tripping recounts his experiences using psychedelic drugs together with Timothy Leary.
Friedman died in Manhattan at the age of 84 on January 4, 2011, due to pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. He was survived by a daughter, a son and two grandchildren. His wife Abby died in 2003. His younger brother, novelist Sanford Friedman
Sanford Friedman
Sanford Friedman was an American novelist.Friedman's Totempole features an army love affair between its protagonist and a North Korean doctor war prisoner...
, was born in 1928 and died in 2010.