Testimonials

Praise for Art History through Innovators: Sculpture

From an engineer:

Your AHI sculpture essays, as with your Forgotten Delights presentations, have expanded my range of enjoyment and helped me think more carefully about my reactions.

From a musician:

It is a joy to read – great font, great sizes. I like the format: you ask the reader questions. I read it and I’m like, “Hey wait a minute, somebody’s talking to me!” You totally nailed being “down to earth” and yet extremely perceptive.

From a philosopher:

That was a great analysis of this innovation in sculpture–thank you!  The way you compared and contrasted the detailed features was concise, clear, and illuminating.

From a sculptor:

This tour offers a clear and straightforward approach to understanding art. Love the theme of innovation in art! Exemplar images help make key concepts meaningful, and the leading questions are clear and compelling. Looking forward to the rest of the tour!

Praise for Outdoor Monuments of Manhattan: A Historical Guide

Sam Roberts in the New York Times, Sunday 1/28/07:

Her guidebook is a perfect walking-tour accompaniment to help New Yorkers and visitors find, identify and better appreciate statues famous and obscure … Let’s hope Ms. Durante follows up in the other four boroughs.

Sculpture Magazine, Jan.-Feb. 2007:

Anyone whose curiosity has ever been piqued by the peculiar mixture of historical statues that ornament the grounds of Central Park will find Outdoor Monuments of Manhattan: A Historical Guide by Dianne Durante a satisfying read. … a useful tool to those seeking concise yet wide-ranging information on Manhattan’s many historical public works.

Victoria Keller in Art Book, Feb. 2008:

The language of the book is friendly and chatty, as if the author were in front of you, conducting an on-site lecture. … [T]he purpose of the book is to encourage people to go and see the wealth of outdoor sculpture in Manhattan, and the book treats this purpose with the enthusiasm the subjects deserve.

Francis Morrone, The New York Sun, 4/20/07:

Well written, well researched, well thought-out, funny, and often refreshingly original, and will help any interested New Yorker know about the wondrous monuments that dot the city.

 

Praise for my work as a lecturer, writer,  researcher, & editor

Quent Cordair, President, Cordair, Inc.:

We recently hired Dr. Dianne Durante to write a series of short articles for our art gallery’s website. We couldn’t have been more pleased with the result. Each article was produced and delivered on time. The series received a very positive response from our clientele and prospective buyers. The articles were informative, entertaining, well researched and professionally composed. Proofing and factual errors were non-existent. Over the years that we’ve worked with Dr. Durante, she has proven to be an entirely reliable copywriter, always to be counted on to deliver product of exceptional quality and valuable content.

As the producer of the QCFA Arts Cruise in January of 2008, we had the pleasure of inviting Dr. Durante to provide six hours of Art History and Art Appreciation talks for our cruise attendees. Her presentations were informative, engaging and entertaining. She provided well- selected examples of historically important paintings and sculpture which were explored, compared, contrasted and positioned in their proper historical context. The presentation style was easy, warm and personal, with  the content provided in terms which were readily relatable and understandable to the engaged layperson. The response to Dr. Durante’s lectures, based on the feedback we received during and after the program, was enthusiastic and entirely positive. We would definitely consider inviting her to participate in future such events, as a preferred lecturer.

Ivan Schwartz, Founder / Director of StudioEIS:

Dianne Durante has been an extraordinary “find” for StudioEIS during the past three years.  A web-savvy and entrepreneurial spirit married to a whip smart writer/ researcher/ historian.  She’s one of the few people that I feel comfortable with when she says, “No, don’t say it like that, say it like this.”  She knows her business and her thinking is developmental. She can take an idea and run with it and her personable nature makes this a winning combination as far as I’m concerned. We do a lot of writing for Web and publication and Dianne has made a huge difference to the final product and has always been willing to work the kind of tight deadlines that give “work” a bad name. I think she’s great and her work is a reflection on her serious and focused spirit of inquiry.

Seyla Martayan, Martayan Lan Rare Books:

A thorough researcher, and handles with great ease printed sources as well as the Internet.  She is  an excellent writer, creative and versatile, who can handle a wide variety of challenging subjects.  She deals with deadlines very efficiently – always with a smile and a great attitude – and is a pleasure to work with.

Jean Moroney, Thinking Directions:

Dianne’s writing is clever and clear, her business manner is professional and friendly, and her work is reliable and thorough. She’s a great person to have working for you.

Karen Abbott, author of Sin in the Second City and American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare: The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee :

I’ve worked with several researchers, and Dianne Durante was by far the most reliable, professional, savvy, and efficient.