Benjamin Moser discusses art, biography and his life between France and the Netherlands
In a candid interview, Benjamin Moser talks about his long-term residence in rural France, his work on Dutch Golden Age painters and his biographies of Clarice Lispector and Susan Sontag.
Benjamin Moser, 49, splits his time in a house surrounded by vineyards and cicadas near the Lascaux caves in France’s Périgord region. He reflects on how speaking four languages and his Venezuelan-accented Spanish inform his perspective. The interview explores the genesis of his study of Dutch Golden Age painters, a project that took two decades and was sparked by meeting his partner Arthur while working in New York.
Moser also details the years he spent researching and writing biographies of Clarice Lispector and Susan Sontag, noting the financial and emotional challenges involved. He argues that biography should convey emotional truth rather than mere facts, and he critiques the tendency to hide personal viewpoints in literary criticism. Throughout, he emphasizes the essential role of art in making life bearable and the importance of honesty in storytelling.
Why it matters
Moser’s reflections reveal how personal experience and cultural fluency shape literary biography and art criticism.
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