History of art Books

Book SynopsisWorld-renowned visionary artist John Harris'' unique concept paintings capture the Universe on a massive scale, featuring everything from epic landscapes and towering cities to out-of-this-world science fiction vistas. This collection focuses on his wide variety of futuristic art, as well as his striking covers for a variety of esteemed SF authors, including Arthur C Clarke, John Scalzi, Ben Bova, Hal Clement, Jack McDevitt, Frederik Pohl, Orson Scott Card''s Enders books and many more.

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Book SynopsisMaximiliaan Martens is a professor of art history at Ghent University. Till-Holger Borchert is a German art historian and writer specialising in 14th- and 15th-century art. He has been artistic director of the Municipal Museums in Bruges since 2014. Jan Dumolyn is a Belgian historian and professor at Ghent University.Trade Review'A truly magnificent celebration of the creativity and skill of the brilliant Flemish artist ' - Mature Times'Fat, scholarly, beautifully produced … with outstanding image reproduction' - Financial Times

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Book SynopsisAn entirely fresh perspective on the history of photography that uses timelines to trace the medium's development from its inception to the present.Trade Review'An intriguing and comprehensive timeline of the medium' - AestheticaTable of ContentsIntroduction • 1. Birth of Photography, to 1850 • 2. 1850–1900 • 3. 1900–1950 • 4. 1950–1975 • 5. 1976–2000 • 6. 2000 to the present

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Book SynopsisCollage by Women presents 50 international women artists working in the field of collage today through a rigorous selection of their works. Curated by the Spanish collage artist Rebeka Elizegi, the book gives space to voices from all backgrounds, origins, and artistic expressions, and shows the wide variety of perspectives that are shaping the panorama of collage today, bringing to light a parallel effervescence of female artistic initiatives around the world. From emerging names to more well-known and established ones, the artists featured here are pushing back the boundaries of art. Collage by Women wants to call attention to the experiences and creative processes of artists that should be on our radar through an impressive selection of manual and digital techniques, topics and aesthetic choices, accompanied by texts that provide indepth approaches to the inspiration, influences and work trajectory of each artist. Born from the belief that women’s voices are of the utmost relevance in all cultural and social fields, the book will surely contribute to a healthier, more comprehensive, more inclusive nderstanding of our reality.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Joan Mitchell... does justice to an artist... with grand ambitions and a formidable control of paint."—Matthew Holman, The Art Newspaper“One of the most stupendous art books in my collection”—Anna Murphy, The Times “The beauty of a lovingly curated monograph such as this is that when dozens of images are accrued in one place, the subtle shifts in execution and the development of an artist's visual language becomes clearer. Joan Mitchell emerges as a fascinating character and underappreciated 20th-century talent.”—Artists & Illustrators ‘Book of the Month’Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award Finalist, sponsored by the College Art Association

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Book SynopsisA valuable sourcebook for costume designers, dressmakers and those involved in historical reenactments, this book contains all the information you need to create authentic clothes from the Tudor period.

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Book SynopsisLong considered Gustav Klimt's most popular work, "The Kiss" was painted between 1907 and 1908. Now, the Austrian Symbolist's golden and glorious masterpiece can be taken everywhere you go with this pocket-sized notebook. Includes 64 blank pages.

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Book SynopsisFrom Maira Kalman, the author of the bestsellers The Principles of Uncertainty and The Elements of Style, comes this beautiful pictorial and narrative exploration of the significance of objects in our lives, drawn from her personal artifacts, recollections, and selections from the collection of the Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.With more than fifty original paintings and featuring bestselling author and illustrator Maira Kalman’s signature handwritten prose, My Favorite Things is a poignant and witty meditation on the importance of both quotidian and unusual objects in our culture and private worlds.Created in the same colorful, engaging, and insightful style as her previous works, which have won her fans around the world, My Favorite Things features more than fifty objects from both the Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and Kalman’s personal collections: the pocket watch Abraham Lincoln was carrying when he was shot, original editions of Winnie-the-Pooh and Alice in Wonderland, a handkerchief in memoriam of Queen Victoria, an Ingo Maurer lamp, Rietveld’s Z chair, a pair of Toscanini’s pants, and photographs Kalman has taken of people walking towards and away from her. A pictorial index provides photographs of the actual objects and a short description of them, enhancing the reading experience.As it speaks to the universal experience and importance of beloved objects in our lives—big and small, famous and private—this unique work is a fresh way of examining and understanding our society, history, culture, and ourselves.Trade Review"So friendly, so classic, so delightful ... Kalman has taken 'the little book' [The Elements of Style] and made it even more elegant and uplifting." -- Los Angeles Times "While The Elements of Style has never lacked fans or dutiful adherents, appreciation for this slim volume has taken a turn toward the whimsical and even surreal." -- New York Times "The pictures are playful and subtle, which suits the spirit of the beloved bestseller [The Elements of Style]." -- USA Today "My absolute favorite book of recent memory: an exquisite and delightful and peculiarly illustrated memoir about ... well, the search for the meaning of life. I will be giving this book [The Principles of Uncertainty] to everyone I love." -- Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love

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Book SynopsisEnter The Madman's Gallery - the perfect gift book for any art lover. Discover an eccentric exploration through the curious history of art, to find the strangest paintings, sculptures, drawings and other artistic oddities ever made. From the author of the bestseller The Madman’s Library (SundayTimes Literature Book of the Year 2020, Radio 4 Book of the Week) comes an extraordinary new illustrated collection. This unique exhibition gathers more than a hundred magnificent works, each chosen for their striking beauty, weirdness and captivating story behind their creation. Obscure and forgotten treasures sit alongside famous masterpieces with secret stories to tell. Here are Doom paintings, screaming sculptures, magical manuscripts, impossible architecture, dog-headed saints, angel musketeers and the first portrait of a cannibal. Stolen art, outsider art, ghost art, revenge art, and art Trade Review‘I love this book. Beautifully illustrated, it's a superb cabinet of art curiosities, featuring the true stories of muses and masterpieces, uncovering what artists have really been inspired by, across history and cultures. A coffee table book that you'll actually want to read.' -- Ruth Millington, author of Muse: Uncovering the Hidden Figures Behind Art History’s Masterpieces‘Welcome to this cabinet of artistic curiosities. Brooke-Hitching has done a marvellous service in highlighting the weird in art history. Too often, Surrealism aside, we fail to embrace the bizarre, feeling it is insufficiently "important" or "serious". Finally there is a book that beautifully embraces this subset of art history with lavish illustrations and thoughtful text about just this. Lay back, pour yourself a teacup full of string, and dive into this brain-tingling collection. The perfect gift for all lovers of the bizarre and the visually arresting.’ -- Dr Noah Charney, author of The Museum of Lost Art'The Madman’s Gallery reminds us that for the first 40,000 years of its existence art was a verb - something that does something. Protects you from demons and plagues, assists in childbirth, casting spells, summoning ghosts, standing over tombs, communing with ancestors, making the crops grow, safeguarding armies, and conjuring God.’ -- Jerry Saltz, Senior Art Critic New York Magazine'Don't miss the extraordinary new illustrated collection from Edward Brooke-Hitching. The Madman's Gallery draws on a depth of research and images to form a book that surprises at every turn.' * Artists & Illustrators *'Brooke-Hitching has the true eye and instinct for the unusual and unexpected that is possessed by only the most dedicated and assiduous connoisseur and collector. I hope this cabinet of artistic curiosities becomes a bestselling book. A handsome volume that deserves to sell like hot cakes.' -- Robert Cumming, author of 'Art: A Visual History'‘…a feast of artistic curiosities’ * The Telegraph *‘A gallery of the gory, the gruesome, the saucy, images familiar and strange.’ * Saga Magazine *‘Following on from books highlighting eccentric offerings from the fields of literature and cartography, Edward Brooke-Hitching sets off in search of similarly outré gems from visual art.’ * History Revealed *

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Book SynopsisBetween 1790 and 1910, Danish painters developed a national school of art that matched the artistic centres of France, Germany and Britain. This title illustrates over two hundred key works of art drawn from the leading Danish collections. It surveys Danish painting across the 19th century. It features all the icons of the Danish Golden Age.

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Book Synopsis* 'Great art has dreadful manners...' Simon Schama observes at the start of his epic exploration of the power, and whole point, of art. 'The hushed reverence of the gallery can fool you into believing masterpieces are polite things, visions that soothe, charm and beguile, but actually they are thugs. Merciless and wily, the greatest paintings grab you in a headlock, rough up your composure and then proceed in short order to re-arrange your sense of reality...' * With the same disarming force, Power of Art jolts us far from the comfort zone of the hushed art gallery, as Schama closes in on intense make-or-break turning points in the lives of eight great artists who, under extreme stress, created something unprecedented, altering the course of art for ever. * The embattled heroes - Caravaggio, Bernini, Rembrandt, David, Turner, Van Gogh, Picasso and Rothko - faced crisis with steadfast defiance. The masterpieces they created challenged convention, shattered complacency, shifted awareness and changed the way we look at the world. With powerfully vivid story-telling, Schama explores the dynamic personalities of the artists and the spirit of the times they lived through, capturing the flamboyant theatre of bourgeois life in Amsterdam, the passion and paranoia of Revolutionary Paris, and the carnage and pathos of civil-war Spain.* Most compelling of all, Power of Art traces the extraordinary evolution of eight world-class works of art. Created in a bolt of illumination, such works 'tell us something about how the world is, how it is to be inside our skins, that no more prosaic source of wisdom can deliver. And when they do that they answer, irrefutably and majestically, the nagging question of every reluctant art-conscript... "OK, OK, but what's art really for?"'Trade ReviewPacked with noisy enthusiasm, punchy arguments and verbal agility... An excessively gifted communicator, [Schama] knows how to sweep facts and argument into a powerful, fluent narrative * The Independent *Power of Art feels as if it has been written in one breathless burst of enthusiasm, in a prose style that crackles like electricity * Sydney Morning Herald *A stunning work, resounding with profound insights which rivet the attention... A beautifully conceived and presented book from the professor of art history at Columbia University, New York. There must be few others in the world who could equal it * Western Daily Press *Powerfully vivid story-telling... Schama is a powerful communicator, and it is a joy to witness him explore the extraordinary evolution of eight world-class works of art * Good Book Guide *Politics, religion, war, sex and love are the inspirations behind the paintings chosen, and each takes on a new life under Schama's gaze * First magazine *

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Book SynopsisInspired by the works of French Post-Impressionist and Fauvist artists, the Scottish Colourists (Samuel Peploe, J.D. Fergusson, Leslie Hunter and F.C.B. Cadell) introduced 1920s Britain to a whole new style of painting. While they did not regard themselves as a collective, they are known for their bold use of colour, vigorous brushwork and affinity for painting en plein air. Though each had a distinct style and focus, they were united by pioneering efforts to buck the prevailing artistic conventions of their time, creating works of art that burst with life and beauty. With over 80 images and a broad introduction, this is a fine addition to Flame Tree's ever-increasing series on painting and illustration, Masterpieces of Art.

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Book Synopsis Immerse yourself in the intrigue and elegance of the Victorian era with this treasure trove of ephemera—with 200+ stickers, 50+ activity and coloring pages, and calling cards with envelopes.Whether you’re a sticker lover, scrapbooker, crafter, colorer, or letter writer, you’re sure to find something unique in Antiquities Sticker, Color & Activity Book. The Victorian era of the 19th century was known for many things. It brought us the telephone and telegraph, photographs and electricity, Charles Darwin and Charles Dickens, postage stamps and the Industrial Revolution. But it also ushered in a period of imperialism, the dawn of the suffragist movement, and a greater leisure class. Named after Queen Victoria, elements of the Victorian era were seen across Europe—and “across the pond” in the United States.Along with the growing leisure class came a rise in activities such as novel reading, parlor games, and puzzles. Now

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Book SynopsisNorah Waugh''s book has, for many years, been the definitive work of reference for teachers and students of fashion design, for dress designers, for costume makers - and anyone who is seriously interested in the history and construction of women''s clothes.Each period in the history of costume has produced its own characteristic line and silhouette, and the book includes numerous patterns taken from actual dresses, many of them rare museum specimens, illustrated by line sketches of the garments themselves. There are detailed notes on the production of women''s dress with diagrams from and references to early technical books and journals.

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Book SynopsisIn 1881, a writer in the Saturday Review called tattooing an art without a history'. No-one', it went on, has made it the business of his life to study the development of tattooing.' Until now.Painted People is a beguiling and intimate look at an untold history of humanity.The earliest tattoos yet identified belonged to Ötzi, the iceman', whose mummy allows us a brief glimpse into the prehistory of the practice. We know that over the more than five thousand years since he was tattooed, countless cultures have performed this ancient practice, and people in every corner of the world have been tattooed. For the most part, these fascinating histories remain stubbornly untold, and the secrets of Siberian princesses, Chinese generals and Victorian socialites have been hidden on the skin, under layers of clothing and under layers of history. Now with access to a wealth of new and unreported material, this book will roll up its sleeves and reveal the artwork hidden beneath them.In Painted PeopTrade Review‘Intriguing and thoughtful’ Shahidaha Bari, Literary Review ‘Fascinating’ Stories & Ink

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Book SynopsisPUBLISHED TO ACCOMPANY THE ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME EXHIBITION AT THE RIJKSMUSEUM, AMSTERDAM, THIS IS THE FIRST MAJOR STUDY ON VERMEER'S LIFE AND WORK FOR MANY YEARS. ---------- 'Proust was once so excited to see a Vermeer show that he collapsed â I got chest pains merely leafing through the catalogue' Jonathan Jones, Guardian 'Invest in the fat catalogue, stuffed with scholarly discoveries and photographic closeups, and you will learn about everything from Vermeerâs optical mastery to his moral symbolism' Rachel Campbell-Johnston, The Times 'Excellent' Artists & Illustrators 'Getting a ticket for the once-in-a-lifetime Vermeer exhibition, above, at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam this year might frankly be a bit of a challenge, but you can at least console yourself with the exhibition catalogue, published by Thames & Hudson, which is a gorgeous thing. Nothing matches seeing a painting in the flesh, but this comes mightily close.' The Herald ---------- Vermeer's intensely quiet and enigTrade Review'Proust was once so excited to see a Vermeer show that he collapsed … I got chest pains merely leafing through the catalogue' - Jonathan Jones, Guardian'Invest in the fat catalogue, stuffed with scholarly discoveries and photographic closeups, and you will learn about everything from Vermeer’s optical mastery to his moral symbolism' - Rachel Campbell-Johnston, The Times'Excellent' - Artists & Illustrators'A gorgeous thing. Nothing matches seeing a painting in the flesh, but this comes mightily close' - Herald Scotland'Immerses the reader in the immensely rich pictorial world of the master painter from Delft .. extraordinary close-up detail' - Art Mag'A book to treasure' - The Prisma'Comprehensive... Vermeer scholars...give insight into his life and influences while analyzing the paintings and their compositions in great detail... A feast for the yes as well as the mind... Worthy of any art history collection' - Library JournalTable of ContentsForeword by Taco Dibbits, general director, Rijksmuseum Section I: Essays 1. Vermeer - Biography An introduction to Vermeer's life and work 2. Vermeer - His House Although little is known about Vermeer as a personality, an investigation into his direct environment reveals much more. Paying a visit to Oude Langendijk in Delft, this essay examines Vermeer's family members, household life and personal possessions. 3. Vermeer's Invented World Vermeer's paintings are almost exclusively interiors, imbued with a momentary stillness in time which nevertheless has been carefully constructed and orchestrated to direct the observer's gaze. This creation of intimacy is the key theme of the exhibition. Section II: The Paintings Includes every painting by Vermeer, grouped in 13 thematic sections, each written by a curatorial authority. Each theme includes 2–4 works: Delft – Coming Home Paintings: View of the Delft, The Little Street Inside – Still-life Figures, Safe World Paintings: A Maid Asleep, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, The Milkmaid Very Close – Introvert Paintings: Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, The Lacemaker Secluded Paintings: The Music Lesson, The Concert, The Love Letter Windows – The Outside World Inside Paintings: Officer and Laughing Girl, Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid, Woman with a Lute, Young Woman with a Water Pitcher Letters – The World Outside Inside Paintings: Mistress and Maid, A Lady Writing Fashionable Intruders Paintings: The Glass of Wine, The Girl with a Wine Glass, Girl Interrupted in her Music Attraction/Across the Border Paintings: Girl with a Red Hat, Girl with Flute, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Study of a Young Woman Playing Music for.../Waiting for the (music-)partner Paintings: A Lady Standing at a Virginal, A Lady Seated at a Virginal, The Guitar Player, A Young Woman Seated at the Virginals The Whole World Inside Paintings: The Geographer, The Astronomer World of thoughts/Inner Reflections of Vanity and Faith Paintings: Woman with a Pearl Necklace, Woman Holding a Balance, Allegory of Catholic Faith Early Ambitions/Try Outs Paintings: Saint Praxedis, Christ in the House of Martha and Mary, Diana and her Companions, The Procuress Late Ambition/Legate, Testimony Paintings: The Art of Painting

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Book SynopsisThe official art book for the animated movie The Amazing Maurice, based on the Carnegie Medal-winning Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett Maurice is a streetwise talking tomcat who comes up with a money-making scam by befriending a group of talking rats and finding a dumb-looking kid who plays a pipe. When Maurice and company reach the stricken town of Bad Blintz, they meet a bookworm called Malicia and their scheme soon goes down the drain. The Art of the Film is a coffee table hardback celebration of the creative process of bringing The Amazing Maurice to life, including exclusive concept designs, character sketches, storyboards and production art, alongside insight from the artists, filmmakers and directors.

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Book SynopsisThe first biography of pioneering female Pop Artist Pauline Boty.Trade Review“The Pop artist Pauline Boty was a mysterious beauty glimpsed in glossy British magazines, her work obscured by that beauty, her output cut short by her early death. Marc Kristal’s exceptional biography brings back to life one of the most compelling figures of sixties London. With exceptional research, intelligent empathy, a talent for contextualizing those times of change and a felicitous style, he brings the many tragedies of her story and the delicious inventions of her oeuvre into full and rewarding focus. One of the best books of its kind I have ever read.” -- Joan Juliet Buck (author)“How wonderful that one of those exciting and innovative women artists of the 60s should be recovered and celebrated in this way.” -- Julie Christie (actress)"All the years of [Marc’s] work…have made a book that captures the meaning of Pauline’s life and work as exactly as is possible." -- Caroline Coon (painter)"An astonishing, rich examination of a personality, a character completely thorough and balanced…The descriptions are vivid and faultless in tone and detail…Right in so many ways about [Boty’s] feminism and its ambiguities. A brilliant job." -- Richard Hollis (graphic designer)“I so enjoyed this… Manages to balance the artist, time period and personal life in a very engaging and original way.” -- Lynn Horsford (film producer) “The book brings Pauline back. I feel I know her now – her secrets, her excitements, her fears, the guys, the painting, the running away, the going forward. Marc Kristal is a magician, who remakes a time, and gives the people in it life again. I thought it was terrific.” -- Michael Lindsay-Hogg (director)“Moving, tenderly handled and illuminating… What has clearly been a labour of love.” -- Poppy Luard (production designer & art director)“I thoroughly enjoyed the book… Most of Pauline’s life and the development of Pop Art was new to me and I found it completely absorbing… The book is very nostalgic and brought the Cromwell Road scene back with a bang.” -- Margaret Matheson (film producer)“I am mightily impressed with [the] storytelling, the ease and forward-motion of [the] lively prose, and of course the tales of all three protagonists.” -- Gordon Rogoff (theatre director & critic)“In this absorbing biography, a vivid collage of voices, and a masterfully written narrative, combine to restore to prominence the life and work of an entirely remarkable woman.” -- Gay Talese (author)"Wonderfully evocative…This book brings Boty to life: brave, flirty and fizzing with promise." -- Laura Freeman, The Times of London“..a rich retelling of the short but intense career of this once-overlooked British Pop artist… an excellent portrait of a vital moment in culture. Kristal has devoted extensive research to the artist’s life and work, interviewing many contemporaries and sifting through copious archives. He has vividly reimaged the artistic milieu of the time, interspersing Boty’s biographical details with voices from the past, including the artist’s own writings.” -- Jonathan Bell, Wallpaper“A valuable and unusual addition to the literature on British Pop Art – and a necessary counterweight to the male domination of the movement.” -- Marco Livingstone (art historian)“Kristal’s book is a study of the fascinating, now distant ambiance of 1960s London, as well as of a unique figure from that time.” -- Martin Gayford, The Spectator * The Spectator *"A fascinating, informative, and illustrated biography... exceptionally well written and presented." * Midwest Book Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1 SUBURBAN GIRL 2 WIMBLEDON BARDOT 3 AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART: PART 1 ‘The Place’ 4 AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART: PART 2 ‘Technicolor’ 5 AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART: PART 3 ‘La Boty’ 6 AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART: PART 4 ‘Capital-P Pop’ 7 AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART: PART 5 ‘To think I’ve got someone like that for a daughter!’ 8 HELLO, CRUEL WORLD 9 THE ART OF ACTING 10 BREAKTHROUGH 11 BREAKOUT 12 ‘A VERY CONFIDENT MAN’ 13 PERSONALITY ON TRIAL 14 PAULINE’S CHOICE 15 JOURNEY’S END 16 GONE Epilogue: Nothing Left in the World Index Acknowledgements Picture credits

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Book SynopsisThis sweeping overview of Rembrandt's extraordinary achievement as a draughtsman fills a gap in the otherwise enormous literature on the artist. Beautifully illustrated, mostly in colour, the more than 150 drawings culled from a corpus of some 800 are discussed in detail. The drawings span Rembrandt's entire productive life as an artist, from early self-portraits in the 1620s to late drawings from the 1660s of the victim of an execution, a state coach, and historical and mythological images. The scope of the book allows readers to delve into the very broad range of Rembrandt's oeuvre of drawings.Trade Review'Excellent … fills a real gap in the literature' - Sunday Times'An eloquent introduction to Rembrandt's genius as a draughtsman … here is virtuosity and humanity together, on every page' - Financial Times'Slive's commentary is subtle, erudite and sympathetic' - Sunday Telegraph'A very readable account by a distinguished scholar' - The Art Newspaper'Beautiful … the definitive study' - The Wall Street Journal

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Book SynopsisInspired by timeless poems from around the world, Hassan Massoudy''s calligraphy takes us on a visual journey through love in its many forms. Through his signature broad strokes and vibrant colours, this master calligrapher brings to life the words and wisdom of some of our greatest poets, from Ibn Zaydoun and Rumi to Kahlil Gibran, John Keats and Paul Eluard. Beautifully designed and illustrated throughout, Calligraphies of Love is the perfect gift for lovers, poets and dreamers.

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Book SynopsisFor 40 years, the Cold War dominated the world stage. East and West Germany stood at the frontlines of the global confrontation, symbolized by the infamous Berlin Wall, which separated lovers, friends, families, coworkers, and compatriots. The Wende Museum in Los Angeles, California, is named after the period of change immediately following the wall's destruction. It was established in 2002 to study the visual and material culture of the former Eastern Bloc, and, with physical and psychic distance, to foster multiple perspectives on this multilayered history that continues to shape our world. This encyclopedic volume features around 2,000 items from its extraordinary collections. Based on our XL-sized volume, this edition includes a full spectrum of art, archives, and artifacts from socialist East Germany: official symbols and dissident expressions, the spectacular and the routine, the mass-produced and the handmade, the funny and the tragic. Accompanying these remnants of a now-vanished world are texts from scholars and specialists from across Europe, Canada, and the United States, with themes ranging from the secret police to sexuality, from monuments to mental-mapping. More than 800 pages, featuring around 2,000 objects. A smaller, more accessible version of our XL-sized volume, the most comprehensive overview of GDR visual and material culture to date. Several dozen images of everyday life and public events from the most famous GDR photographers. Special two-language edition featuring texts both in English and German. From November 18, 2017, visit the Wende Musem at its expanded campus in Culver City’s Armory Building, a site originally created in preparation for World War III but re-designed by Michael Boyd, Christian Kienapfel, and Benedikt Taschen to welcome its 100,000+ collection of artifacts.Trade Review“A comprehensive pictorial history.” * The New York Times *“…quite possibly the greatest such collection in the world.” * Steven Heller *“The best-kept collection of Cold War memorabilia.” * Vice *“It’s as mundane and kitsch a view of history as you could imagine, yet captures the daily reality of life behind the Iron Curtain in delightful and sometimes heart-breaking details.” * The Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisA trancelike feminist fable of magic, alchemy, and the battle of the sexes by Britain's foremost surrealist painterCalcination. Putrefaction. Exaltation. Trapped on an enchanted island ruled by her uncle, a young woman must pass through the stages of alchemical transformation to escape. He wants to conquer death by magic - and she may pay the price for his ambition. Lushly visual, rife with symbols and cries from the unconscious, Colquhoun's first novel is a surreal feminist fable, and a supreme artistic vision. Includes 'Hexentanz', a lost chapter from the original manuscript.

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Book SynopsisIn today''s art world many strange, even shocking, things qualify as art. In this Very Short Introduction Cynthia Freeland explains why innovation and controversy are valued in the arts, weaving together philosophy and art theory with many fascinating examples. She discusses blood, beauty, culture, money, museums, sex, and politics, clarifying contemporary and historical accounts of the nature, function, and interpretation of the arts. Freeland also propels us into the future by surveying cutting-edge web sites, alongside the latest research on the brain''s role in perceiving art. This clear, provocative book engages with the big debates surrounding our responses to art and is an invaluable introduction to anyone interested in thinking about art. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade ReviewMouthwatering design-compact, colorful, sturdy. Can travel in one's pocket. * Walks of Art, Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju *Admirable for its compactness, reader-friendliness, this 'very short introduction' is nevertheless notable for its wide-ranging discussion of matters germane to the field of contemporary art. Should be a treat for the art-lovers amongst the academics. * U.S.I. Journal *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations ; 1. Blood and Beauty ; 2. Paradigms and Purposes ; 3. Cultural Crossings ; 4. Money, Markets, Museums ; 5. Gender, Genius, and Guerrilla Girls ; 6. Cognition, Creation, Comprehension ; 7. Digitizing and Disseminating ; Conclusion ; References ; Further Reading ; Index

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Book SynopsisFrames often catch the eye and arouse the curiosity of visitors to galleries and museums, yet labels and catalogues rarely comment on them. Nicholas Penny conveys his interest in the history of frames, the design and techniques of frame-making, what frames do for paintings, and the part they play in the decoration and often the architecture of an interior. The emphasis is on the changing function and varied purpose of frames as well as the different styles of ornament, materials, finishes, and techniques used. This Closer Look guide is illustrated by frames from the National Gallery's magnificent collection.Published by National Gallery Company/Distributed by Yale University Press

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Book SynopsisA beautiful volume on the greatest Impressionist painters and the world that inspired them.

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Book SynopsisRiffling through the wardrobes of years gone by, costume historian Lucy Adlington reveals the rich stories underlying the clothes we wear in this stylish tour of the most important developments in the history of fashion, from ancient times to the present day. Starting with underwear – did you know Elizabeth I owned just one pair of drawers, worn only after her death? – she moves garment by garment through Western attire, exploring both the items we still wear every day and those that have gone the way of the dodo (sugared petticoats, farthingales and spatterdashers to name but a few).Beautifully illustrated throughout, and crammed with fascinating and eminently quotable facts, Stitches in Time shows how the way we dress is inextricably bound up with considerations of aesthetics, sex, gender, class and lifestyle – and offers us the chance to truly appreciate the extraordinary qualities of these, our most ordinary possessions.Trade ReviewAnyone with a closet full of vintage clothes will find Stitches in Time a fascinating primer to the art of getting dressed. * Mail on Sunday *Lucy Adlington has done something very impressive in making this a lively, vibrant and constantly interesting history – with each chapter focusing on a different area of clothing, and the vastly different history that accompanies each item. Some of the stories here are utterly fascinating, some rather upsetting, and some surprisingly moving – not what you would expect from a history of clothes ... You'll come away far more knowledgeable, and have a different viewpoint next time you open the wardrobe. * Bookbag *An enjoyable and easily accessible read to anyone who has an interest in the history of clothing, or history in general. * Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine *The commentary is cogent and wise... detailed and absorbing * TLS *Fascinating * S Magazine, Sunday Express *

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Book SynopsisFrom source to sea, artist Kurt Jackson's fascination with the rivers of the British Isles and beyond has endured throughout his life. This book explores, for the first time, Jackson's visual and written responses to the rivers that he has followed, from the continent of Africa to his home county of Cornwall. The diversity of the waterways that Jackson has come to know through his travels is echoed in his images, which capture habitats rich in flora and fauna. We can also discern the changing face of our rivers - choked by pollution and straining to survive the abuses inflicted since industrialisation restricted the natural flow of the network of blue lines that trickle, meander and run through our lands. Celebrating those networks common to us all, this important publication reminds us of the splendours of our rivers - powerful and fragile in equal measure.

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Book SynopsisBrimming with lively animals both real and fantastic, the bestiary was one of the great illuminated manuscript traditions of the Middle Ages. Encompassing imaginary creatures, such as the unicorn, siren and griffin; exotic beasts, including the tiger, elephant and ape; as well as animals native to Europe, like the beaver, dog and hedgehog, the bestiary is a vibrant testimony to the medieval understanding of animals and their role in the world. So iconic were the stories and images of the bestiary that its beasts essentially escaped from the pages, appearing in a wide variety of manuscripts and other objects, including tapestries, ivories, metalwork and sculpture. With over 270 colour illustrations and contributions by twenty-five leading medieval scholars, this gorgeous volume explores the bestiary and its widespread influence on medieval art and culture as well as on modern and contemporary artists like Pablo Picasso and Damien Hirst.

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Book SynopsisNaples is always a shock, flaunting beauty and squalor like nowhere else. It is the only city in Europe whose ancient past still lives in its irrepressible people. In 1503, Naples was the Mediterranean capital of Spain''s world empire and the base for the Christian struggle with Islam. It was a European metropolis matched only by Paris and Istanbul, an extraordinary concentration of military power, lavish consumption, poverty and desperation. It was to Naples in 1606 that Michelangelo Merisi fled after a fatal street fight, and there released a great age in European art - until everything erupted in a revolt by the dispossessed, and the people of an occupied city brought Europe into the modern world.Ranging across nearly three thousand years of Neapolitan life and art, from the first Greek landings in Italy to the author''s own, less auspicious, arrival thirty-something years ago, Street Fight in Naples brings vividly to life the tumultuous and, at times, tragic history of Naples.Trade ReviewRemarkable ... [an] atmospheric and erudite portrait of a fascinating city * Sunday Times *Finely crafted ... offers is a vivid sense of the infinite layers in a city older than Rome that was once the biggest in Western Europe * The Economist *Never fails to take one's breath away * Financial Times *Robb joyfully flouts the staid chronology of the conventional historian ... I have rarely read a more vivid account of the city's often menacing claims on a visitor * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisPublished in the National Gallery's Bicentenary year, this is the story of how one of the world's finest collections of paintings was formed by (and for) the people of Britain For two hundred years the National Gallery has been at the heart of the nation's life. Established in 1824 and situated in the centre of London with a commitment to free admission, it was conceived as a gallery to be enjoyed by all, while also serving as a place of refuge in times of war and crisis. The National Gallery: A History tells the story of an institution that holds education, social cohesion, and national heritage at its core, and whose outstanding collection has shaped the art historical canon over two centuries. Special focus on fifteen highlight paintings affords an opportunity to explore changes in taste over the decades, as well as the reactions of visitors to the Gallery's great works of art.

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Book SynopsisSure to be hailed alongside H is for Hawk and The Hare with Amber Eyes, an exceptional work that is at once an astonishing journey across countries and continents, an immersive examination of a great artist's work, and a moving and intimate memoir.At the age of 42, his father not long dead and his young sons growing fast, Toby Ferris set off on a seemingly quixotic mission to track down each of the 42 surviving paintings by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, who, at the age of 42, had been approaching the end of his own short life.Over the next five years Ferris would travel to 22 galleries in 19 cities in 12 countries across 2 continents: Budapest to San Diego, Detroit to Naples, Berlin to Madrid, ticking off his Bruegels as he went.The results of his journeying are a revelation: Bruegel's panels, their landscapes teeming with robust life, become a lens through which Ferris takes stock of the world, informing everything from mortality, fatherhood, and contemporary life, to the bombing of RotteTrade Review‘I was reminded a little of Sebald, a little of Teju Cole, a little of Geoff Dyer – but mostly I knew I had met a book that kept its own rules and knew its own voice … Oddly beautiful and beautifully odd, it will draw many readers into its strange world, and the short lives that it contains’ Robert Macfarlane ‘A quixotic global quest to see all of the master’s 45 paintings’ Sunday Times ‘…an intricately plotted book that is by turns stimulating and moving…the real strength of this book lies in Ferris’s infectious enthusiasm for Bruegel, and every arcane offshoot loops back to the artist’s work. He is brilliant on the detail, on the slight variations that denote the master from the copyists, on the realities of peasant life, on the marginal figures; and Bruegel of all painters is the most rewarding subject for this sort of scrutiny’ Spectator ‘…an uncategorisable book that mingles paintings and pensées, history and life lessons, travel and memoir. The pictures, every one of them enigmatic, stimulate innumerable musings and thoughts, some random, some focussed… This book mimics the way the mind works when confronted with compelling but complicated paintings’ Literary Review ‘The advent of Toby Ferris’s 42nd birthday sparked him off on a quest to visit each one of the 42 surviving paintings by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The project had little to do with either Bruegel or painting, and everything to do with Ferris’s own listlessness, exacerbated by the recent death of his father. So packed with life are those 16th-century images that Ferris mined them for insights into the human condition: “birth to death in 42 panels”, as the subtitle has it, but with less weighty digressions, too, on everything from children’s games to mastodons’ New Statesman

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Scholarly yet sumptuous”—Crafts Magazine“[A]n intriguing and fascinating narrative through centuries of trade, artistry, politics and culture drawn from the threads of this classic cloth”—Embroidery magazine“Cloth That Changed the World offers a beautiful catalogue of the Royal Ontario Museum’s exceptional collection alongside diverse, authoritative texts.”—Avalon Fotheringham, Journal of the Oriental Rug and Textile Society of Great BritainShortlisted for the R. L. Shep Award, sponsored by The Textile Society of America

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Book SynopsisThe Times Art Book of the Year 2021FINALIST FOR THE PLUTARCH AWARD 2022Must surely be the definitive life of Francis Bacon A biography that no Bacon fan or indeed foe can afford to overlook Mesmerising' THE TIMESA magnificent triumph I was captivated by every line' OBSERVERA decade in the making, based upon hundreds of interviews and extensive new material, Pulitzer Prize winners Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan have written a startlingly original portrait rich, complex, and subtle of a commanding modern figure.Bacon concealed many important aspects of his life. He described himself as an asthmatic child in Ireland with foxhunting parents and a tyrannical father, but he was also rescued by a series of formidable women women who in this biography emerge in their own right. He was never just a dissolute young man but was also a passionate reader, largely self-taught. Early on, influenced by Eileen Gray, he became a hard-working and ambitious designer, a brief career explored here inTrade Review Picked as a book to look out for in 2021 by THE GUARDIAN, THE TIMES, THE SUNDAY TIMES, THE FINANCIAL TIMES AND THE OBSERVER The Times’ Art Book of the Year 2021 A WATERSTONES BEST BIOGRAPHY OF 2021 SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2021 APOLLO BOOK OF THE YEAR FINALIST FOR THE PLUTARCH AWARD 2022 ‘A spectacularly good biography which I adored’Max Porter, R4 Front Row ‘Meticulously researched and compelling’Guardian ‘Must surely be the definitive life of Francis Bacon … A biography that no Bacon fan – or indeed foe – can afford to overlook … Presents a mesmerising portrait of a performer commanding the stage of the 20th century’The Times ‘A captivating triumph … [A] magnificent new life of the artist … It rings as clearly as a bell … It’s fascinating (and startling)’Rachel Cooke, Observer ‘The definitive biography … an incomparable resource for art historians, dealers, curators and collectors’Financial Times ‘There are not many biographical masterpieces, but … Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan have producedone … it is an utterly thrilling read’Irish Times, John Banville ‘A weighty, thorough and compelling biography of the artist that records nine decades of intense moments … This authorised life brings the carousing, the paintings and the public and private lives together to form a convincing and often touching whole … Resonant’Sunday Times ‘Compelling … From his early failures to the untimely death of two of his lovers, the life of the Dublin-born artist is laid bare in this absorbing read … Stylish and well-researched biography … A cracking read from start to finish’Irish Independent ‘Authoritative and fascinating … full of human interest and fascinating detail … [The] seamlessly written double act is a magnificent, monumental achievement’Sunday Independent

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Book SynopsisThe perfect gift for fans of classic novels, crafting and puns.There is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my glue gun.'This crafting celebration of literary classics will transport you and your scissors far from your kitchen table: allow your Mod Podge to smooth your way into the Gilded Age with The Decoupage of Innocence', or your craft knife to help you conceal an illicit eBook with Lady Chatterley's Kindle Cover'. Or simply create the perfect picnic accessory, to be enjoyed alongside some ginger beer with Five Go to Smuggler's Cake Topper'.From a shelf made of books to paper flowers, Christmas wreaths to table decorations,A Loom of One's Ownis a pun-filled celebration of crafting and writing that will appeal to book lovers or anyone who owns a glue gun.

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Book SynopsisAn epic new history of Ancient China told through the prism of a dozen extraordinary tombsThe three millennia up to the establishment of the first imperial Qin dynasty in 221 BC cemented many of the distinctive elements of Chinese civilisation still in place today: an extraordinarily challenging geography and environment, formidable infrastructure, a society based on the strict hierarchy of the family, a shared written script of characters, a cuisine founded on rice and millet, a material culture of ceramics, bronze, silk and jade, and a unique concept of the universe, in which ancestors continue to exist alongside the living. Records of these early achievements, and their diverse and unexpected expressions, often lie not in written history, but in how people marked the end of their lives: their dwellings for the afterlife. Tombs, and the treasures within them, are almost the only artefacts to survive from Ancient China; their scale and sophistication rivals their equ

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Book SynopsisEvelyn Waugh''s first book: a portrait of one of the greatest artists of the nienteenth century, from one of the greatest writers of the twentieth''Biography, as books about the dead are capriciously catalogued, is still very much in the mode''This is a sparkling account of Dante Gabriel Rossetti''s tragic and mysterious life, telling the story behind some of the greatest poetry and painting of the nineteenth century. Shot through with charm and dry wit, and illuminated by his sense of kinship with the Pre-Raphaelite artist, Rossetti is at once a brilliant reevaluation of Rosetti''s work and legacy, as well as a blast of defiance against the art establishment of Waugh''s day.''The youthful high spirits of the writing make this a true cultural delight'' New Statesman''To be celebrated with fireworks, bunting and marching bands'' Country LifeTrade ReviewThe youthful high spirits of the writing makes this a true cultural delight * The New Statesman *Its re-issue is an event to be celebrated with fireworks, bunting and marching bands * Country Life *

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