Patron of the Arts, by William Rotsler

(I know there could be some mistakes in this review. I’m trying to improve my English, thanks)

Cover art by Tom Adams

I did not know nothing about William Rotsler (1926-1997). His name did not even sound familiar to me in science fiction, despite Patron of the Arts was and Hugo and Nebula awards finalist. So I discovered him in this book. His biography can be a novel itself, because  he appreciated life and knew how to consume it intensely with a lot of friends, adventures or creating art: he was a novelist (including two Star Trek books), a comic book illustrator, a photographer, a sculptor, a porn movies director and above all he was a devotee of life, sex and loving.

You can read his bio in the Wikipedia, or in the IMDB, or better in this blog: http://www.williamcharlesrotsler.com/. But the best is the preface written by himself on this Kindle edition, where in a few pages he tells fervently his memories.

Cover of the Kindle edition. 

This novel is very unusual, a piece of art itself. It deals - of course- about (future) modern art… and about women. The main character of this novel is a very wealthy person, a future mogul and a playboy, but he is also -and maybe above all- an art collectionist and a mecenas. Because one of the countless meanings of art is understanding our universe, o maybe others universes, this novel is science fiction and it has its quota of sense of wonder. Well, I don’t want to tell you more, you can read the sinopsis if you want.

About love (there is art without love?) and about sex too, this is the point of view from a man. A man very respectful of women I must say, but as an experimental thought I wonder how would be this novel written by a woman and I think it would be equally respectful.

Patron of the Arts is a novel written fifty years ago, in 1972, and it has some temporal issues. In my opinion it is not a novel for all tastes, of course not. But I enjoyed it and better, the book changed something inside me, and this is what we demand of art, isn't it? 

So… you dare?