History of art Books

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisLegendary abstract expressionist painter Jackson Pollock (1912-56) is most famous for the frenetic, highly textured works created through his trademark "drip" technique in which he poured paint from its can directly onto the canvas. "Pollock Matters" explores, for the first time, the personal and artistic interrelationship between the notorious artist and noted Swiss-born photographer and graphic designer Herbert Matter.Published to coincide with an exhibition at Boston College's McMullen Museum of Art, "Pollock Matters" traces a close friendship that spanned almost two decades, beginning in 1936 when the men's future wives, painters Lee Krasner and Mercedes Carles, met after being sent to jail for protesting Works Progress Administration cutbacks. The friendship continued until Pollock's tragic death in an automobile accident in the summer of 1956.Featuring compelling visual and documentary evidence, including over 250 illustrations, this book demonstrates a critically important chain of influence between two creative individuals not addressed in previous studies of their respective careers. Pollock Matters reveals the crucial role that Herbert Matter's technical innovations played in helping to stimulate Pollock's radical artistic conception of "energy made visible." A previously unknown body of small drip paintings labeled by Matter as "Jackson experimentals" is presented here along with scientific analysis of the works. This volume will be essential reading for anyone seeking an enriched understanding of Jackson Pollock's life and work or the history of abstract painting.

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Book SynopsisSince the Renaissance, art in Belgium and the Netherlands has been known for its innovations in realistic representation and its fluency in symbolism. New market forces and artistic concerns fueled the development of landscape as an independent genre in Belgium in the sixteenth century, and landscape emerged as a major focus for nineteenth-century realist and symbolist artists. Nature's Mirror, and the exhibition it accompanies, traces these landmark developments with a rich array of seldom-seen works. Nature's Mirror presents its collection of prints and drawings in chronological order, exploring the evolving dialogue between subjective experience and the external world from the Renaissance through the First World War. Essays by American and Belgian specialists examine artists within the regional, political, and industrial contexts that strongly influenced them. Featuring more than one hundred works, many from the leading private collection of Belgian art in America, the Hearn Family Trust, Nature's Mirror explores the evolution of Belgian art in this fruitful period with remarkable lucidity and detail.

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Book SynopsisNo contemporary artist has succeeded so thoroughly in blending classical Chinese art and modern abstract art as Cao Jun, who has exhibited widely in China, as well as at the Louvre. Accompanying an exhibition at the McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, this volume presents the art of Cao Jun for the first time in the United States. Featuring the artist’s early wild animal paintings, to his landscapes, to recent explorations of space depicted abstractly, the book also showcases Cao Jun’s calligraphy and ceramics. Essays by Chinese and American scholars examine Cao Jun’s art, showing how it is deeply rooted in the experience of nature and how it portrays our place within nature. The essays demonstrate also the way in which Cao Jun’s art brings together classical Chinese painting with modern abstract forms akin to those of Western art. Yet Cao Jun’s art foregoes simply fusing these traditions; it employs the techniques of Chinese ink and brush painting and uses ink- and color-splashing to produce abstract forms.

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Book SynopsisEaglemania celebrates Boston College’s mascot, a monumental Japanese bronze eagle, following its recent conservation and return to view. Donated in the 1950s by the estate of diplomat and collector Larz Anderson (1866–1937) and his wife, Isabel (1876–1948), the eagle recently received in-depth restoration that has revealed its fine detail, carefully modeled form, and excellent material construction.Eaglemania brings the history of this stunning object to life. It features new research on topics that contextualize the Boston College eagle, assembling articles that discuss various aspects of its Edo- and Meiji-period origins. These include the Andersons’ acquisition of the eagle; the Boston College eagle seen in comparison with other exceptional Meiji eagle figures; the meanings of eagle depictions in the Edo and Meiji periods; and Japan’s rise as a destination for American collectors, particularly of sculpture, in the Meiji period. Through its focus on eagle imagery, this study illuminates cross-cultural dynamics resulting from American collectors’ fascination with traditional and contemporary Japanese arts and Japanese artists’ adaptation to this market.

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Book SynopsisDigitised facsimiles, with notes and transcription, of the earliest printed texts produced in Scotland. In 1508 the partnership of Andrew Myllar and Walter Chepman brought printing to Scotland. Their early publications brought into print works by two of medieval Scotland's most celebrated poets, Robert Henryson and William Dunbar, Walter Kennedy and Robert Henryson; they also contain less well-known but important poems and prose in Scots and in English by other writers. The prints feature a wide variety of genres: romance; fable; advice to princes; chivalrictreatise; lyric; dream vision; along with a classic example (by Dunbar and Walter Kennedy) of the Scots genre of `flyting', a stylised but scurrilous exchange of poetic insults. In celebration of the anniversary, the Scottish Text Society, in association with the National Library for Scotland, has published a DVD of prints produced by Chepman and Myllar in or close to 1508, containing digitised facsimiles of each of the twenty printed items. Eachfacsimile is accompanied by a headnote, explaining the print's literary significance and technical features, and a transcription. There is also an introduction by the general editor, SALLY MAPSTONE, which sets the Chepman and Myllar press within the context of early sixteenth-century Scotland and Scottish book history. The edition thus gives readers informative access to Scotland's earliest texts; easily navigable, it will become a vital teaching and research tool. CONTRIBUTORS: PRISCILLA BAWCUTT, A.S.G. EDWARDS, JANET HADLEY WILLIAMS, RALPH HANNA, BRIAN HILLYARD, LUUK HOUWEN, EMILY LYLE, SALLY MAPSTONE, JOANNA MARTIN, NICOLE MEIER, RHIANNON PURDIETrade ReviewSuperb. [...] A valuable research tool that should be welcomed by scholars and students of Middle Scots and of early-modern print culture. * SPECULUM *

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Book SynopsisThis book examines the extraordinary metamorphosis that has occurred in the presentation of the human face during the 20th-century. A series of essays charts the portraits which are Milestones to that change, while the discussion which follows - Changing Perceptions - endeavours to identify its nature, its causes, and to show the manner in which the artists reveal this transformation when painting their sitters.Trade Review"A well documented study of a number of key portraits of the century in which she weaves together the lives of representative artists and sitters into an effective narrative of twentieth-century portraiture as an art form." -- Charles Saumarez Smith, Director, National Portrait Gallery.

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Book SynopsisThis book examines the extraordinary metamorphosis that has occurred in the presentation of the human face during the 20th-century. A series of essays charts the portraits which are Milestones to that change, while the discussion which follows - Changing Perceptions - endeavours to identify its nature, its causes, and to show the manner in which the artists reveal this transformation when painting their sitters.Trade Review"As we approach the end of the twentieth-century, it becomes increasingly clear that portraiture has continued to hold a central place in artistic practice, in spite of the fact that, for much of the century, it has been regarded as marginal by the majority of writers and critics of the avant-garde. How this has happened has not been much studied and we very much lack good quality analysis of the changing status of portraiture and of the ways in which it has been regarded by artists. I therefore very much welcome Elizabeth Cayzer's well documented study of a number of key portraits of the century in which she weaves together the lives of representative artists and sitters into an effective narrative of twentieth-century portraiture as an art form." -- Charles Saumarez Smith, Director of the National Portrait Gallery.

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Book SynopsisPierre-Auguste Renoir's La Loge (The Theater Box), 1874, is one of the masterpieces of impressionism and a major highlight of The Courtauld Gallery's collection. Its depiction of an elegant couple on display in a loge epitomizes the Impressionists' interest in the spectacle of modern life. At the heart of the painting is the complex play of gazes enacted by these two figures. In turning away from the performance, Renoir focused instead upon theater as a social stage where status and relationships were on public display.

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Book SynopsisTo celebrate the recent opening of the Thomson Collection galleries at the transformed Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto--redesigned by Canadian architect Frank Gehry--five new books recording Ken Thomson's historic donation of 2,000 superb works of art have been published by Skylet in association with the AGO. All five jacketed paperbacks are available in a box set.

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Book SynopsisIn the 1470s, one of the most innovative artists working in Bruges illuminated a Book of Hours for Jean Carpentin, lord of Gravile and prominent citizen of Normandy. Known as the Master of the Dresden Prayer Book after one of his other masterpieces, this artist and members of his workshop enriched the pages of Carpentin’s manuscript with miniatures, historiated initials and boldly colored borders in which human figures, monsters and monkeys are framed by twisting branches of acanthus.

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Book SynopsisObelisks, originally associated with the sun cult, had their heyday between 2000 and 1500 BC, when they adorned the Nile’s banks and proclaimed the splendour of the pharaohs. Today, only twenty-seven Egyptian obelisks remain standing and they are scattered in various locations throughout the world. Rome, with thirteen, boasts more than anywhere else, including Egypt itself. These monolithic structures can be seen in every corner of the ‘Eternal City’ and still hold a fascination for all who gaze upon them. This book is intended as a general guide to the obelisks that have found their way to the four corners of the earth. It examines the interest shown in them by the Roman emperors; it discusses each obelisk in detail, and traces individual histories and anecdotes concerning their journeys from Egypt. The work is illustrated throughout and translations of some of the relevant historical texts are supplied.Trade Review... a very readable and accessible book that will be enjoyed by anyone who seeks something more than the basic comments one might find in a generic guidebook. * Archaeology Travel, www.archaeology-travel.com *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Standing Obelisks and their Present Locations Chronologies Introduction: The History of the Pharaonic Egypt 1. The Cult of the Sun Stone: The Origins of the Obelisk 2. Created from Stone: How Egyptian Obelisks were Made 3. Contact with the West: Greece and Rome 4. Roman Annexation of Egypt 5. Egyptian Influences in Rome 6. Augustus and the First Egyptian Obelisks to Reach Rome 7. Other Augustan Obelisks 8. Augustus' Successors: Tiberius and Caligula 9. Claudius and Nero: The Last of Augustus' Dynasty 10. The Flavian Emperors and the Obelisks of Domitian 11. The Emperor Hadrian: A Memorial to Grief 12. Constantine and the New Rome 13. From Rome to Constantinople 14. An Obelisk in France 15. Obelisks in Britain 16. From the Old World to the New: An Obelisk in New York 17. The Obelisk Builders and the Standing Obelisks of Egypt Conclusions Appendix: Translations of Two Obelisk Inscriptions Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisNational Jewish Book Awards 2019 Finalist for Visual Arts. Richly illustrated and meticulously documented, this is the first comprehensive survey of synagogue textiles to be available in English. Bracha Yaniv, a leading expert in the field of Jewish ceremonial textiles, records their evolution from ancient times to the present. The volume contains a systematic consideration of the mantle, the wrapper, the Torah scroll binder, and the Torah ark curtain and valance, and considers the cultural factors that inspired the evolution of these different items and their motifs. Fabrics, techniques, and modes of production are described in detail; the inscriptions marking the circumstances of donation are similarly subjected to close analysis. Fully annotated plates demonstrate the richness of the styles and traditions in use in different parts of the Jewish diaspora, drawing attention to regional customs. Throughout, emphasis is placed on presenting and explaining all relevant aspects of the Jewish cultural heritage. The concluding section contains transcriptions, translations, and annotations of some 180 inscriptions recording the circumstances in which items were donated, providing a valuable survey of customs of dedication. Together with the comprehensive bibliography, inventory lists, and other relevant documentation, this volume will be an invaluable reference work for the scholarly community, museum curators, and others interested in the Jewish cultural heritage.Trade Review‘Bracha Yaniv has assembled a thorough documentation of ceremonial synagogue textile from every possible perspective in this beautifully illustrated book… It showcases the depth of knowledge of a research of an author who has been studying and writing about these subjects for many years. The amply illustrated text reflects her long-time, exhaustive work with Jewish textiles. It will surely be of use to students of the subject as a reference as well as lovers of historic synagogue textiles.’ Annette B. Fromm, Women in Judaism‘Bracha Yaniv’s monograph on synagogal textiles, originally published in Hebrew in 2009, and translated here by Yohai Goell, is the first English-language publication to investigate this somewhat under-explored aspect of material culture. The book’s importance is self-evident, and it should become essential reading for students and scholars of Judaica, and religious textiles in general.’ Nikolaos Vryzidis, Textile HistoryTable of ContentsNote on Transliteration, Names, Dates, and Other Conventions Used in the Text Part I Ceremonial Synagogue Textiles 1. The Evolution of Synagogue Textiles in Ancient and Medieval TimesA. Wrapping and Storing the Torah ScrollThe Mapah (Wrapper)The Tik (Case)The Tevah (Chest)The Holy Ark (Heikhal, or Aron kodesh)B. The Evolution of the WrappingsThe WrapperThe BinderThe MantleC. The Parokhet (Curtain for the Ark)D. The Cover for the Reading Desk 2. Fabrics and TechniquesA. Luxury FabricsThe History of Silk Production and Trade in EuropeJews in International CommerceB. Embroidered ObjectsEmbroidery by Women DonorsProfessional EmbroideryC. PassementerieD. Professional Training, Organization, and ProductionTrainingOrganizationProductionE. Jewish Law and Tradition in Production 3. The Torah Wrapper and the Torah BinderA. The Wrapper in Italy and the Sephardi DiasporaB. The Binder: Terminology, Customs, and DesignLinen and Silk Binders Embroidered by Female DonorsBinders Made from Random Materials 4. The Torah MantleA. Terminology, Design, and IconographyB. Mantles in Italy and the Portuguese Congregations of Western EuropeItalyThe Portuguese Diaspora in the Netherlands and EnglandC. Mantles in the Sephardi DiasporaMoroccoAlgeriaAnatolia and the BalkansD. Ashkenazi Mantles across Europe 5. The Torah Ark Curtain and ValanceA. Parokhot Made from Luxurious Embroidered or Patterned FabricsB. Parokhot Displaying Jewish MotifsThe Gateway to Heaven MotifMotifs Inspired by the Ark of the CovenantThe Motif of the Temple and its Vessels on Parokhot and KaporotThe Giving of the Torah Motif on ParokhotOther Motifs and Later Developments in the Tradition Epilogue Part II Annotated Plates of Representative Textile Objects in the SynagogueA. ItalyB. The Portuguese Congregations in Western EuropeC. MoroccoD. AlgeriaE. Sephardi Synagogues in the Ottoman Empire and the BalkansF. Ashkenazi CommunitiesG. Central EuropeH. Eastern Europe Part III Dedication of Ceremonial Objects A. Inscriptions as a Reflection of Customs of DedicationThe Content of the DedicationThe Circumstances of the DedicationDedication of Ceremonial ObjectsB. Annotated Corpus of Dedicatory InscriptionsTorah Wrappers (Mapot)Torah Binders (Mapot; Italian colloquial term, fascia)Torah MantlesItaly and the NetherlandsNorth AfricaAnatolia and the BalkansCentral EuropeEastern EuropeTorah Ark Curtains (Parokhot) and Valances (Kaporot)ItalyAnatolia and the BalkansCentral Europe and the NetherlandsEastern Europe AppendicesA. Inventory ListsB. Documents Relating to TextilesC. Miscellaneous Inventories Glossary Bibliography List of Figures List of Museums, Libraries, and Collections Index of Places Index of People Index of Subjects

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Book SynopsisArs Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts. The study of Jewish art frequently raises questions relating to Jewish survival and Jewish identity. These issues have always been of relevance throughout the Jewish diaspora, and as is evident from the articles in this volume they continue to concern Jewish artists to this day. The opening article, 'Illuminations of Kol Nidrei in Two Ashkenazi Mahzorim' by Sara Offenberg, deals with the hidden meanings expressed by groups of animals depicted in two medieval Ashkenazi prayer books for the Day of Atonement. By using allegorical animals in this way the Jews of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries could safely express their fear of the hostile Christian society in which they lived, as well as their trust in God and belief in redemption.A surprising link between the Middle Ages and modern times is made by Rachel Singer’s article, 'Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are: An Exploration of the Personal and the Collective'. Published in 1963, this classic children’s book, written and illustrated by the son of a Jewish immigrant family in Brooklyn, is far removed, both chronologically and geographically, from the Ashkenazi Middle Ages. In her study, however, Singer prises out hidden sources of antisemitic perceptions rooted in medieval Christian Europe. This leads us to the volume’s third article, 'The Return of the Wandering Jew(s) in Samuel Hirszenberg’s Art' by Richard I. Cohen and Mirjam Rajner. The motif of the wandering Jew, a negative and frightening figure, is rooted in the late Middle Ages: it made its first appearance in Christian art, in printed books which disseminated the Christian legend all over Europe. In the nineteenth century, Jewish artists engaging with the image of the wandering Jew endowed it with new interpretations and presentations. One of these is revealed by the authors as they focus on the painting The Wandering Jew, created in 1899 by the Polish Jewish artist Samuel Hirszenberg. As is well known, emancipation and the Jewish national awakening in late nineteenth-century Europe were accompanied by diverse artistic activities. These included the establishment of Jewish societies promoting Jewish art and artists, exhibitions, documentation, and research. Among the most impressive efforts were the activities of Jewish artists in interwar Poland, recorded in contemporary local newspapers and periodicals. As these were published in Polish and Yiddish they weren’t accessible to the English-speaking reader, something that is now rectified by Renata Piątkowska in ‘A Sense of Togetherness: The Jewish Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts in Warsaw (1923–1939)'. Based on primary sources, the article introduces us to the flourishing artistic life which was cruelly destroyed in the Holocaust.Another result of Jewish national awakening, in this case in the medium of photography, is presented in 'Modernity as Anti-Nostalgia: The Photographic Books of Tim Gidal and Moshe Vorobeichic and the Eastern European Shtetl', by Rose-Carol Washton Long. This article examines how Zionist ideas led two assimilated German-trained photographers to develop variant thematic and stylistic portrayals of eastern European shtetls in their photobooks, published in 1931 and 1932. Their volumes are neither romantic nor nostalgic, but instead convey a vibrant vision of modernity. While the first five articles discuss issues of identity encountered by Jewish individuals or groups, the next contribution focuses on a 'Jewish identity' that was imposed by a colonial administration. Dominique Jarrassé's 'Orientalism, Colonialism, and Jewish Identity in the Synagogues of North Africa under French Domination' fills the gaps in our knowledge of synagogue architecture in Tunisia and Algiers in the modern era in general, and about colonial Orientalism in particular. Covert Jewish identity is revealed by Milly Heyd in 'Hans Richter: Universalism vis-à-vis Particularism'. This is the third part of her study of the place of the hidden Jew in the Dada avant-garde, one part of which is published in volume 1 of Ars Judaica. The focus in the present piece is on Hans Richter’s art in the context of Man Ray, Tristan Tzara, and others who were born to Jewish families but opted for universalism rather than particularism in their art. The Special Item in this year’s volume is devoted to a painting by Moritz Oppenheim that was long thought to be lost. 'Of Provenance and Providence: On the Reappearance of David Playing the Harp for Saul by Moritz Oppenheim', by Susan Nashman Fraiman, raises some new and interesting questions about Oppenheim’s early work and patrons. The study of this painting reveals a conscious effort to incorporate Jewish source material into his work, an important aspect of his corpus which has previously been neglected.Volumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to: Ars Judaica, Department of Jewish Art, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Telephone 03 5318413; Fax 03 6359241; Email [ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.il]Table of ContentsEditor's Note BRACHA YANIV Illuminations of Kol Nidrei in Two Ashkenazi Mahzorim SARA OFFENBERG Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are: An Explanation of the Personal and the Collective RACHEL SINGER The Return of the Wandering Jew(s) RICHARD I. COHEN and MIRJAM RAJNER The Sense of Togetherness: The Jewish Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts in Warsaw (1923 - 1939) RENATA PIATKOWSKA Modernity as Anti-Nostalgia: The Photographic Books of Tim Gidal and Moshe Vorobeichic and the Eastern European Shtetl ROSE-CAROL WASHTON LONG Orientalism, Colonialism, and Jewish Identity in the Synagogues of North Africa under French Domination DOMINIQUE JARRASSE Hans Richter: Universalism vis-a-vis Particularism MILLY HEYD Special Item Of Provenance and Providence: On the Reappearance of David Playing the Harp for Saul by Moritz Oppenheim SUSAN NASHMAN FRAIMAN Book Reviews Discovering the Magic of Yiddishkayt Futur anterieur: L'avant-garde et le livre yiddish (1914 - 1939), catalogue, ed. Nathalie Hazan- Brunet with Ada Ackerman BER (BORIS) KOTLERMAN Felix Lembersky: The Artist Uncovered Yelena Lembersky (ed), Felix Lembersky (1913 - 1970): Paintings and Drawings ORI Z. SOLTES Books and Catalogues Received ELISHEVA REVEL-NEHER, AVIVA CARMI LEVINE In Memoriam Kazimierz Maciej Piechotka (1919 - 2010) by Samuel D. Gruber Abbreviations Contributors to this Issue Submission and Style Guidelines

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Book SynopsisBringing to light little-known artistic traditions, the latest volume of Ars Judaica focuses on the local and temporal contexts of objects and their images and explores collective and personal memories and identities in art. Rivka Ben-Sasson examines modes of symbolic perception of nature prevalent in religious thought and art by analysing images of the lulav and etrog. Iwona Brzewska and Waldemar Deluga discuss the significance of Hebrew script in paintings and prints of the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries originating from the borderland between the Catholic and Christian Orthodox domains of eastern Europe. Michelle Klein studies the typological development of the havdalah candle-holder, based on an analysis of 170 examples. Matthew Baigell suggests that American Jewish artists are characterized by concern for the betterment of humankind; his sources include Jewish postcards, photographs, and caricatures as well as the work of contemporary American Jewish artists. Astrid Schmetterling discusses how Else Lasker-Schüler’s Orientalism offered a serious aesthetic-political challenge to both German and Jewish society. Mor Presiado argues that the contemporary use of sewing and embroidery by contemporary Jewish women artists to depict women’s experience of the Holocaust initiates a new, feminist response to the Holocaust. The Special Item in this volume, an article by Shalom Sabar on the earliest illustrated Esther Scroll by Shalom Italia, is an illuminating insight into early modern Jewish art in the making. Also included are exhibition and book reviews. Ars Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts. Volumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to: Ars Judaica, Department of Jewish Art, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Telephone 03 5318413; Fax 036359241; Email ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.ilTable of ContentsEditor's NoteBRACHA YANIVBotanics and Iconography: Images of the Lulav and the EtrogRIVKA BEN-SASSONA Note on the Hebrew Script in Christian Art between Wroclaw and LvivIWONA BRZEWSKA and WALDEMAR DELUGAThe Havdalah Candle-holder MICHELE KLEIN Social Concern and Tikkun Olam in Jewish American Art MATTHEW BAIGELL 'I am Jussuf of Egypt': Orientalism in Else Lasker-Schüler’s Drawings ASTRID SCHMETTERLING'These Threads Captured Shadows': Sewing and Embroidery in Holocaust Art Works of Contemporary Jewish Women Artists MOR PRESIADOSpecial ItemA New Discovery: The Earliest Illustrated Esther Scroll by Shalom ItaliaSHALOM SABARExhibition ReviewHommage à Lucien Hervé MÁRTA NAGY Book Reviews Mati Meyer, An Obscure Portrait: Imaging Women's Reality in Byzantine Art ELISHEVA BAUMGARTEN Marc Michael Epstein, The Medieval Haggadah: Art, Narrative, and Religious Imagination KATRIN KOGMAN-APPEL Herbert L. Kessler and David Nirenberg, Judaism and Christian Art: Aesthetic Anxieties from the Catacombs to ColonialismKATHY ARON-BELLER Jewish Dimensions in Modern Visual Culture ESTHER LEVINGER Musya Glants, Where Is My Home? The Art and Life of the Russian Jewish Sculptor, Mark Antokolsky, 1843–1902 JOHN E. BOWLT

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Book SynopsisArs Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts. In this volume, Avraham Faust considers a unique phenomenon in the material culture of ancient Israel during the biblical period: pottery without painted decoration. Moshe Idel, an expert on Jewish mysticism, sheds new light on the figure of Helios in the Hammath Tiberias synagogue mosaic, comparing it to descriptions of angel ‘Anafi’el in the Heikhalot literature and medieval Kabbalistic texts. Rahel Fronda attributes a group of medieval Ashkenazi Bible manuscripts containing similar micrographic ornaments to the same scribal workshop, possibly near Würzburg. Alexander Mishory reveals a Scroll of Esther illuminated by one of the first Bezalel artists, Shmuel Ben-David, and focuses on his use of fowl and fox imagery deriving from an Arab fable. Artur Tanikowski discusses social awareness and humanist values in the work of Polish modernists of Jewish origin. The Special Item by Nurit Sirkis Bank is dedicated to hasidic wedding rings. A silver ring, square on the outside, round within, and engraved with the Hebrew letter he is understood as a symbol of unity and harmony between man and woman, the human and the Divine, nature and culture, and even good and evil.Contributor Information:Walter Cahn, Professor, History of Art Department, Yale University, Avraham Faust, Director, Tel 'Eton Excavations, Institute of Archaeology, Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, Bar-Ilan University, Rahel Fronda, Hebraica and Judaica Subject Librarian, Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, Carole Herselle Krinsky, Professor, Art History Department, New York University, Moshe Idel, Professor, Department of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Senior Researcher, Shalom Hartman Institute, David Malkiel, Professor, Department of Jewish History, Bar-Ilan University, Alec Mishory, independent scholar, Israel, Ilia Rodov, Lecturer, Department of Jewish Art, Bar-Ilan University, Nurit Sirkis Bank, Curator, Wolfson Museum of Jewish Art, Hechal Shlomo; doctoral candidate, Bar-Ilan University, David Stern, Professor, Jewish Studies Faculty, University of Pennsylvania, Artur Tanikowski, Graphic Department, Academy of Fine Arts, Warsaw; Faculty of Humanities, Fryderyk Chopin Uiversity of Music, Warsaw; Curator, Museum of the History of Polish Jews, Warsaw Volumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to: Ars Judaica Department of Jewish Art Bar-Ilan University Ramat-Gan 52900 Telephone: 03 5318413 Email: ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.ilTable of ContentsEditors’ NoteBRACHA YANIV, MIRJAM RAJNER, and ILIA RODOVDecoration versus Simplicity: Pottery and Ethnic Negotiation in Early IsraelAVRAHAM FAUSTHolding an Orb in His Hand: The Angel ‘Anafi’el and a Late Antiquity Helios MosaicMOSHE IDELAttributing of Three Ashkenazi Bibles with Micrographic ImagesRAHEL FRONDAA Purim Masquerade: Fowls and Foxes in Shmuel Ben David’s Illuminated Scroll of Esther (c. 1923)ALEC MISHORYToward the Philosophy of Work: The Late Paintings of Leopold GottliebARTUR TANIKOWSKISpecial ItemOpposites United: The Square-Round Silver Wedding RingNURIT SIRKIS BANKBook ReviewsThe New Jewish Book HistorySarit Shalev-Eyni, Jews among Christians: Hebrew Book Illumination from Lake ConstanceDAVID STERNMonuments of an Exotic CommunityRemnant Stones: The Jewish Cemeteries and Synagogues of Suriname: Epitaphs, eds. Aviva Ben-Ur and Rachel FrankelRemnant Stones: The Jewish Cemeteries and Synagogues of Suriname: Essays, eds. Aviva Ben-Ur and Rachel FrankelDAVID MALKIELComprehensive View of Hungarian SynagoguesRudolf Klein, Zsinagógák Magyarországon 1782–1918: Fejlo˝déstörténet, tipológia és epítészeti jelentöség / Synagogues in Hungary 1782–1918: Genealogy, Typology and Architectural SignificanceCAROL HERSELLE KRINSKYResearch of Research of Jewish Art: Focusing on LithuaniaILIA RODOVResearch of Jewish Art: Art in the Ukrainian ContextILIA RODOVJewish Art in Modern Times: A New AppraisalSamantha Baskind and Larry Silver, Jewish Art: A Modern HistoryWALTER CAHN

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Book SynopsisArs Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts.In this volume, Sarit Shalev-Eyni considers the Mahzor as a cosmological calendar, while Katrin Kogman-Appel looks at the work of Elisha ben Abraham, known as Cresques, in fourtheenth-century Mallorca. Evelyn M. Cohen discusses a surprising model for Charlotte Rothschild's Haggadah of 1842 and Ronit Sternberg examines sampler embroidery past and present as an expression of merging Jewish identity. Jechezkiel David Kirszenbaum’s exploration of personal displacementis the subject of an article by Caroline Goldberg Igra, and the Great Synagogue on Tłomackie Street in Warsaw one by Eleanora Bergman. The Special Item by Sergey R. Kravtsov and Vladimir Levin is devoted to Perek Shirah on a wall of the Great Synagogue in Radyvyliv. The volume also includes book reviews and an appreciation of the life of Alfred Moldovan by William L. Gross. Contributors: Ziva Amishai-Maisels, Professor, History of Art Department, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Eleonora Bergman, Emanuel Ringelbaum Jewish Historical Institute, Warsaw, Evelyn M. Cohen, Professor, Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS), New York, Caroline Goldberg Igra, Guest Curator, Beit Hatfusot, Tel Aviv, William L. Gross, Collector, Tel Aviv, Katrin Kogman-Appel, Professor, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheva, Sergey R. Kravtsov, Center for Jewish Art, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Vladimir Levin, Center for Jewish Art, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Sarit Shalev-Eyni, History of Art Department, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Larry Silver, History of Art Department, University of Pennsylvania, Ronit Steinberg, History and Theory Department, Bezalel Academy of Arts and design, JerusalemVolumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to:Ars JudaicaDepartment of Jewish ArtBar-Ilan UniversityRamat-Gan 52900telephone 03 5318413fax 03 6359241 email ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.ilTable of ContentsEditors’ NoteThe Mahzor as a Cosmological Calendar: The Zodiac Signs in Medieval Ashkenazi Context SARIT SHALEV-EYNI'Elisha ben Abraham, Known as Cresques': Scribe, Illuminator, and Mapmaker in Fourteenth-Century Mallorca KATRIN KOGMAN-APPELA Surprising Model for Charlotte Rothschild’s Haggadah of 1842 EVELYN M. COHENSampler Embroidery Past and Present as an Expression of Merging Jewish Identity RONIT STEINBERGThe Restoration of Loss: Jechezkiel David Kirszenbaum’s Exploration of Personal Displacement CAROLINE GOLDBERG IGRAThe Great Synagogue on Tłomackie Street: Warsaw Inspirations ELEONORA BERGMANSpecial itemLeviathan Thanks the Lord: Perek Shirah on a Wall of the Great Synagogue in Radyvyliv SERGEY R. KRAVTSOV and VLADIMIR LEVINBook ReviewsObsessions of a DiasporistCilly Kugelmann, Eckhart Gillen, and Hubertus Gaßner, Obsessions: R. B. Kitaj 1932–2007 ZIVA AMISHAI-MAISELSIsrael’s Art Viewed and ReviewedYigal Zalmona, A Century of Israeli Art LARRY SILVERIn MemoriamAlfred Moldovan (1921–2013) WILLIAM L. GROSSAbbreviationsContributors to this issue

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Book SynopsisArs Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts.Contributors: Matthew Baigell, Rutgers University of New Jersey, Batya Brutin, Beit Berl Academic College, Zofit, Warren Zev Harvey, Department of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Moshe Idel, Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem; Department of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Sara Offenberg, Department of Jewish Art, Bar-Ilan University, Nils Roemer, University of Texas at Dallas, Debra Higgs Strickland, School of Culture and Creative Arts, University of Glasgow, Annette Weber, Hochschule für Jüdische Studien, Heidelberg Volumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to: Ars Judaica Department of Jewish Art Bar-Ilan University Ramat-Gan 52900 telephone 03 5318413 fax 03 6359241 email ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.ilTable of ContentsEditors' Note‘The Masorah is a Fence to the Torah’ Monumental Letters and Micrography in Medieval Ashkenazi Bibles ANNETTE WEBERVisualization of Colours, 1: David ben Yehudah he-Hasid’s Kabbalistic Diagram MOSHE IDELThe Boy from the Warsaw Ghetto as Holocaust Icon in Art BATYA BRUTINRobert Kirschbaum’s Art: Abstract, Intellectual, Spiritual MATTHEW BAIGELLBook ReviewsDreaming of MichelangeloAsher D. Biemann, Dreaming of Michelangelo: Jewish Variations on a Modern ThemeNIELS ROEMERThe Jewishness of Christian ArtHerbert L. Kessler and David Nirenberg (eds), Judaism and Christian Art: Aesthetic Anxieties from the Catacombs to ColonialismDEBRA HIGGS STRICKLANDMicrographic Midrash in Fourteenth-Century BarcelonaDalia-Ruth Halperin, Illuminating in Micrography: The Catalan Micrography Mahzor MS Heb. 806527 in the National Library of IsraelWARREN ZEV HARVEYFormer Synagogues and Host-Miracle Shrines in Germany and AustriaMitchell B. Merback, Pilgrimage and Pogrom: Violence, Memory, and Visual Culture at the Host-Miracle Shrines of Germany and AustriaSARA OFFENBERG

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Book SynopsisArs Judaica is an annual publication of the Department of Jewish Art at Bar-Ilan University. It showcases the Jewish contribution to the visual arts and architecture from antiquity to the present from a variety of perspectives, including history, iconography, semiotics, psychology, sociology, and folklore. As such it is a valuable resource for art historians, collectors, curators, and all those interested in the visual arts. Contributors: Zsofia Buda, Andreina Contessa, Monika Czekanowska-Gutman, Basema Hamarneh, Moshe Idel, Sharman Kadish, Reuven Kiperwasser, Rudolf Klein, Susan Nashman Fraiman, Ido Noy, Larry Silver, Ronit Sorek, Sharon Weiser-Ferguson Volumes of Ars Judaica are distributed by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization throughout the world, except Israel. Orders and enquiries from Israeli customers should be directed to: Ars Judaica Department of Jewish Art Bar-Ilan University Ramat-Gan 52900 telephone 03 5318413 fax 03 6359241 email ajudaica@mail.biu.ac.ilTable of ContentsEditors' NoteSacrifice in Balance: The Akedah—An Eschatological Perspective ZSOFIA BUDAThe Fleuron Crown from Neumarkt in Silesia (Środa Śląska): Christian Material Culture in a Jewish Context IDO NOYVisualization of Colours, 2: Implications of David ben Yehudah he-Hasid's Diagram for the History of Kabbalah MOSHE IDELThe Mantua Torah Ark and Lady Consilia Norsa: Jewish Female Patronage in Renaissance Italy ANDREINA CONTESSAChallenging the Non-Jewish Images of a Jewish Queen: Portrayals of Esther by Early-Twentieth Century Jewish Artists MONIKA CZEKANOWSKA-GUTMANHumour in Architecture: Jewish Wit on Béla Lajta’s Buildings RUDOLF KLEINChagall's Stained-Glass Syncretism LARRY SILVERSpecial ItemZoya Cherkassky's Aachen Passover Haggadah: A Subversive Illuminated Manuscript RONIT SOREKBook ReviewsMosaics Mirror of FaithRina Talgam, Mosaics of Faith: Floors of Pagans, Jews, Samaritans, Christians, and Muslims in the Holy LandBASEMA HAMARNEHRabbis as Visual BeingsRachel Neis, The Sense of Sight in Rabbinic Culture: Jewish Ways of Seeing in Late AntiquityREUVEN KIPERWASSERJewish Sanctuary in the Old and New WorldsBarry L. Stiefel, with the assistance of David Rittenberg, Jewish Sanctuary in the Atlantic World: A Social and Architectural HistoryBarry L. Stiefel, Jews and the Renaissance of Synagogue Architecture, 1450-1730SHARMAN KADISHExhibition ReviewsLooking Back on a Forward Thinker: Moshe Zabari RetrospectiveMoshe Zabari: Retrospective, curator and catalogue editor Nitza Behroozi BarozBezalel: In and Out in Jewish Contemporary Art, curator and catalogue editors Shiriat-Miriam Shamir and Ido NoySHARON WEISER-FERGUSONThe Second Jerusalem Biennale for Contemporary Jewish Art 2015SUSAN NASHMAN FRAIMAN

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Book SynopsisThis book concentrates on a few crucial years of Caravaggio’s development, in order to cast light on what made the artist such a revolutionary figure. It argues that this revolution was one of technique rather than style, and involved the sophisticated use of a camera obscura and so-called 'burning' or parabolic mirrors, exploiting new advances in glassmaking and optics. Because the results Caravaggio obtained by his new methods were so different he created a sensation, although these innovations were rapidly assimilated and the artistic establishment worked successfully to restore their way of doing things, so that the true novelty of his art in the 1590s has been obscured. Clovis Whitfield uses a lifetime of study of the period to discuss not only Caravaggio's technology but also his patronage and cultural context, the Rome of Clement VIII, concentrating particularly on Caravaggio's homosexual patron Cardinal Francesco Maria Del Monte and analysing the taste and role of his other early supporters as well. Whitfield's Caravaggio was the son of a bricklayer, untrained in traditional artistic disciplines, who instead took the dramatic step of painting exactly what he saw with his reproductive aids. Galileo’s hypothesis drawn from observation and Caravaggio’s novel description of what he saw were, according to Whitfield, parallel attempts to explain features of the many-layered reality that surrounds us. The book features remarkable new photographs and especially details of Caravaggio's paintings and those of his followers and rivals that will dramatically refresh hackneyed perceptions of this crucial figure and his world. "This revolutionary book will transform studies of the renegade 'people's artist'."Art Quarterly, Spring 2012

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Book SynopsisThis publication is the only available English-language monograph to date on sixteenth-century sculptor Pier Jacopo Alari Bonacolsi (c. 1455–1528), who earned the nickname 'Antico' with his highly refined reductions of Greco-Roman antiquities. His bronzes – many of which were produced at the brilliant court of Isabella d'Este at Mantua – were remarkable for being meticulously cast and finely cleaned and finished, designed for close appreciation in the privacy of a courtly studio. His black patination and exquisite detailing, such as gilded hair and silver-inlaid eyes, are characteristic. Given Antico's importance for the history of sculpture, this book is a much needed resource in the field, presenting new scientific research and the results of technical studies undertaken at the National Gallery of Art, Washington. A series of essays places Antico's life, work and technique in a contextual framework useful for understanding his body of work. In addition to providing an overview of the artist's career, the catalogue will address key topics from his workmanship and craft to his relationship with the court of Mantua. Eleonora Luciano, associate curator of sculpture at the National Gallery of Art, provides a biography of the artist; Claudia Kryza-Gersch, curator of Italian sculpture at the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, discusses Antico as a pioneer of Renaissance sculpture; Stephen Campbell, professor and chair of the department of the history of art at John Hopkins University, writes about 'Antico and Humanism at the Court of Mantua'; Davide Gasparotto, curator at the Galleria Nazionale di Parma, considers Antico's portraiture; Denise Allen, curator at the Frick Collection, New York, writes about 'Materials, Workmanship and Meaning' in the artist's work. Two appendices present new scientific work: Dylan Smith and Shelley Sturman, both conservators at the National Gallery of Art, explore the technology of Antico's bronzes, and Richard Stone, conservator emeritus at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, examines Antico's patinas. Exhibition held at National Gallery of Art, Washington.

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Book SynopsisSir Peter Lely (1618-1680) was Charles II’s Principal Painter and the outstanding artistic figure of Restoration England. When Lely arrived in England in the early 1640s his ambition was to be a painter of narrative scenes and not to work as a portraitist. However, the ‘subject pictures’ did not find favor with many English patrons and he produced less than thirty. As Lely’s friend Richard Lovelace explained, all they wanted was “their own dull counterfeits” or portraits of their mistresses. Thus, Lely was obliged to turn to portraiture to make a living. Yet, his poetic pictures of figures in idyllic landscapes are among the most beautiful paintings made in 17th-century England and this catalog will be the first in-depth look at this important chapter of this major painter’s career. Lely was born in Westphalia and received his artistic training in Haarlem with Frans Pietersz. De Grebber. He came to England around 1643. Few painters had stayed in London following the move of the Royal Court to Oxford, and Lely was therefore free to establish his reputation in the city. By 1650 he had settled at a house on Covent Garden Plaza (a five-minute walk from Somerset House) where he remained for the rest of his life. His major patrons were the ‘Puritan Earls’, a group of cultivated noblemen including the Duke of Northumberland and the Earls of Pembroke and Salisbury, as well as the circle surrounding the Countess of Dysart at Ham House. Lely never met Van Dyck (who had died in London in 1641), but he had the opportunity to study his paintings and those of the great Venetian 16th-century artists Giorgione and Titian in the houses of these wealthy aristocratic patrons. He began to buy these works himself and by the end of his life had amassed one of Europe’s richest collections of 16th- and 17th-century Italian paintings and drawings. It was probably in response to the pictures of Van Dyck and the Venetian Renaissance that he made his most ambitious works, including The Concert (The Courtauld Gallery) and Nymphs by a Fountain (Dulwich Picture Gallery, London). This group of enigmatic paintings are massive in scale and united by strong lighting, idealized landscape settings and a sense of theatricality and sensuality. Unlike many painters, Lely did not rely on classical mythology, but was able to create his own, highly personal dramas. For instance, it is likely that the man playing the viola da gamba in the center of The Concert is the painter himself. The exhibition Peter Lely: A Lyrical Vision at The Courtauld Gallery, London, is on view from 11 October 2012 to 13 January 2013.

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Book SynopsisThe Harold Samuel Collection Art Collection of Dutch and Flemish seventeenth-century pictures is one of the finest groups of Old Master paintings assembled in Britain over the past hundred years, but one of the least known. Sir Harold Samuel, 1st and last Lord Samuel of Wych Cross (1912–1987) bequeathed the collection to the City of London to hang at Mansion House. Now in the care of the Guildhall Museum and Art Gallery, the collection of 84 paintings can be viewed at Mansion House on organized tours or by appointment. Built between 1732 and 1754, the House is the home, office and center of entertaining for the Lord Mayor of the City of London and the Corporation. This guide will enable visitors to take a tour through Mansion House and discover the artists and their subjects – landscapes, still lifes and genre scenes – the development of styles, forms, materials and techniques, and the history of the collection. Highlights include works by Frans Hals, Aelbert Cuyp, Jan van Goyen, Jacob van Ruisdael and Pieter de Hooch. Lively and insightful entries accompany beautiful reproductions of every painting and are introduced by an essay about the creation of the collection and the history of artistic taste in relation to Dutch art. Michael Hall gained his PhD, on collecting Old Master paintings in the nineteenth century, from the Courtauld Institute of Art in 2005. For the past twenty-five years he has been curator of the Rothschild family collections at Exbury in Hampshire. He has been a Visiting Scholar at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angekes and was J. Clawson Mills Fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. He has catalogued the collection of gold boxes at the Huntington Art Gallery in San Marino, California, and writes on French decorative arts and on collecting Old Master paintings. Clare Gifford is a doctor of science and medicine. She has over recent years become greatly interested in the history and culture of 'the City that made the world'. Her husband Roger was elected Lord Mayor of London for 2012–13. The Harold Samuel Collection is a unique collection of 17th-century paintings from Holland's Golden Age. Bequeathed to the City of London in 1987 by Sir Harold Samuel of Wych Cross (1912–1987), a wealthy property developer and philanthropist, this remarkable collection of 84 works – the finest collection of Dutch and Flemish art assembled privately in the UK in the last hundred years – enriches the splendour of the interior of the Mansion House, residence of the Lord Mayor of London. This book marks the 25th anniversary of the bequest. Proceeds from the sale of the book will go towards the Lord Mayor's Appeal which primarily supports the City Music Foundation, and the Harold Samuel Collection Fund, recently set up for the conservation and maintenance of the paintings. This publication, introduced by an essay of the Collection and the history of artistic taste in relation to Dutch art, has lively and insightful entries accompanying beautiful reproductions of each painting. The Merry Lute Player by Frans Hals (1582/3–1666) is perhaps the best known picture in the Collection, the first painting to be bought via a transatlantic telephone bid, but Samuel also gathered outstanding examples of genre painting, indeed several of the finest workds in existence by Nicolaes Maes, Jacob Ochtervelt, Adriaen van Ostade and Jan Steen.

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Book SynopsisThe Courtauld Gallery holds the most important collection of works in the United Kingdom by the Post-impressionist master Paul Gauguin (1841–1903). Assembled by the pioneering collector Samuel Courtauld (1876–1947), it includes major paintings and works on paper as well as one of the only two marble sculptures ever created by the artist. This special Summer display presents the complete collection together with the loan of two important works by Gauguin formerly in Courtauld's private collection: Martinique Landscape (Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh), and Bathers at Tahiti (The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, Birmingham). Today, Gauguin is widely celebrated as one of the most important and popular artists of the 19th century. Collecting Gauguin offers an opportunity to consider the contribution of Samuel Courtauld in developing the artist’s reputation in this country. In 1910, the critic Roger Fry organised his ground-breaking exhibition Manet and the Post-Impressionists, a major step in generating awareness of Gauguin in Britain. Fry included 37 works by Gauguin (more than by any other artist) and also chose a work by him for the poster, a rare surviving copy of which will be included in the display. Inspired by this exhibition, over the following decade the educationalist Michael Sadler (1861–1943) established the first substantial collection of works by Gauguin in this country. A small number of other individuals acquired single paintings, but Courtauld was the only other early collector to assemble a major group of works by Gauguin. Collecting Gauguin is the first of a new series of special Summer displays which will showcase aspects of The Courtauld’s outstanding permanent collection.

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Book SynopsisCanaletto's time in Mid-Georgian Britain has received much scholarly attention in the past. But this book places his work in a broader political and social context, linking his paintings and drawings with a growing sense of assurance and mission which the British nation was beginning to display - perhaps best represented by the works of William Hogarth.

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Book SynopsisProlific and successful in his own lifetime, and ""Picture drawer"" to Charles I, Cornelius Johnson (1593–1661) is now the forgotten man of seventeenth-century British art. This is the first book ever to address his life and work.Johnson's surviving works, all portraits, are found in most public collections in Britain and in many private collections seen on the walls of British country houses, in the possession of descendants of the original sitters. Working on every scale from the miniature to the full-length and big group portrait, Johnson faithfully rendered the rich textiles and intricate lace collars worn by his sitters. While always recognisably by him, his works reveal his exceptional flexibility and underline his response to successive influences. When four of Johnson's portraits in the Tate’s collection were recently conserved, the author Karen Hearn commissioned investigations into his working methods and techniques. This previously unpublished material will make a significant contribution to the literature on this little-known artist as well as to the technical literature on 17th-century painting.Johnson's career coincided with one of the most dramatic periods in 17th-century history, and he painted many of the leading figures of the era. In 1632 he was appointed Charles I’s Picture drawer and, as well as portraying the king, he produced exquisite small images of the royal children. In 1643, following the outbreak of Civil War, Johnson emigrated to the northern Netherlands. There he continued to work successfully, in Middelburg, Amsterdam, The Hague and, finally, in Utrecht, where he died a prosperous man.Johnson's portraits are not elaborate Baroque construts on the contrary, they have a delicacy, a dignity and a humanity that speak directly to present-day viewers. Their quality and diversity will be a revelation.

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Book SynopsisThis beautiful and extensively illustrated catalogue presents in-depth case studies of twenty-four rare and remarkable Late Medieval panel paintings, many from the German-speaking regions of Europe, but also from Spain, France and the Southern Netherlands. These works – often fragments of larger altarpieces designed for liturgical performance and communal or private devotion – can be monumental and dramatic or small and intimate, but all on close examination prove to be rich in meaning – even in cases where the painters remain anonymous, and the precise contexts of their creation have become obscured or fragmented. The collected essays will encompass a broad spectrum of artistic styles, techniques, and interests, including in some instances the works’ original frames, and the attendant meanings they give to the imagery housed within. The group will also be augmented by a rare and important small-scale tapestry altarpiece with close links to panel painting. The inclusion of such a piece, one of the many newly resurfaced works to be included in the catalogue, will offer an innovative approach to the scholarship of Medieval paintings, and enrich our understanding of the cross-pollination of ideas between mediums and the role played by painters in tapestry production at the turn of the sixteenth century.The book, a follow-up to Susie Nash’s important 2011 catalogue, considers the physical history, original form, condition and technique of the assembled works, using wood analysis and dendrochronology, paint samples, infra-red, x-rays and macro photography to document the materials and methods involved in their making and the alterations and transformations they have undergone with time. This new information is combined with close readings of their imagery and its presentation to explore issues of meaning, creative process, patronal intervention and artistic intention, leading in many cases to new reconstructions, attributions, dates and iconographic readings.The text is extensively illustrated with a series of images of all of the works, along with technical photographs and comparative material.Trade ReviewBeautifully illustrated … a thoroughly researched, closely argued, and informative book which proves the necessity of the integration of technical and art historical." * Peregrinations: Journal of Medieval Art and Architecture *

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Book SynopsisThe book is an invitation to get lost within varied landscapes of its pages: middle-of-nowhere Australia, the minds of Susan Sontag and W.G Sebald, and, most prominently, the proverbial forests of all of our childhoods. There are, however, a few thematic paths to trace through these landscapes. Coming-of-age desire, our uneasy sense of self when isolated in nature and female sexuality become the mile-markers. The invitation to get lost is an invitation to come out the other side with the sense that being lost is not necessarily a state to be avoided but one in which we can occasionally luxuriate in.

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Book SynopsisThis lively, lavishly illustrated volume presents rare decorative arts from Asia – all of exceptional quality – from ornate handled daggers and exquisite silver fi ligree boxes to diamond-studded jewels, magnifi cent embroidered silk and divination bowls by master craftsmen. The decorative arts of South and Southeast Asia, and especially those of the 18th and 19th centuries, and trade items produced during the same period, constitute a much neglected area. Such items, which in a Europeanized context tend to be labelled objets de vertu, are under-represented in public and private collections. While the decorative arts of later Western Europe and North America might be strongly represented, when it comes to South and Southeast Asia, there is a bias towards the ancient, the religious and the sculptural. And yet the decorative arts of Asia of recent centuries is a more accessible and tangible fi eld for many. The relative attractiveness of more recent Asian decorative arts, for which provenance issues need not be so acute, grows as the movement of archaeological and other early material across international borders becomes evermore complex and problematic, be it for commercial or for exhibition purposes. Seeking to redress the balance, this volume presents objects of exceptional quality that are often incredibly rare – ranging from ornate handled daggers and exquisite silver fi ligree boxes to diamond-studded jewels and magnifi cent embroidered silk. Only some of these objects were made for religious reasons, and, though old, few are ancient. Instead, they are the product of cultural infl uences that have crossed borders, produced in the quest for beauty. The catalogue also includes a selection of items usually designated as ‘tribal’ art. Many of these have a decorative as much as a ritualistic component. Among the objects from Nigeria are a stunning 19th-century processional staff , topped with the figure of a queen, two museum-quality divination bowls carved by master craftsmen, and a striking and possibly unique fi ve-headed dance costume. Most have been sourced from old UK and European collections, and most are likely to have been collected during the colonial era. This is important. Overwhelmingly, most ‘tribal’ art items available commercially today are reproduction pieces and have no place in serious collections. Michael Backman is widely published on Asian culture, art and politics. He is the author of six books that cover all aspects of Asia. His Asian Eclipse was named by The Economist among its ‘Books of the Year’ and appeared on several bestseller lists. His gallery in central London specializes in works of art from India, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Himalayas, the Islamic World, and Colonial and Tribal art. The gallery sells to museums and important private collections across the world.

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Book SynopsisThe Leiden-born artist Jan Steen (1626–1679) is widely admired as one of the most engaging and technically brilliant painters of the Dutch Golden Age. This volume accompanies an exhibition that will be the first in the UK devoted to Steen’s Old Testament subjects. The focal point will be his magnificent Wrath of Ahasuerus (c.1668–69), one of the highlights of the Barber’s collection, which will be joined by a number of other paintings by Steen from private and public collections across the world. Three essays will examine the core themes of the show – the role of Jewish history in Steen’s Old Testament scenes; the infl uence of Dutch theatre on his work; and the critical response to his Old Testament paintings from the 17th century to date. Robert Wenley (Barber Institute of Fine Arts) will look at how the Dutch nation established its identity in part by associating its people with the Biblical Israelites, seeing themselves as persecuted by the Spanish for their faith. He will explore the popularity of the story of Esther and other Old Testament subjects in Dutch culture – in plays as well as paintings – and the possibility of Jewish patrons for Steen’s Old Testament paintings. Nina Cahill (University of Kassel) will put forward new research about how Steen adopted the gestural language of contemporary Dutch theatre, amateur and professional, in order to represent the key fi gures in these scenes and to convey the pivotal dramatic moments. In some instances, Steen may have been quoting from an actual production of a play based on the Biblical story. Rosalie van Gulick (Utrecht University) will consider how Steen’s Old Testament scenes have been received and understood over the years. She will investigate how the apparent farcical character of these scenes has been understood over the centuries and why they have prompted adversely critical responses from some modern art historians.

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Book SynopsisThe rich variety of languages, religious traditions and schools of art of the Indian subcontinent are brought together in this exceptional library of Indian manuscripts. Religious and philosophical texts from Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic, Jain, Sikh and Zoroastrian schools of thought are all represented in illustrated manuscripts. This library shows how these various faiths borrowed, interacted and influenced one another in the subcontinent. From palm leaf manuscripts of the South to pothi format manuals from the Himalayas in Nepal, to the sophisticated and highly illustrated manuscripts of the Imperial Moghul court, this catalogue takes the reader on a visual journey through great epics, charged romances and colourful cautionary tales. Highlights include an important and lavishly illustrated palm-leaf manuscript by ‘The Emperor of Poets’, Upendra Bhanja (c. 1640–1740 ce), and a rare Bihar-I Danesh (The Springtime of Knowledge) by Shaikh ‘Inayatallah Kamboh of Delhi, from late 17th/early 18th century – the finest known copy of the manuscript. An exceptional album of 18th-century Indian paintings from the Liechtenstein Princely Collections offers insight into the fascination for Indian courtly life among the nobility of Europe. A number of exceptional painted scrolls are also presented here. Scroll painting has a long history in India. Story tellers would travel from village to village giving performances of well-known epics and regional stories often accompanied by musicians and with the visual aid of a painted scroll. One particularly vibrant scroll, over 15 metres in length, of the Madel Puranamu, was probably commissioned by a wealthy member of the dhobi caste to celebrate his community’s origins and favour with Shiva. Among the many intruiging maps and manuals – on art, astrology, omens, divination and auspicious symbols – is an 18th-century Nepalese sorcer’s manual, which contains instructions for protective and exorcistic Shaiva rituals, mantras and sacrificial blood-offerings. Its binding includes feathers and traces of blood and skin, which by tradition are fragments of the ‘five beasts’ – buffalo, chicken, dog, goat and cow.

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Book SynopsisThis rich collection of over twenty fully illustrated essays covers an array of medieval topics, with a particular emphasis on sculpture. The contributors, all friends and colleagues of the dedicatee, are prominent experts in their different fields, from the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States. The wide range of subjects covered includes ivories, wood carvings, alabaster, architectural sculpture, caskets, reliquaries, and questions of imagery and iconography. With a full scholarly apparatus, A Reservoir of Ideals is an invaluable work of reference. The volume celebrates the museum career and scholarship of Paul Williamson, a scholar and curator whose outstanding contribution to art history continues to expand and inspire the study of sculpture in general and medieval art in particular. Williamson joined the V&Ain 1979 as one of the youngest curators ever appointed. He took over as Chief Curator in 1989, and he was Director of the Collections from 2004-07, and Acting Deputy Director in 2013. During his 36-year career at the V&Ahe wrote 17 books and over 150 articles. Williamson’s profound experience and expertise as a curator at the V&Ahave both enhanced his own well-deserved reputation as the leading expert in the study of European sculpture, and simultaneously enriched the standing and holdings of the collections themselves. The works acquired during his time at the V&A, and the gallery displays that he either oversaw or curated himself, amply demonstrate his tremendous range of knowledge and appreciation of art. Despite his wide-ranging expertise and enthusiasm for the art of all periods, it seems fitting that this volume is devoted to medieval art, and primarily to sculpture - the works of art that undoubtedly lie closest to his heart. It is a testament to his standing at the pinnacle of medieval studies that so many leading experts have eagerly contributed to this exceptional collection.Trade ReviewAn invaluable and beautifully illustrated reference work … unreservedly recommended. * Midwest Book Review *

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Book SynopsisThis catalogue will be published to accompany the fi rst ever exhibition of Golden Age Dutch pictures in the collection of the National Trust, which will be shown at the Mauritshuis in The Hague, the Holburne Museum in Bath and at Petworth House in West Sussex (2018–19). Celebrating the enduring British taste for collecting Dutch paintings from the long seventeenth century, the publication will explore why and how this particular type of art was desired, commissioned and displayed through the consideration of masterpieces from a number of National Trust houses. It will feature portraits, still lifes, religious pictures, maritime paintings, landscapes, genre paintings and history pictures, painted by celebrated artists such as Rembrandt, Lievens, Hobbema, Cuyp, Hondecoeter, De Heem, Ter Borch and Metsu, as well as less well-known artists such as De Baen and Van Diest. With over 350 heritage properties in the UK, the National Trust cares for one of the world’s largest and most signifi cant holdings of art and its collection of Dutch Old Masters is particularly impressive. The catalogue will include essays by Quentin Buvelot (chief curator at the Mauritshuis) and David Taylor (curator of pictures and s culpture at the National Trust). The authors will also discuss other aspects of the infl uence of Dutch culture in British country houses (using National Trust examples) – on furniture, garden design and print and ceramics collecting.

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Book SynopsisPatron Saints: Collecting Stanley Spencer is a revealing new exhibition at the renowned Stanley Spencer Gallery in Cookham – Spencer’s spiritual home and major source of inspiration. The exhibition draws together a spectacular collection of loans, including The Centurion’s Servant (Tate); Love on the Moor (Fitzwilliam); John Donne Arriving in Heaven, (Fitzwilliam) and one work not seen in the public domain in over 50 years. The exhibition and catalogue examine the often complex relationships between Spencer and his patrons and what drove them to collect his work. Spencer was a single-minded genius, but the influence of his patrons on his painting is far greater than has hitherto been realised. At the turn of the century, collecting art was no longer the preserve of the aristocracy and the upper classes, but Spencer’s art appealed to a broad spectrum of art lovers, fellow artists, businessmen and politicians. Many of his patrons lived in Cookham, where he lived and found artistic inspiration, and many of his paintings were influenced by his spiritual feelings for that place. His idiosyncratic and deeply personal approach gave him a wide and enduring appeal, and he was patronised by some of the most important cultural figures and taste-makers of that time. Curator Amanda Bradley comments, “Behind Stanley Spencer, one of the greatest Modern British artists, were a group of individuals who enabled his very existence – both artistically and emotionally. They were not wildly rich, but they were powerful, cultivated, intellectual and artistic. Some bought on spec, others were true patrons, giving him the freedom to fulfil his artistic genius. Most fostered long-lived relationships with the artist, influencing his life and work more than has hitherto been realised. These were the patron saints.” Patron Saints: Collecting Stanley Spencer explores the emergence of Spencer as an artistic personality, looking at those who helped him and why he – and his popularity – was a product of the zeitgeist (first half of the twentieth century) characterised by social and economic anxiety.

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Book SynopsisTiepolo in Milan: The Lost Frescoes of Palazzo Archinto brings together preparatory drawings and paintings, as well as documentary photographs, to commemorate an extraordinary fresco cycle by the Venetian painter Giambattista Tiepolo (1696–1770). Painted for Palazzo Archinto in Milan, the frescoes were destroyed in a bombing during World War II. The catalogue accompanies an exhibition at The Frick Collection. In 1730–31, Tiepolo undertook his first significant project outside the Veneto, frescoes for five ceilings in Palazzo Archinto in Milan. The paintings were commissioned by Count Carlo Archinto (1670–1732), likely in honor of the marriage of his son, Filippo, to Giulia Borromeo. Tiepolo’s mythological and allegorical scenes—Triumph of Arts and Sciences; Apollo and Phaëton; Perseus and Andromeda; Juno, Fortune, and Venus; and Nobility—were painted in some of the largest rooms of the palazzo. Unfortunately, the palazzo was bombed during World War II and its interior completely destroyed. Only a series of black-and-white photographs, taken between 1897 and the late 1930s, preserves the frescoes’ appearance, but a number of preparatory drawings and paintings provide precious information, including three painted sketches (Triumph of Arts and Sciences, the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon; Apollo and Phaëton, Los Angeles County Museum; and Perseus and Andromeda, The Frick Collection). Three drawings from the British Museum in London, the Museo Civico in Trieste, and the Sinebrychoff Art Museum in Helsinki are the only related graphic works. These—along with other drawings and prints by Tiepolo and some books— have been reunited for the first time in order to bring to life these extraordinary works of art. On view at The Frick Collection from April 16 to July 14, 2019, the exhibition is curated by Xavier F. Salomon, Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator at the Frick, with Andrea Tomezzoli, Professor at the University of Padua, and Denis Ton, Curator of the Musei Civici in Belluno. Included in the publication are essays on Tiepolo’s work in Palazzo Archinto (Salomon), on the role of the frescoes in Tiepolo’s career (Tomezzoli), on the intellectual world of the Archinto family (Ton), and on the architectural history of the palace (Kluzer).

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Book SynopsisThe Dresden collection’s singular group of Rembrandt works – about 20 drawings attributed to the master today and the nearly complete oeuvre of etchings– will provide the basis for this remarkable publication. It will have a particular focus on Rembrandt’s narrative compositions, printed self-portraits, studies of his wife Saskia, and will include works from all periods of his oeuvre plus prints and drawings by artists from his workshop and followers. The list of artists who understood Rembrandt as a dynamic authority and source of inspiration is long, reaching from his immediate followers to masters of the 18th century, from Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione to Jonathan Richardson to the kindred spirit Francisco de Goya, into the 20th century and up to the present day. Examples include Edouard Manet, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Lovis Corinth, Käthe Kollwitz, Max Beckmann, Pablo Picasso, as well as Marlene Dumas and William Kentridge and artists from the GDR such as A.R. Penck. By including works by these artists, the exhibtion and catalogue foreground Rembrandt as one of the most important ‘artists’ artist’ of all time. Select juxtapositions will help the reader better understand the fi reworks of creativity that Rembrandt not only lit in his own time but those he continues to ignite today. Rembrandt remains eternally captivating, not only because of his radical choices and unconventional interpretations of Christian and profane pictorial subjects, but also because of his joy in experimentation, especially in the use of printing and drawing techniques, and his refl ective, humorous intellect, complemented by his sensually direct approach to the world. With a light hand, he broke open the conventions of his era. The pictorial worlds that he created with his free, decisive mark convey his near inexhaustible interest in nature as creation, whether it be the human exterior or interior, and off er a wealth of connecting points and constellations for other artists as well as for the viewer.

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Book SynopsisThis book recounts the exciting rediscovery of Giorgio Vasari’s painting Allegory of Patience, painted in 1551–52 for the Bishop of Arezzo, Vasari’s hometown. The painting was conceived in Rome with the aid of Michelangelo, as many surviving letters reveal. The work will be on view to the public at the National Gallery, London, through 2023. The monumental figure of a woman, life-sized, with arms crossed, watches time run down. The passing of time is symbolized in the drops that fall from an antique water clock beside her, gradually wearing away the stone on which she rests her foot. The Bishop of Arezzo regarded patience as the key to his career and achievements, and wished it to be represented in a picture. Vasari consulted his contemporaries and fellow humanists as well as the great sculptor Michelangelo when deciding what form it should take. The image represents more exactly the Latin tag ‘diuturna tolerantia’ (daily tolerance). The painting quickly became famous in its time and numerous copies were made of it - but not until now has the original emerged. Thanks to letters between those involved, the painting and the process of its creation are richly documented, and in particular provide insights and quotations about picture-making from Michelangelo. The book carries full documentation of the work and its known copies, some of which can be traced to leading patrons in Renaissance Italy. It also examines Vasari’s own autograph technique and artistic aims.

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Book SynopsisIn 2020, the Dresden Kupferstich-Kabinett celebrates its 300th anniversary. Founded in 1720 by Augustus the Strong as a museum specializing in works on paper, the collection – now with over half a million works, from the Middle Ages to the present day – has always acquired contemporary art alongside recognised masterpieces.The collection – which includes exceptional works by Jan van Eyck, Dürer, Verrocchio, Grünewald, Cranach, Holbein, Rembrandt, Caspar David Friedrich, Ludwig Richter, Toulouse Lautrec, Mondrian, Hermann Glöckner, Gerhard Altenbourg, A.R. Penck, Georg Baselitz and Evelyn Richter – began in the 18th century with drawings, miniatures and prints, before photography was added in 1898 as the promising future means of reproduction.The people in charge of the collection always had a keen eye for the art of their contemporaries and often demonstrated particular foresight in their acquisitions. Many of the works that were contemporary and still unknown at the time of their acquisition are now considered special treasures and rank equally with those that had been added to the collection as masterpieces. Exemplary are freshly printed etchings by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, which were little known at the time, and were bought in the 18th century. And towards the end of the 19th century, the then director Max Lehrs promoted artists directly, such as Max Klinger and Käthe Kollwitz.Today, the Kupferstich-Kabinett occupies an outstanding international position thanks to the high quality and abundance of works. However, the collection is often hidden from the public. Works on paper in particular require special protection and, due to their fragility and extreme sensitivity to light, they can only rarely leave the safety of the depot. The anniversary gives reason to air many masterpieces of the collection, and offers the opportunity to look into both the past and into the future, and to anchor the Kupferstich-Kabinett with its seemingly inexhaustible holdings as a lively, innovative and democratic place in the public consciousness – as a place where creativity and knowledge, critical thinking and aesthetic pleasure can be experienced.The exhibition of 84 masterpieces, which opens in Dresden in April 2020, will then travel to New York in October 2020, where they will be presented in the prominent, international context of The Morgan Library & Museum.Table of ContentsKeeping in the Present: 300 Years at the Dresden Kupferstich-KabinettEDITED BYTHE STAATLICHE KUNSTSAMMLUNGEN DRESDENSTEPHANIE BUCKPETRA KUHLMANN-HODICKGUDULA METZEWITH BJÖRN EGGING ANDCLAUDIA SCHNITZERKeeping in the Present: 300 Years at the Dresden Kupferstich-KabinettSTAATLICHE KUNSTSAMMLUNGEN DRESDENKUPFERSTICH-KABINETTMORGAN LIBRARY & MUSEUMPAUL HOLBERTON PUBLISHINGTable of ContentsForeword Marion Ackermann and Stephanie BuckForewordColin B. BaileyAcknowledgementsAspects of the Present in the Collection of the Dresden Kupferstich-Kabinett Stephanie Buck300 Years at the Dresden Kupferstich-Kabinett: a Timeline1560 to 1720 – Prologue: the Kunstkammer1720 to 1820 – The Princely Collection of Works on Paper1820 to 1920 – Becoming a Museum for Drawings, Prints, and Photographs1920 to 2020 – Disruptions and ContinuitiesCATALOGUEAppendixPhotography CreditsCollection StampsBibliographyCopyright Notice

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Book SynopsisElijah Pierce (1892–1984) was born the youngest son of a former slave on a Mississippi farm. He began carving at an early age when his father gave him his first pocketknife. Pierce became known for his wood carvings nationally and then internationally for the first time in the 1970s. Accompanying a major exhibition at the Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, this publication seeks to revisit the art of Elijah Pierce and see it in its own right, not simply as ‘naive’. Elijah Pierce made his living as a barber; he was also a qualified preacher. Just as his barber shop was a place for gossip and meeting, so his art reflects his own and his community's concerns, but also universal themes. Through his carvings Pierce told his own life story and chronicled the African-American experience. His subjects ranged from politics to religious stories but he seldom distinguished the race of his figures – he thought of them as everyman. His secular carvings show his love of baseball, boxing, comics and the movies, and also reflect his appreciation for American heroes who fought for justice and liberty. In 1932, Pierce completed ‘the Book of Wood’, which he considered his best work. Originally carved as individual scenes, the completed ‘Book’ tells the story of Jesus carved in bas-relief. He and his wife Cornelia held “sacred art demonstrations” to explain the meaning of the Book of Wood. Pierce’s work was first appreciated in the art world thanks to a fellow sculptor, Boris Gruenwald, who saw the expressive power of his work. As a later critic wrote, “There are 500 woodcarvers working today in the United States who are technically as proficient as Pierce, but none can equal the power of Pierce’s personal vision”. Pierce became known primarily in circles promoting ‘naive’ art, winning first prize at the International Meeting of Naive Art in Zagreb, Yugoslavia, in 1973. The vast majority of his work is now held in Columbus, Ohio, which had become his home town. This book revisits Pierce’s art seeking to see it in its own right, and not simply as ‘naive’. Another critic wrote: “He reduces what he wants to say to the simplest forms and compositions. They are decorative, direct, bold and amusing. He uses glitter and all kinds of devices to make his message clear. It gives his work an immediacy that’s very appealing” – an appeal arising from a sophisticated art with its own particular voice.Trade Review…places his intricate, expressive, highly skilled, painted-wood reliefs and sculptures firmly within the social, cultural and political times in which the artist lived and worked. * Art Quarterly *...a long-lasting historical document in the form of a beautifully designed comprehensive catalog. * Folk Art Messenger 06/05/2021 *

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Book SynopsisKokusai lived in a time of immense social, cultural and artistic change, and his work – and indeed his own person – captures its contradictions. The Edo period was ending, the last breath of feudal Japan, and the Meiji Restoration launched the new nation into a dramatic, Westernized and industrialized modernity. Kokusai was a radical interpreter of this world, holding up a mirror to the rich culture vanishing before his eyes. A modernist who yet stubbornly adhered to ancient, simple values, he carved humble, personal truths into the most intractable of materials while simultaneously enjoying a life of wild excess and lavish beauty. This beautifully illustrated set of three volumes – titled Precursors, Kokusai and Followers – includes catalogue entires for 608 objects as well as a number of sub-entries. Also included are essays on Kokusai’s life, carving techniques, materials and followers — the latter of which demonstrates his extraordinary and lasting influence. Most objects are illustrated at size and are augmented by additional and lavish detail photography. Many of the larger objects, such as staffs and sceptres, are illustrated with luxurious fold-out pages.Trade ReviewThis impressive three volume publication is a celebration of Kokusai … the catalogue is one of the most beautiful I have seen, from the lavish covers to the remarkable photography and high-quality print that covey the details of the works, it is truly a joy. * Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society *

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