image of person or book cover 7163677948627568231.jpg
Cover image courtesy of publisher.
Issue Details: First known date: 2014... 2014 Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'An unflinching portrait of talent and addiction.

'In 2008 the artist Adam Cullen invited journalist Erik Jensen to stay in his spare room and write his biography.

'What followed were four years of intense honesty and a relationship that became increasingly claustrophobic. At one point Cullen shot Jensen, in part to see how committed he was to the book. At another, he threw Jensen from a speeding motorbike. The book contract Cullen used to convince Jensen to stay with him never existed.

'Acute Misfortune is a riveting account of the life and death of one of Australia's most celebrated artists, the man behind the Archibald Prize-winning portrait of David Wenham. Jensen follows Cullen through drug deals and periods of deep self-reflection, onwards into his court appearance for weapons possession and finally his death in 2012 at the age of forty-six. The story is by turns tender and horrifying: a spare tale of art, sex, drugs and childhood, told at close quarters and without judgement.' (Publication summary)

Adaptations

form y separately published work icon Acute Misfortune Erik Jensen , Tom Wright , ( dir. Tom Wright ) Australia : Plot Media Blackheath Film Arenamedia Pty Ltd , 2018 12300361 2018 single work film/TV

'When 19-year-old wunderkind journalist Erik Jensen (now editor of The Saturday Paper) was invited by bad-boy Australian painter Adam Cullen to write his biography, Jensen (Toby Wallace, Romper Stomper) jumped at the chance. Despite a turbulent relationship, the two formed a unique bond that lasted until Cullen’s death in 2012 aged just 46.'

Source: Melbourne International Film Festival, 2018.

Notes

  • Dedication: For Nan, who taught me to write.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Black Inc. , 2014 .
      image of person or book cover 7163677948627568231.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 195p.
      Note/s:
      • Published 12 September 2014
      ISBN: 9781863956932
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Black Inc. , 2019 .
      image of person or book cover 7673927350754433698.jpg
      Image courtesy of publisher's website.
      Extent: 208p.p.
      Edition info: Movie tie-in edition
      Note/s:
      • Published 29 April 2019.

      ISBN: 9781760640873, 9781922231802

Works about this Work

Portrait of a Flawed Artist Scoops Award Linda Morris , 2015 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 26 November 2015; (p. 31)
Mellow Cyanide : The Biographer As Truffle Hound Peter Rose , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , October no. 365 2014; (p. 27-29)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Review : Acute Misfortune Geordie Williamson , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Monthly , October no. 105 2014; (p. 78)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Unveiling the Talent of the Subject and His Author Outrageous Adam Cullen Well Captured Mandy Sayer , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 11-12 October 2014; (p. 31) The Canberra Times , 11 October 2014; (p. 21) The Age , 11 October 2014; (p. 27)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Declivities and Eminences Martin Edmond , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , October 2014;

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Vivid Details in Artist's Close-Up Ashleigh Wilson , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 27-28 September 2014; (p. 19)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Declivities and Eminences Martin Edmond , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , October 2014;

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Unveiling the Talent of the Subject and His Author Outrageous Adam Cullen Well Captured Mandy Sayer , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 11-12 October 2014; (p. 31) The Canberra Times , 11 October 2014; (p. 21) The Age , 11 October 2014; (p. 27)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Review : Acute Misfortune Geordie Williamson , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Monthly , October no. 105 2014; (p. 78)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Mellow Cyanide : The Biographer As Truffle Hound Peter Rose , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , October no. 365 2014; (p. 27-29)

— Review of Acute Misfortune : The Life and Death of Adam Cullen Erik Jensen , 2014 single work biography
Portrait of a Flawed Artist Scoops Award Linda Morris , 2015 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 26 November 2015; (p. 31)
Last amended 6 Jun 2019 12:55:12
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