History of art Books
Taschen GmbH Miró
Book SynopsisWith a career spanning seven decades, Catalan-born Joan Miró (1893–1983) was a polymath giant of modern art, producing masterworks across painting, sculpture, art books, tapestry, and ceramics, and embracing ideologies as varied as Fauvism, Surrealism, Dada, Magic Realism, Cubism, and abstraction. Over the course of his prodigious output, Miró evolved constantly, seeking to eschew categorization and the approval of “bourgeois” art critics as much as he pursued his own dreamlike worlds. Emerging into the public spotlight in the early 1920s, he first experimented with Fauvism and Cubism before developing a distinctive style of symbols and pictograms, arranged in elusive visual narratives, with frequent reference to Catalan life. As his career progressed, Miró moved towards Surrealism, and, despite never fully identifying with the movement, emerged as one of its most celebrated practitioners with techniques including automated drawing, Lyrical Abstraction, and Color Field painting. In later years, he diversified his media further, working with ceramics, textiles, and even proposing sculptures made of gas. Through his vivid colors, dreamlike fantasies, and enigmatic symbols, this book brings together the numerous strands of Miró’s kaleidoscopic oeuvre to introduce his fascinating career, its interaction with major modernist movements, and how it made him into a modernist legend.
£14.25
Taschen GmbH Bruegel. The Complete Works
Book SynopsisThe life and times of Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c. 1526/30–1569) were marked by stark cultural conflict. He witnessed religious wars, the Duke of Alba’s brutal rule as governor of the Netherlands, and the palpable effects of the Inquisition. To this day, the Flemish artist remains shrouded in mystery. We know neither where nor exactly when he was born. But while early scholarship emphasized the vernacular character of his painting and graphic work, modern research has attached greater importance to its humanistic content. Starting out as a print designer for publisher Hieronymus Cock, Bruegel produced numerous print series that were distributed throughout Europe. These depicted vices and virtues alongside jolly peasant festivals and sweeping landscape panoramas. He would eventually increasingly turn to painting, working for the cultural elite of Antwerp and Brussels. This monograph is a testament to Bruegel’s evolution as an artist, one who bravely confronted the issues of his day all the while proposing new inventions and solutions. Rather than idealizing reality, he addressed the horrors of religious warfare and took a critical stand against the institution of the Church. To this end, he developed his own pictorial language of dissidence, lacing innocuous everyday scenes with subliminal statements in order to escape repercussions. This collection captures all the breadth and splendid detail of Bruegel’s oeuvre like never before, and gathers all 40 paintings, 65 drawings, and 89 engravings in pristine reproductions—each piece a unique witness to both the religious mores and the close-knit folk culture of Bruegel’s time.Trade Review“Packed with superlative reproductions.” * The Times *“One of the most imaginative, original and captivating artists in history.” * The Guardian *“Like Shakespeare, Bruegel can capture the theatre of life in scenes that are comic yet full of acute psychological portraits.” * The Guardian *
£57.00
The University of Chicago Press Vivian Maier
Book SynopsisThis first real biography reveals the deliberate artist behind the image of the secretive nanny and claims a space for Maier as one of the great photographers of our time.Trade Review"Patiently and lucidly detailed by Pamela Bannos in her nearly forensic biography--which unties many knots and brings order to what was previously a chaotic welter of information and misinformation."--Luc Sante "Bookforum " "This is an excellent book that reads like a mystery novel tracing Vivian Maier's life and work as a photographer through the photographs themselves. Bannos uses historical research and interviews as well as Maier's photographs to string together a story of her whereabouts, interests, and evolution as a photographer. Wonderful and engrossing."--Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, author of Starstruck: The Business of Celebrity "Authoritative. . . . Fascinating, thorough. . . . Up to now, Maier's story has been told mostly by Maloof and two other collectors who owned much of the prints, negatives, undeveloped film and personal effects she left behind without a will or instructions as to their disposal. Unlike those collectors, Bannos has no significant financial stake in the Maier myth. Also unlike them, she is a photographer herself and a woman, and thus more naturally able to put herself in Maier's shoes." --Dmitry Samarov "New City " "The Vivian Maier who emerges from the pages of this meticulously researched book is ultimately more mysterious and important a figure than the initial, and mostly inaccurate, accounts of her life and photography portrayed. The interweaving of Maier's story and photography's technical and cultural history contextualizes her achievements and shows a reality that is much more compelling than prior characterizations of Maier as a na�ve 'nanny-photographer.' Surprisingly, Bannos' unsentimental yet powerful examination reveals a woman who was solidly in charge of her own creativity." --Lynne Warren, editor of the Encyclopedia of Twentieth-Century Photography "Vivian Maier: A Photographer's Life and Afterlife strives to correct and complicate what is known about the life and work of Vivian Maier. The intertwined stories of Maier's unconventional life and the travails of those who have 'discovered' her work make for a fascinating read. Bannos clarifies misconceptions that have proliferated around Maier's story and offers an equally interesting look at the growth of the Maier phenomenon." --Elizabeth Fraterrigo, author of Playboy and the Making of the Good Life in Modern America "Stories--like snapshots--are shaped by people, and for particular purposes. There's always an angle. A new biography, Vivian Maier: A Photographer's Life and Afterlife, by Pamela Bannos, strives to rescue Maier all over again, this time from the men who promulgated the Maier myth and profited off her work. . . . Almost point by point, Bannos refutes how Maier has been marketed. . . . The achievement of Bannos's intelligent, irritable self-reflexive study is in its restraint. She unseats the ghost and restores to us the woman--but in her own words and images, and without psychologizing. It's a portrait as direct as any of Maier's, and what a distinct pleasure it is to meet her gaze again." --Parul Sehgal "New York Times "
£18.05
Abrams Worlds Beyond Time
Book SynopsisWorlds Beyond Time is the definitive visual history of the spaceships, alien landscapes, cryptozoology, and imagined industrial machinery of 1970s paperback sci-fi art and the artists who created these extraordinary images. In the 1970s, mass-produced, cheaply printed science-fiction novels were thriving. The paper was rough, the titles outrageous, and the cover art astounding. Over the course of the decade, a stable of talented painters, comic-book artists, and designers produced thousands of the most eye-catching book covers to ever grace bookstore shelves (or spinner racks). Curiously, the pieces commissioned for these covers often had very little to do with the contents of the books they were selling, but by leaning heavily on psychedelic imagery, far-out landscapes, and trippy surrealism, the art was able to satisfy the same space race–fueled appetite for the big ideas and brave new worlds that sci-fi writers were boldly pushing forward.Trade Review“[…] Rowe’s obvious love for the form animates the volume, and makes a powerful case for how this period continues to influence the genre’s aesthetic. Sci-fi fans of all stripes will be delighted.” * Publishers Weekly *
£24.00
Taschen GmbH Bruegel
Book SynopsisThe great Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c. 1526/31–1569) was an astoundingly inventive painter and draftsman, who made his art historical mark with beautiful, evocative landscapes as well as religious subjects, both notable for their vernacular language and attention to everyday, contemporary life. Immersing himself in rural or small-town communities, Bruegel is particularly notable for his depiction of peasant experience and folk culture, earning the artist nickname “Peasant Bruegel.” Whether hunters shivering in the snow or a boisterous country fair, Bruegel raised the farming, festivals, gatherings, and games of peasant culture to the status of high art. Bruegel’s imposing religious and moral subjects, meanwhile, such as The Triumph of Death and The Tower of Babel are as awestriking and influential today as they were in the 16th century, inspiring contemporary culture from The Lord of the Rings cinematic battle scenes to Don DeLillo’s novel Underworld. From the corn harvest to the conversion of Saul, from quaint wedding processions to Christ’s road to Calvary, this book brings together the rich range of Bruegel’s subjects to introduce his powerful compositions of both biblical and earthly tableaux.
£14.25
Carpet Bombing Culture Banksy You Are an Acceptable Level of Threat and
Book Synopsis
£26.96
Thames & Hudson Ltd Abstract Art
Book SynopsisAnna Moszynska pioneered the study of contemporary art at Sotheby's Institute during the late 1980s, and oversaw the development of the MA in Contemporary Art. In addition to writing books she has contributed to journals including Tate, Apollo, Arts Review, TLS and Art Monthly. Moszynska is an art critic for BBC Radio 3 and a member of the International Art Critics Association.Table of ContentsPreface • 1. Observing the World: Paths to Abstraction 1910–14 • 2. Looking Inwards: Investigations 1912–20 • 3. Social Ideals: Constructing the Future 1920–39 • 4. Abstractions in Europe: 1939–56 • 5. Focus on Expression: USA 1939–56 • 6. Objective Approaches: Abstract Art 1956–78 • 7. Crises in Abstraction: 1979–89 • 8. Extending the Canon: Diffusions of Identity and Place since the 1990s • 9. Abstraction in the Expanded Field
£13.49
Orion Publishing Co The Short Story of Art: A Pocket Guide to Key
Book SynopsisThe Short Story of Art is a new and innovative introduction to the subject of art. Simply constructed, the book explores 50 key works, from the wall paintings of Lascaux to contemporary installations, and then links these to sections on art movements, themes and techniques. The design of the book allows the student or art enthusiast to easily navigate their way around key periods, artists and styles. Accessible and concise, it simplifies and explains the most important and influential concepts in art, and shows how they are connected. The book explains how, why and when art changed, who introduced certain things, what they were, where they were produced, and whether they matter. It demystifies artistic jargon, giving readers a thorough understanding and broad enjoyment of art.
£14.24
Quarto Publishing PLC Artists at Home
Book SynopsisArtists at Home looks inside the homes of great artists and examines how their interiors reflected and inspired their artistic spirit. Trade Review"Resplendent and visually sumptuous." * Library Journal *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION JOSEPH MALLORD WILLIAM TURNER THOMAS COLE, ROSA BONHEUR, GUSTAVE MOREAU FREDERIC, LORD LEIGHTON PAUL CÉZANNE, WILLIAM MORRIS AUGUSTE RODIN, CLAUDE MONET JAMES ENSOR, PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR, FRANZ VON STUCK VANESSA BELL AND DUNCAN GRANT SUZANNE VALADON, PABLO PICASSO GIORGIO DE CHIRICO, GEORGIA O’KEEFFE OTTO DIX, JEAN COCTEAU, RENÉ MAGRITTE LEE MILLER AND ROLAND PENROSE SALVADOR DALÍ, BARBARA HEPWORTH MASANARI MURAI, FRIDA KAHLO, LUCIAN FREUD CÉSAR MANRIQUE, YINKA SHONIBARE INDEX ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
£24.00
Pro-Actif Communications Banksy Myths and Legends Volume 3: The Rise and
Book Synopsis
£7.47
Insight Editions Harry Potter: Hedwig Plush Journal
Book Synopsis
£21.60
HarperCollins Publishers Albert the Whale
Book SynopsisA NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEARAN OBSERVER BEST ART BOOK OF 2021SHORTLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE 2022This is a wonderful book. A lyrical journey into the natural and unnatural world' Patti SmithEverything Philip Hoare writes is bewitching' Olivia LaingAn illuminating exploration of the intersection between life, art and the sea from the award-winning author of Leviathan. Albrecht Dürer changed the way we saw nature through art. From his prints in 1498 of the plague ridden Apocalypse the first works mass produced by any artist to his hyper-real images of animals and plants, his art was a revelation: it showed us who we are but it also foresaw our future. It is a vision that remains startlingly powerful and seductive, even now.In Albert & the Whale, Philip Hoare sets out to discover why Dürer''s art endures. He encounters medieval alchemists and modernist poets, eccentric emperors and queer soul rebels, ambassadorial whales and enigmatic pop artists. He witnesses the miraculous birth of Dürer''s fantastical rhinoceros and his hermaphroditic hare, and he traces the fate of the star-crossed leviathan that the artist pursued. And as the author swims from Europe to America and beyond, these prophetic artists and downed angels provoke awkward questions. What is natural or unnatural? Is art a fatal contract? Or does it in fact have the power to save us?Trade Review Praise for Albert and the Whale ‘In Albert & the Whale he leads his readers off on a marvellously varied, vividly imaginative, seductively digressive adventure that traces the path of another colossus…this is a book to immerse you’ The Times, Book of the Week, Rachel Campell-Johnston ‘Magnificent new book … Hoare’s feeling for Dürer exceeds anything I have ever read … his greatest work yet’ Observer, Book of the Week, Laura Cumming ‘Marvellous, unaccountable book. This is a book like the stomach of a whale: capaciously ready to accommodate whatever disparate stuff comes its way' Literary Review ‘Philip Hoare, best know for Leviathan, his discursive and personal book about whales, has written a very Sebaldian new book. In it, he traverses his own patch and sniffs out an assortment of seemingly unrelated themes – Albrecht Durer, cetaceans, Thomas Mann and David Bowie, a deformation of the hand, the death of his mother – and proceeds to reveal the single degree of separation between them… Enlightening’ Michael Prodger, Sunday Times ‘Visionary: a tone poem put together from the lives of others, with detailed use of archives’ Financial Times ‘Mr Hoare’s portrait glitters with arresting details … His readings of Dürer’s work grow woozy with enthusiasm, dissolving into a kind of modernist poetry. Readers who prefer their art history to have both feet on the ground might be unmoored; others will be intoxicated’ Economist ‘It’s a summary-defying blend of art history, biography, nature writing and memoir … you can feel the delight he takes in being unbound by anything but his enthusiasms. He is alternately precise and concealing. His biographical sections are both elliptical and redolent of entire lives. His art criticism is often stirring’ New York Times
£10.44
Dorling Kindersley Ltd Art A Visual History
Book SynopsisArt is not what you see, but what you make others see. Edgar DegasCovering every era and over 650 artists, this comprehensive, illustrated guide offers an accessible yet expansive view of art history, featuring everything from iconic works and lesser-known gems to techniques and themes.Offering a comprehensive overview of Western artists, themes, paintings, techniques, and stories, Art: A Visual History is packed full of large, full-colour images of iconic works and lesser-known gems. Exploring every era, from 30,000BCE to the present, it includes features on the major schools and movements, as well as close-up critical appraisals of 22 masterpieces - from Botticelli''s Primavera to J. M. W. Turner''s The Fighting Temeraire. With detailed referencing, crisp reproductions and a fresh design, this beautiful book is a must-have for anyone with an interest in art history - from first-time gallery goers to knowledgeab
£21.25
University of Chicago Press Lives of the Imaginary Artists in Cold War California
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£38.00
Yale University Press Alchemy An Illustrated History of Elixirs
Book Synopsis
£23.75
Thames & Hudson Ltd Henry Moores Sheep Sketchbook
Book SynopsisIn 1972 Henry Moore's sculpture studios in the English countryside at Much Hadham were filled with preparations for his retrospective exhibition in Florence. A small room overlooked a field of sheep, which he began to draw, returning later in the year when they had been shorn.Trade Review'Brought to life with a humorous touch that somehow retains all the characteristic dark intensity of Henry Moore’s grander works, this gem of a sketchbook gives a rare close-up glimpse into the private inspirations of this enigmatic giant of 20th-century British art' - The Art Book
£11.69
Thames & Hudson Ltd Lee Krasner
Book SynopsisA monograph on the life and work of an outstanding abstract expressionist painter, now emerging as one of the most important women artists of the 20th century. Lee Krasner, a pioneer of Abstract Expressionism, was one of the few female artists to be given a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. This volume features a selection of the artist's most important paintings, collages and works on paper; essays on her life and art by Eleanor Nairne, Katy Siegel, John Yau and Suzanne Hudson; an interview with her biographer, Gail Levin; and a fully illustrated chronology.Trade Review'Exhilarating and thorough' - Literary Review'If you want a one-volume guide to Lee Krasner’s work, this is it' - Artbookreview'Exhilarating and thorough' - Literary Review'If you want a one-volume guide to Lee Krasner’s work, this is it' - ArtbookreviewTable of ContentsForeword Introduction by Eleanor Nairne Essay by Katy Siegel Essay by John Yau Essay by Suzanne Hudson Becoming Lee Life Drawing War Service Windows Little Images Stable Gallery Prophecy Night Journeys Primary Series Palingenesis Eleven Ways Interview – Lee Krasner with Gail Levin Illustrated Chronology
£21.25
Polity Press Introducing Museum Studies
Book Synopsis
£18.04
Anness Publishing Leonardo Da Vinci His Life and Works in 500
Book SynopsisAn expert and comprehensive new reference book on the life and works of influential artist, engineer, inventor and scientist Leonardo da Vnci
£15.29
Anness Publishing Velazquez Life Works in 500 Images
Book SynopsisAn in-depth study of the artist in context, with a gallery of 300 celebrated paintings.
£15.29
Anness Publishing Rubens His Life and Works in 500 Images An
Book SynopsisAn insightful biography and showcase of the celebrated and influential Baroque painter, sumptuously illustrated throughout.
£15.29
Rizzoli International Publications Many Ways of Seeing
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£36.00
Little, Brown Book Group On a Pedestal
Book SynopsisThis is a book for people who are interested in statues . . . and for people who aren''t. It explores those immortalised in marble and bronze - and what the rest of us think about them.As Roger Lytollis travels Britain he encounters a man at Liverpool''s Beatles statue convinced that Rod Stewart was in the Fab Four. In Edinburgh he walks into a row over Greyfriars Bobby''s nose and in Glasgow learns why the Duke of Wellington wears a traffic cone on his head. London brings a controversial nude statue and some hard truths about racism.Elsewhere, Roger sees people dancing with Eric Morecambe, finds a statue being the backdrop to a marriage proposal and, everywhere he goes, pigeons. Always pigeons . . .On a Pedestal is the first book to examine public statues around the nation. It looks at their emergence into our culture wars; the trend for portraying musicians, sports stars and comedians rather than monarchs, politicians and generals; the amazingTrade ReviewIt's about the good and the bad in people, and how the two intertwine; it's about who we love to celebrate, who want to punish, and who we want to see immortalized * Bath Magazine *
£17.00
Orion Publishing Co The Mirror and the Palette
Book Synopsis''Reveals an until-now hidden history of women''s self-portraiture. A gift that keeps on giving'' ALI SMITH, NEW STATESMAN, Books of the Year''A fascinating survey . . . Extraordinary'' DAILY MAIL''A bewitching, invigorating history'' OLIVIA LAING''Grips from the opening pages'' FINANCIAL TIMES''Important and brilliantly accessible'' VOGUEUntil the twentieth century, art history was, in the main, written by white men who tended to write about other white men. The idea that women in the West have always made art was rarely cited as a possibility. Yet they have - and, of course, continue to do so - often against tremendous odds, from laws and religion to the pressures of family and public disapproval. In THE MIRROR AND THE PALETTE, Jennifer Higgie introduces us to a cross-section of women artists who embody the fact that there is more than one way to understand our planet, more than oTrade ReviewA bewitching, invigorating history of women artists, the work they've made and the impossibly hard conditions in which it was produced. I can't think of a more satisfying riposte to anyone who asks why there have been no great women artists than to present them with this incandescent book -- OLIVIA LAINGBrilliant . . . reveals an until-now hidden history of women's self-portraiture. A gift that keeps on giving -- Ali Smith * NEW STATESMAN, Books of the Year *An uplifting and dazzling tour through history . . . a breakout book that shifts the spotlight onto the names that the art world has painted over. It's illuminating and essential reading * STYLIST *Sumptuous as well as fascinating -- Rachel Cooke * OBSERVER *Joyous . . . As Jennifer Higgie argues in this fine, haunting book, women have always made art, despite the discouragement lobbed in their path. The Mirror and the Palette is a redress, and vividly done - so much so that it rustles with the women's presence. You feel them standing behind you, expectant . . . A revelatory study -- Lucy Davies * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *Jennifer Higgie puts female artists centre stage with this fascinating biography looking at 500 years of self-portraits * THE i NEWSPAPER *A fascinating survey of women's self-portraits from the Renaissance to the 20th century . . . Extraordinary * DAILY MAIL *This engrossing book sheds new light on forgotten and disregarded female artists throughout history - and about time too . . . an absorbing story of women's art made in the European tradition -- Nancy Durrant * EVENING STANDARD *Higgie's book is a useful primer for those seeking to understand the obstacles and challenges faced by women artists over the centuries, as well as a timely assessment of what it means to look at women artists from history today. The Mirror and the Palette is an important and brilliantly accessible resource * VOGUE *Jennifer Higgie has created a masterpiece of her own within the pages of this rich, celebratory tome, which examines a cross-section of female artists spanning back across the past 500 years. Illuminating and captivating, this is a sumptuous and vital read for all lovers of art * WOMAN & HOME, best non-fiction books of 2021 *Higgie's book is a riposte to Renoir and centuries of unknowing and misjudging. Reading it is like travelling with an ever-excited companion who has lots to say . . . always compelling * LITERARY REVIEW *Higgie's chatty, intimate style grips from the opening pages -- Rachel Spence * FINANCIAL TIMES *[Higgie is] a master storyteller and brilliant translator of sensory experiences, she makes us care about her artists as people. An eye-opening intervention in the memory system of art history, The Mirror and the Palette is a major contribution, not least for the author's appealing, accessible writing * TLS *[An] illuminating new study on why women have been largely shut out of art history. Higgie's clever thesis looks at self-portraits as a springboard, giving fresh insights into brilliant artists such as Frida Kahlo, Loïs Mailou Jones, Amrita Sher-Gil, Suzanne Valadon, Gwen John, Artemisia Gentileschi and Paula Modersohn-Becker * THE ART NEWSPAPER *The Mirror and the Palette reminded me immediately of the best kind of Antonia Fraser reading experience: knowledgeable and richly researched but written with an intuitive, sympathetic eye for the most humanising details of personalities we know only as cultural icons, or not at all. Higgie's own quiet but persistent presence as a reader and a looker in these sinuous little biographies is also the courage of the researcher who really cares about her subject and can turn dry information into the kind of compulsive read that makes you wish you had your daily commute back -- NIAMH CAMPBELL, author of THIS HAPPYThe stories told by the lives of these women artists and the self-portraits they made comprise a history as compelling as it is shocking. The verve and clarity of Higgie's writing and the range of her research combine to position THE MIRROR AND THE PALETTE as a future classic of art history -- MICHAEL BRACEWELLSuperbly researched and elegantly written . . . a fascinating study in the defiant and determined creativity of women that was so lamentably actively erased by official art histories . . . gloriously readable and deeply intelligent -- GRISELDA POLLOCKIn this idiosyncratic and fascinating primer, Higgie skillfully restores marginalized women self-portraitists to their rightful place in the art pantheon. Full of edgy insights, this engrossing survey will delight art connoisseurs and general readers alike * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (Starred) *A lively and edifying read * BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE *In The Mirror and the Palette Jennifer Higgie celebrates 20 women artists who defied the odds and broke taboos to present themselves, and their female perspective on the times they lived in, to the world * CHRISTIES *
£10.44
Cornerstone I, Mona Lisa
Book SynopsisFROM THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR'A beautifully written, literary tour-de-force' John Ironmonger, author of Not Forgetting the Whale'A wonderfully written story of art, but also of obsession, friendship and love - I absolutely adored this novel' Jillian CantorThe Mona Lisa has hung in the Louvre for over two-hundred years. She has watched alone in silence as millions of people have admired her behind the glass.Now, she is finally ready to tell her own story.Over five centuries, from da Vinci's bustling Florentine studio to the opulent French court, Mona will be desired, stolen, heartbroken, curious, furious, and above all, she will be heard.'Solomons' prose is lyrical and her detail immense. No longer can I look at the Mona Lisa without hearing her. But more, now I know her' PRESS ASSOCIATIONTrade Review[A] lively, tender tale . . . In her zingy new novel [Solomons] gives the Mona Lisa . . . power, casting her as the fanciful narrator of her own story * The Times *Solomons' prose is lyrical and her detail immense. No longer can I look at the Mona Lisa without hearing her. But more, now I know her * Press Association *A wonderfully written story of art, but also of obsession, friendship and love - I absolutely adored this novel -- Jillian Cantor, author of The Lost Letter and In Another TimeOh, my god, I love this book! Extraordinarily inventive, a beautifully written, literary tour-de-force - a delicious historical and artistic feast -- John Ironmonger, author of Not Forgetting the WhaleA vividly beautiful tribute * Woman's Own Magazine *
£9.49
£12.59
Metropolitan Museum of Art Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn
Book SynopsisNew scholarship on a little-known decorative commission undertaken by Pablo Picasso offers insight into the artist’s painting process and the evolution of Cubism In 1910, Pablo Picasso began a series of 11 decorative paintings intended for the Brooklyn residence of American artist, collector, and critic Hamilton Easter Field. This publication is the first in-depth examination of this commission which, despite never being completed, offers new insights into a little-known chapter in Picasso’s art that coincided with a critical moment in the development of Cubism. Based on new research, including letters and archival material from both Picasso and Field, this book shows how the unrealized commission challenged Picasso to move beyond easel painting and adapt Cubist forms to an immersive aesthetic experience. Authors investigate the progression of Cubist ideas and show how Picasso used Easter Field’s proposal as a place of experimentation by both subverting and paying homage to decorative painting traditions. Published to coincide with Celebration Picasso, marking the fiftieth anniversary of the artist’s death, this compact volume provides a compelling look at what might have been, as well as a fascinating portrait of art and patronage in the early twentieth century. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press Exhibition Schedule:The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (September 12, 2023–January 14, 2024)
£19.00
Getty Trust Publications Finding Dora Maar - An Artist, an Address Book, a
Book SynopsisMerging biography, memoir, and cultural history, this compelling book, a bestseller in France, traces the life of Dora Maar (1907-1997) through a serendipitous encounter with the artist's address book In search of a replacement for his lost Hermes agenda, Brigitte Benkemoun's husband buys a vintage diary on eBay. When it arrives, she opens it and finds inside private notes dating back to 1951-twenty pages of phone numbers and addresses for Balthus, Brassai, Andre Breton, Jean Cocteau, Paul Eluard, Leonor Fini, Jacqueline Lamba, and other artistic luminaries of the European avant-garde. After realizing that the address book belonged to Dora Maar-Picasso's famous "Weeping Woman" and a brilliant artist in her own right-Benkemoun embarks on a two-year voyage of discovery to learn more about this provocative, passionate, and enigmatic woman, and the role that each of these figures played in her life. Longlisted for the prestigious literary award Prix Renaudot, Finding Dora Maar is a fascinating and breathtaking portrait of the artist. "Beautifully written and fascinating."-Paris Match "One of the happy surprises of the end of the literary season."-Livres Hebdo "A highly moving portrait of the artist."-Elle (France)Trade Review"With a novelist's eye for detail, Benkemoun takes readers on a journey full of surprises as she researches and reimagines the landscape of Dora Maar's life in Surrealism and its aftermath. Guided by the scant details in Maar's address book, which came into the author's hands by chance, she reweaves the mesh of avant-garde artistic life in mid-twentieth-century France, taking us along with her as this serendipitous tale unfolds. It's well worth the trip, an informative, enjoyable read." --Carolyn Burke, author of Lee Miller: A Life; Foursome: Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O'Keeffe, Paul Strand, Rebecca Salsbury; and other books "Part detective story, part social history, part excellent gossip, Finding Dora Maar uses the miracle of a found address book to reconstruct the life of an important woman artist who knew everyone." --Francine Prose, author of Peggy Guggenheim: The Shock of the Modern, and the New York Times bestselling Reading Like A Writer
£20.89
Getty Trust Publications Reckoning with Millet's Man with a Hoe,
Book SynopsisA monumentalizing portrayal of a peasant bowed over by brutal toil, "Man with a Hoe" (ca. 1860–62) by Jean-François Millet (1814–1875) is arguably the most art historically significant painting in the J. Paul Getty Museum’s collection of nineteenth-century European art. This volume situates the painting in the arc of Millet’s career and traces its fascinating and contentious reception, from its scandalous debut at the 1863 Paris Salon to the years following its acquisition by American collectors in the 1890s. The essays examine the painting’s tumultuous public life, beginning in France, where critics attacked it on aesthetic and political grounds as a radical realist provocation; through its transformative movement in the art market during the remaining years of the artist’s life and following his death; to its highly publicized arrival in California as a celebrated masterpiece. In the United States it was enlisted to serve philanthropic interests, became the subject of a popular poem, and once again became embroiled in controversy, in this case one that was strongly inflected by American racial politics. This is the first publication dedicated to the work since its acquisition by the Getty Museum in 1985Table of ContentsForeword - Timothy Potts Acknowledgments Introduction - Scott Allan “The Epic of Labor”: Millet’s Man with a Hoe at the 1863 Salon - Simon Kelly From Toxic Asset to Trophy Picture: The Fortunes of Man with a Hoe, 1863–1890 - Scott Allan Westward Hoe!: Evolution, Eugenics, and the Reception of Millet in the United States - John Ott References Cited Illustration Credits Index
£21.84
Reaktion Books The Suit: Form, Function and Style
Book SynopsisFor over 400 years the tailored suit has dominated wardrobes the world over. Its simple forms, inspired by royal, military, religious and professional clothing, have provided a functional and often elegant uniform for modern life. But whether bespoke or tailor-made, on the street or in the office, during times of celebration or of crisis, we typically take the suit for granted, ignoring its complex construction and many symbolic meanings.The Suit unpicks the story of this most familiar garment, from its emergence in western Europe at the end of the seventeenth century to today. Suit-wearing figures such as the Savile Row gentleman and the Wall Street businessman have long embodied ideas of tradition, masculinity, power and respectability, but the suit has also been used to disrupt concepts of gender and conformity. Adopted and subverted by women, artists, musicians and social revolutionaries through the decades - from dandies and Sapeurs to the Zoot Suit and Le Smoking - the suit is also a device for challenging the status quo. For all those interested in the history of menswear, this beautifully illustrated book offers new perspectives on this most mundane, and poetic, product of modern culture.Trade Review'In its long history the suit has been both a symbol of adherence to mainstream authority as well as a weapon of rebellion. In this book Christopher Breward masterfully traces the suit's influence in modern and contemporary cultures with thorough scholarship and vivid writing. The Suit is a magical tour of the corporeal terrain of the garment that continues to intrigue us as it reflects the ever-changing economic and cultural contexts in which it is found. A triumph of scholarship and a joy to read.' -- G. Bruce Boyer, author of True Style: The History and Principles of Classic Menswear, Rebel Style, and Gary Cooper: Enduring Style 'Spirited and well researched, The Suit: Form, Function and Style is a thoroughly informed examination of the ubiquitous garment that is a staple in every man's life. Combining both substance and style, it provides a journey into the evolution of the suit and its cultural influence through the ages. -- Ed Burstell, Managing Director, Liberty. 'Breward climbs into every armhole and measures every inside leg. He stops at nothing to decode the enigmas of men's tailoring.' --Simon Doonan, Creative Ambassador for Barneys New York and author of The Asylum: True Tales of Madness from a Life in Fashion
£21.25
Reaktion Books Paul Cezanne
Book SynopsisFew artists have exerted such an influence on modern art as Paul Cezanne. Picasso, Braque and Matisse all acknowledged a profound debt to his painting, and many historians regard him as the father of modernism. This new biography reexamines Cezanne's life and art, discussing the central events and people who shaped his work and placing his oeuvre in the context of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century art and culture.Jon Kear examines Cezanne's youth in Provence, a formative period which left a deep and abiding impression on the artist's painting, as well as exploring his turbulent time in Paris and the larger-than-life artistic persona he created for himself during these years. His initial style, characterized by violent and explicit subject-matter and a rugged manner of painting, gave rise to an enduring mythology of the artist. Paul Cezanne explores the personal and artistic relationships that influenced Cezanne: from his close friendship with Emile Zola to his artistic dialogue with Manet, collaboration with Camille Pissarro and association with the Impressionists. Above all, Paul Cezanne tells the story of his life as a part of the pivotal shift towards the twentieth century, illuminating how much his work and ideas helped to usher it in.
£15.26
Gemini Adult The Pocket Street Art
Book Synopsis
£7.59
Octopus Publishing Group A-Z Great Modern Artists
Book SynopsisA most striking, design-led reference book, A to Z Great Modern Artists features artist and graphic designer Andy Tuohy's portraits of 52 key modern artists, rendered in each artist's own characteristic style - including Aleksandr Rodchenko in his constructivist poster style, Andy Warhol as a classic repeat print, and Barbara Hepworth illustrated to resemble one of her distinctive bronze and rod sculptures. With expert text by art historian Christopher Masters, each artist's entry includes a summary of the essential things you need to know about the artist; their biographical details, why they're so significant, where you can find their works today, and a surprising fact about them plus reproductions of key works.Whether you're already an art expert, or looking for a helpful cheat to navigating around a gallery, you'll love this stunning and intelligent guide to global artists of the modern age.
£17.09
The Bodleian Library Twelfth Night
Book SynopsisA stunning facsimile of the 1932 edition of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night illustrated by Eric Ravilious.
£22.50
National Gallery Company Ltd 2025 National Gallery Artist in Residence Ming Wong
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£19.00
Unicorn Publishing Group Romany Mark Bruce
Book SynopsisIn 2007 Romany Mark Bruce, Irish-born lawyer and self-taught artist, was confronted by a stranger while walking his dog in Kemptown, Brighton. I want a word with you,' said the mysterious fellow, and walked off, without further explanation. Two days later, Romany received a follow-up email: would he consider mocking up a design for an AIDS Memorial statue, to be erected in the south-coast city? An open-call competition was underway:there were ten days left to enter. Having lost his dearest friend to the deadly virus, Romany by then predominantly a painter, though with ten years sculpting experience behind him wasted no time in making a decision, and making up a design. The rest is history, and his AIDS Memorial, dedicated to Paul Tay, is a poignant landmark much loved by Brighton residents. This monograph explores the life choices which have informed Romany's artistic pathway, and analyses the sculptural techniques he employs in his thriving painting practice. Romany is, in his own w
£24.00
Blue Crow Media Brutalist Buenos Aires Map / Mapa brutalista de
Book Synopsis
£9.00
König, Walther Hidden modernity. Fascination of the occult around 1900
£33.92
Taschen GmbH Vermeer
Book SynopsisThough numbering just 35 known works, the œuvre of Johannes Vermeer (1632–1675) is hailed as one of the most important and inspiring portfolios in art history. His paintings have prompted a New York Times best seller, a film starring Scarlett Johansson, and record visitor numbers at art institutions from Amsterdam to Washington. Vermeer’s subjects focus on daily domestic activities, from letter writing to music playing to preparations in the kitchen. The scenes astound with their meticulous detail, majestic planes of light, and with Vermeer’s extraordinary ability to draw out narrative intrigues. In such beloved paintings as Lady Standing at a Virginal, A Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid and, most famously, the enigmatic, wide-eyed, and enchanting Girl with a Pearl Earring, Vermeer evokes not only the effects of substance and texture, but also the many stories and secrets that reside beneath the surface. Featuring all Vermeer’s known works and succinct, accessible texts, this essential introduction explores Vermeer’s leading place in art history and his unique ability to transform oil paint into a living, breathing scene of human life.
£14.25
Taschen GmbH Abstract Art
Book SynopsisAbstraction shook Western art to its core. In the early part of the 20th century, it refuted the reign of clear, indisputable forms and confronted audiences instead with vivid visual poems devoid of conventional representational imagery and characterized by allegories of emotion and sensation. This radical artistic adventure established new artistic means, as much as narratives. Expression became characterized by shocking juxtapositions of color, light, and line. Artists abandoned the conventions of brush and easel and played with new materials and methods of artistic gesture: commercial paints and housepainter’s brushes, working on unstretched and unprimed canvases, moving the canvas to the floor, and applying paint with hands. This essential introduction spans the international breadth, conceptual depth, and seismic impact of abstract art with a thorough survey not only of the big names such as Picasso, Klee, Kline, Rothko, and Pollock, but also lesser-known figures who made equally significant contributions, including Antoni Tàpies, K. O. Götz, Ad Reinhardt, and Sophie Taeuber-Arp.
£14.25
Double 9 Books The Khasis
Book Synopsis
£12.59
£15.29
Blurring Books The Sm;)e Book
Book SynopsisCelebrate the smiley face’s 60 year impact on art, music, pop and counter culture with The Sm;)e Book. In the history of graphic design, there is no other symbol that has ever held such a duality—used simultaneously as both a positive mainstream driver and a counterculture subverter of that very mainstream. The Sm;)e Book showcases an unprecedented collection of some the world’s most potent visual communicators. With introductions from authors db Burkeman and Rich Browd, the book includes work from some of the most important visual communicators of our time such as: Alex Da Corte Alfie Steiner Alicia McCarthy Aurel Schmidt BANKSY Chapman Brothers Cody Hudson Curtis Kulig Destroy All Monsters Eric Elms Erik Foss Greg Bogin INVADER James Joyce Jeremy Deller KATSU Mark Flood Misaki Kawai Norman Cook Paul Insect + BÄST Richard Prince Rob Pruitt Ron English Sadie Benning Sayre Gomez SKULLPHONE Tyrrell Winston Wolfgang Tillmans Yung Jake 1UP Crew
£17.09
MIT Press Not Here Not Now
Book SynopsisWhat it means to design at a time when, for many people, the future seems to have become an impossibility.When reality fails us, what can design do? Question design?s relationship to reality, as Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby do, in this exhilarating, yet thoughtful journey to the edges of science, philosophy, and literature to find new ways of thinking about the possible?and about the meaning, function, and place of design in that speculative world of ?not here, not now.? A conceptual travelogue of sorts, Not Here, Not Now brings together words, images, and objects that capture, in design form, some of the ideas encountered along the way. Itself a design experiment, the book explores ways to bring these ideas into conversation with objects through imagined archives, libraries, glossaries, taxonomies, lists, tales, and essays.The design responses in Not Here, Not Now?to a stone raft, e.g., or a vegetable lamb, swatches of imaginary colors, a pocket universe in the home, objects undergoing space-time collapse?are, like the most compelling utopias, impossible by design, aiming instead to nourish the creative, intellectual, and imaginative ground from which new possibilities, still unknown, might begin to emerge.
£28.80
Orion Publishing Co Art Firsts
Book SynopsisThe story of art is not always the story of art-historical 'isms' and complex academic debate. The real history is often the story of some very simple firsts - the first time an artist painted themselves, the first time someone painted a smile, the first actual place to be depicted, the first feminist artwork, the first anti-war work. Art evolves and revolutionises itself through these simple - but ground-breaking - creative leaps. Art Firsts brings together 30 of these pioneering firsts to piece together an original approach to looking at and appreciating art, as well as understanding where it has come from and how it relates to you. Each first is approachable and engaging, while each work is simply and satisfyingly explained. Every work is also fully illustrated, and its significance is shown through images of the subsequent artists directly inspired by them. Art Firsts offers a refreshing and fascinating narrative for those curious about why so-callTrade ReviewThis is the first book by Nick Trend and it is a cracker... all in all, a highly recommended book * Daily Express *in his intriguing, revealing and sometimes provocative book, Nick Trend looks at 30 pictures that established new genres. . . It is a neat conceit that will have readers mentally fact-checking his 30 highlighted works as well as rising to the implicit challenge and finding first works for categories of their own * New Statesman *Recommended reading . . . Trend moves fluidly from famous moment (Picasso's distortion) to the lesser known (the first female self-portrait, by Catherine van Hermessen) * Royal Academy Magazine *
£15.29
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Understanding Modern Art
Book SynopsisAn updated edition of the pocket-sized guide to the 'isms' of modern art. This is a handy guide to the art 'isms' of the modern day. From Impressionism and the birth of modern art to street art and Internationalism of the 21st century, it gives you a practical introduction to all the significant 'isms' that have shaped modern art history. For each 'ism', there is a clear definition, an introduction to the topic, lists of key artists, key words, and leading works from the movement, as well as references to other 'isms' that you might be interested in. This new edition of the original bestselling title now includes four brand new chapters covering Archive Art, Neo-Formalism, Post-Internet Art and Virtual Reality. This book is a must for anyone with an interest in modern art - whether you are an occasional visitor to galleries, an art student or art connoisseur.Trade ReviewThis publication is well-suited for the art enthusiast and would make an ideal travel companion for gallery or museum visits. Its strenth lies in its ability to illustrate the connections between various movements. -- Amelia Nelson, Public Services Librarian, Spencer Art Reference Library * ARLIS North America *Table of ContentsIntroduction How to Use This Book The Birth of Modern Art Impressionism Neo-Impressionism Symbolism Synthetism Post-Impressionism Secessionism Early 20th Century Modernism Fauvism Expressionism Primitivism Cubism Futurism Orphism Rayonism Vorticism Suprematism Constructivism Dadaism Neo-Plasticism Bauhaus Precisionism School of Paris Neue Sachlichkeit Surrealism Social Realism Concrete Art Mid 20th Century Existentialism Tachism Abstract Expressionism Kitchen Sink Realism Kineticism Neo-Dadaism New Realism Pop Art Op Art Post-Painterly Abstraction Minimalism Conceptualism Performance Art Fluxus Process Art Arte Povera Land Art Video Art Late 20th Century Postmodernism Photorealism School of London Neo-Expressionism Neo-Pop New British Sculpture Sensationalism Installationism 21st Century Art Interventionism Street Art Internationalism Archive Art Neo-Formalism Post-Internet Art Virtual Reality Glossary of Artists Glossary of Useful Terms Chronology of Isms List of Museums to Visit Credits Index
£8.99
Kerber Christof Verlag Le Sel de Noir
Book Synopsis
£28.00
Insights Jurassic World Spiral Notebook
Book Synopsis
£15.11
