About the Author

Jeffrey K. Smith holds a chaired professorship at the University of Otago in New Zealand. He is also Associate Dean for University Research Performance at the University. Prior to Otago, he was Professor and Chair of the Educational Psychology Department at Rutgers University, where he had been a faculty member for 29 years. His AB is from Princeton University and his PhD is from the University of Chicago. From 1988 through 2005, he also founded and served as Head of the Office of Research and Evaluation at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He studies issues in the psychology of aesthetics, learning in cultural institutions, and educational assessment.

Reviews

Scoundrels, Cads, and Other Great Artists is a cold gin and tonic on a hot afternoon! Jeff Smith takes you on a roller coaster ride of the lows of the personal behavior of nine artists juxtaposed with the highs of the incredible art they created. Equal parts sardonic, insightful, witty, and touching, Scoundrels will leave you a better person from where you started.--Scott Barry Kaufman, author of Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization, and Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined
As a scholar of creativity who is passionate about art, I am often frustrated by mythologized portraits of creative artists my students encounter as they explore creativity. I was pleased to see there's not a boring, cardboard-cutout profile in this entire book! Jeff Smith tells the stories of these highly creative people in captivating prose that makes the stories come alive. More to the point, he also shares plentiful insights into the psychology of art and the creative process while entertaining us. I will never view art or artists the same way again!--Jonathan Plucker, Julian C. Stanley Professor of Talent Development, Johns Hopkins University
Scoundrels, Cads, and Other Great Artists is a joy to read, and I could even see it as a television show. Jeffrey Smith has brought these artists alive--sometimes across centuries--making their art sparkle while their personal lives astound. The trangressions described in Scoundrels speak directly to issues in arts and entertainment (and beyond) today. And, as a bonus, I've found a new heroine in the amazing Artemisia Gentileschi.--Kimberly Arcand, visualization scientist and author of How to Color the Universe