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Books > Arts & Architecture > Art forms, treatments & subjects > Art treatments & subjects > General
This volume is an in-depth and exquisitely illustrated guide to the
Second Age of Middle-earth, one of the least-explored periods of
Arda's history. The Illustrated World of Tolkien: The Second Age,
is the follow up companion to the best-selling The Illustrated
World of Tolkien, and gathers together artwork, charts, and
fascinating and scholarly writing from renowned Tolkien expert
David Day. Exploring the languages, poetry and elements of the
heroic ages of Norse, Greek and Roman mythologies that may have
influenced Tolkien's writing, it is a reference guide for any fan
of Tolkien's work, Tolkien's world and the imaginative brilliance
his vision inspired. The Second Age is made up of two great
narrative channels: on the one hand the rise and cataclysmic
downfall of the island-kingdom of Númenor and its aftermath, and
on the other the forging of the Rings of Power and the rise to
power of the new dark lord. Tolkien's sources for his Second Age
are, of course, as rich and varied as ever and this book delves
into some of these influences and shows how the power of Tolkien's
imagination is manifest even in the lesser-known parts of his
legendarium. This work is unofficial and is not authorised by the
Tolkien Estate or HarperCollins Publishers.
Initiating readers in the fascinating and complex history of
witchcraft, from the goddess mythologies of ancient cultures to the
contemporary embrace of the craft by modern artists and activists,
this expansive tome conjures up a breathtaking overview of an
age-old tradition. Rooted in legend, folklore, and myth, the
archetype of the witch has evolved from the tales of Odysseus and
Circe, the Celtic seductress Cerridwen, and the myth of Hecate,
fierce ruler of the moonlit night. In Witchcraft we survey her many
incarnations since, as she shape-shifts through the centuries,
alternately transforming into mother, nymph, and crone-seductress
and destroyer. Edited by Jessica Hundley, and co-edited by author,
scholar, and practitioner Pam Grossman, this enthralling visual
chronicle is the first of its kind, a deep dive into the complex
symbologies behind witchcraft traditions, as explored through the
history of art itself. The witch has played muse to great artists
throughout time, from the dark seductions of Francisco Jose de Goya
and Albrecht Durer to the elegant paean to the magickal feminine as
re-imagined by the Surrealist circle of Remedios Varo, Leonora
Carrington, and Leonor Fini. The witch has spellbound through
folktales and dramatic literature as well, from the poison apples
of The Brothers Grimm, to the Weird Sisters gathered at their black
cauldron in Shakespeare's Macbeth, to L. Frank Baum's iconic Wicked
Witch of the West, cackling over the fate of Dorothy. Throughout
this entrancing visual voyage, we'll also bear witness to the witch
as she endures persecution and evolves into empowerment, a
contemporary symbol of bold defiance and potent nonconformity.
Featuring enlightening essays by modern practitioners like Kristen
J. Sollee and Judika Illes, as well interviews with authors and
scholars such as Madeline Miller and Juliet Diaz, Witchcraft
includes a vast range of cultural traditions that embrace magick as
spiritual exploration and creative catharsis. About the series The
Library of Esoterica explores how centuries of artists have given
form to mysticism, translating the arcane and the obscure into
enduring, visionary works of art. Each subject is showcased through
both modern and archival imagery culled from private collectors,
libraries, and museums around the globe. The result forms an
inclusive visual history, a study of our primal pull to dream and
nightmare, and the creative ways we strive to connect to the
divine.
Celebrating the magick of the natural realm, Volume IV of The
Library of Esoterica, delves into the symbolism, ceremony, and our
ritual relationships with the botanical world. A visual journey
through our interdependent evolution with nature, Plant Magick
celebrates botanicals as creative muse - from ancient Greek
sculptures to Renaissance paintings to visionary art inspired by
psychoactive plants, cacti, and mushrooms. Our myths, beliefs, and
shared stories are continually reflected in nature; purity
represented by the white lily or spiritual awakening by the bloom
of the lotus. Our joys and laments are mirrored in the cycle of the
seasons, in the seed birthing sprout, or in the dead leaf falling
softly from winter branches. Plants, trees, and flowers as
signifiers of transition are also deeply embedded within rites of
passage rituals across global cultures. Rose petals strewn along
the wedding aisle mark the evolution into womanhood and marriage. A
wreath of lilies stands sentinel over an open grave. A lover's
bouquet awaits on the doorstep. The wooden May Day pole is circled
by girls wearing crowns of woven daisies, celebrating the coming of
spring. Birth, unions, and burials - cycles of joyful celebration
and deep grieving, all are marked symbolically with herbs, flowers
or branches of a tree - the integration of nature into ceremony our
method of signifying catharsis. Since time immemorial, plants have
also served as potent symbols within the religions of the world;
Buddha attaining enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree, Eve plucking
the Apple of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. From root to vibrant
blossom, Plant Magick explores the fertile, interconnected history
between plants and people, the multitude of ways in which we
embrace plants in spiritual ceremony, as healing medicine, as
creative muse and as gateways into deeper explorations of
consciousness. About the series The Library of Esoterica explores
how centuries of artists have given form to mysticism, translating
the arcane and the obscure into enduring, visionary works of art.
Each subject is showcased through both modern and archival imagery
culled from private collectors, libraries, and museums around the
globe. The result forms an inclusive visual history, a study of our
primal pull to dream and nightmare, and the creative ways we strive
to connect to the divine.
Explore the landscapes and places that inspired great art: find
peace in Monet's lily-filled garden oasis, climb Mount Fuji on a
printmaker's pilgrimage, sail with Gauguin to the South Pacific to
stretch your imagination, or contemplate light and the changing
seasons on Chelsea Embankment. Artistic Places is a stunningly
hand-illustrated, visionary guide for seekers of beauty, rare tales
and cultural riches. Find yourself instantly transported to the
places where great artists have sought refuge, found their
inspiration and changed the course of art history forever. Susie
Hodge, bestselling author and art historian, presents 25 famous and
forgotten artistic destinations around the world, and connects
these to the artists they inspired. In keeping with the Inspired
Traveller's Guide series design, each entry is accompanied by
specially commissioned illustrations from Amy Grimes which
perfectly evoke the wonders that first attracted the masters, while
Hodge delves into each location's curious history with insightful
stories both in and beyond the canon. So take a leaf out of your
favourite artist's sketchbook and discover the places they loved
best. Artists and locations include: J.A.M Whistler in London,
England John Constable in Suffolk, England Barbara Hepworth in St
Ives, England Paula Rego in Cascais and Estoril, Portugal Pablo
Picasso and Guernica, Spain Salvador Dali in Catalonia, Spain
Claude Monet in Giverny, France Vincent van Gogh in Arles, France
Rene Magritte in Brussels, Belgium Paul Klee in Bern, Switzerland
Michelangelo in Florence, Italy Canaletto in Venice, Italy Johannes
Vermeer in Delft, Netherlands Anni Albers in Dessau, Germany Caspar
David Friedrich in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains, Germany Gustav
Klimt and Lake Attersee, Austria Edvard Munch in Oslo, Norway Hilma
af Klint and Lake Malaren, Sweden Henri Matisse in Tangier, Morocco
Hokusai on Mount Fuji, Japan Paul Gauguin in Papeete and Papeari,
Tahiti Jean-Michel Basquiat in New York, USA Grant Wood in Iowa,
USA Georgia O'Keeffe in New Mexico, USA Frida Kahlo in Coyoacan,
Mexico Each book in the Inspired Traveller's Guides series offers
readers a fascinating, informative and charmingly illustrated guide
to must-visit destinations round the globe. Also from this series,
explore intriguing: Spiritual Places, Literary Places, Hidden
Places and Mystical Places.
From the beginning of human history, individuals across cultures
and belief systems have looked to the sky for meaning. The movement
of celestial bodies and their relation to our human lives has been
the central tenant of astrology for thousands of years. The
practice has both inspired reverence and worship, and deepened our
understanding of ourselves and the world around us. While
modern-day horoscopes may be the most familiar form of astrological
knowledge, their lineage reaches back to ancient Mesopotamia. As
author Andrea Richards recounts in Astrology, the second volume in
TASCHEN's Library of Esoterica series, astronomy and astrology were
once sister sciences: the King's Chamber of the Great Pyramid at
Giza was built to align with constellations, Persian scholars
oversaw some of the first observatories, and even Galileo cast
horoscopes for the Medicis. But with the Enlightenment and the
birth of exact science, the practice moved to places where mystery
was still permitted, inspiring literature, art, and psychology, and
influenced artists and thinkers such as Goethe, Byron, and Blake.
Later movements like the Theosophists and the New Agers, would
thrust the practice into the mainstream. Edited by Jessica Hundley,
this vibrant visual history of Western astrology is the first ever
compendium of its kind, exploring the symbolic meaning behind more
than 400 images, from Egyptian temples and illuminated manuscripts
to contemporary art from across the globe. Works by artists from
Alphonese Mucha and Hilma af Klint to Arpita Singh and Manzel
Bowman are sequenced to mirror the spin of the planets and the
wheel of the zodiac. With wisdom from new interviews with
astrologers like Robert Hand, Jessica Lanyadoo, and Mecca Woods,
Astrology celebrates the stars and their mysterious influence on
our everyday lives. About the series The Library of Esoterica
explores how centuries of artists have given form to mysticism,
translating the arcane and the obscure into enduring, visionary
works of art. Each subject is showcased through both modern and
archival imagery culled from private collectors, libraries, and
museums around the globe. The result forms an inclusive visual
history, a study of our primal pull to dream and nightmare, and the
creative ways we strive to connect to the divine.
Passionate about the visual arts as she is about the magic of
words, these 52 poems and 13 haikus are some of Bina Sarkar
Ellias's poems responding to images over many years. Her canvas
spans India, the world and beyond and the book evokes encounters
she has had with people, nature, art, photography, politics and
emotions. A tapestry of poetry interspersed with paintings by
classic masters of impressionist, post-impressionist, cubist and
contemporary art, it is woven with perception and sensitivity. In
her Introduction, the British poet Agnes Meadows says, "If art is a
reflection of life, and poetry is a reflection of the breadth of
human emotions, then `When Seeing Is Believing' embraces the whole
spectrum. It is a unique palette of observation and feeling you
will want to savour by reading it more than once, uncovering new
flavours each time you re-read." This book is supported by the
Morarka Foundation and proceeds from its sales will be donated to
the Missing Foundation and their effort to mentor and rehabilitate
survivors of human trafficking.
Why have some of the most interesting artists of our time committed
themselves to some of the most devastating conflicts on Earth? Why
are some of the most interesting artists of our time committed to
engaging with conflict and exploitation around the world?
Beautiful, Gruesome, and True tells the stories of three of them:
Amar Kanwar makes riveting films about the destruction of rural
India in the drive to extract natural resources. Teresa Margolles
creates haunting installations from the traces of crime scenes and
drug-related violence in Mexico. The anonymous collective
Abounaddara has produced more than four hundred short films
chronicling the uprising and civil war in Syria. Drawing on years
of research and extensive reporting, Kaelen Wilson-Goldie vividly
recounts how a group of "political" artists found ways to produce
remarkable works of art that demand deliberate and methodical ways
of thinking-works that are contemplative, thoughtful, even
redemptive. "A gifted critic and a compelling journalist,
Wilson-Goldie offers many important insights into the challenges
these artists face in their confrontation with authority,
repressive regimes, death, and violence. The story she tells could
not be more timely." -Glenn D. Lowry, David Rockefeller Director,
Museum of Modern Art
Only 20 paintings and eight drawings are confidently assigned to
Netherlandish painter Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450-1516) but in their
fantastical visions they have secured his place as one of the most
cult artists in history. 500 years on from his death, his works
continue to inspire scholars, artists, designers, and musicians,
death metal band names and designer dresses. This edition offers
the complete and haunting Bosch world in one compact format.
Through full spreads and carefully curated details, we explore the
full reach and compelling inventions of the artist's genius as well
as disturbing imagination. We encounter his hybrid creatures, his
nightmarish scenarios, his religious and moral framework, and his
pictorial versions of contemporary proverbs and idioms. Along the
way, art historian and Bosch expert Stefan Fischer reveals the most
important themes and influences in these cryptic, mesmerizing
masterpieces. About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our
work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become
synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the
world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia
at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible
books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents
new editions of some of the stars of our program-now more compact,
friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to
impeccable production.
"At its essence, Giger's art digs down into our psyches and touches
our very deepest primal instincts and fears. His art stands in a
category of its own. The proof of this lies in the intensity of his
work and imagination, which I can only compare to Hieronymus Bosch
and Francis Bacon in their powers to provoke and disturb." -Ridley
Scott Swiss artist HR Giger (1940-2014) is most famous for his
creation of the space monster in Ridley Scott's 1979 horror sci-fi
film Alien, which earned him an Oscar. Yet this was just one of the
most popular expressions of Giger's biomechanical arsenal of
creatures, which consistently merged hybrids of human and machine
into images of haunting power and dark psychedelia. The visions
drew on demons of the past, as well as evoking mythologies for the
future. Above all, they gave expression to the collective fears and
fantasies of his age: fear of the atom, of pollution and wasted
resources, and of a future in which our bodies depend on machines
for survival. Following the SUMO-sized monograph which was begun
shortly before the artist's unexpected death, this affordable
anniversay edition pays homage to Giger's unique vision. The book
shows the complete story of Giger's life and art, his sculptures,
film design, and iconic album covers as well as the heritage he
left us in his own artist's museum and self-designed bar in the
Swiss Alps. In an in-depth essay, Giger scholar Andreas J. Hirsch
plunges into the themes of the artist's oeuvre while an extensive
biography draws on contemporary quotes and Giger's own statements.
About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as
cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with
accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate
their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an
unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books
by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new
editions of some of the stars of our program-now more compact,
friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to
impeccable production.
Create nine lustrous and captivating little works of art with this
unique introduction to oil painting. Acclaimed artist Estelle Day
demonstrates all you need to know to embark on your oil painting
journey from what paints and supplies you'll need to essential oil
painting techniques. Beginners will build confidence by working on
small-scale, still life painting projects designed for canvases
measuring no more than 10cm (4in). Also included are outlines for
you to trace so you can get started right away! Easy Oil Painting
is the perfect beginner's guide to working with oils and mastering
this luminous and exciting medium.
This publication documents extensively Miralda projects in the
United States between the early seventies and late nineties. The
book, designed by Salvador Saura from Edicions de l'Eixample,
includes a wide selection of documents and photographic material
unpublished before.There is an essay by journalist Josep Maria
Marti Font, text by Commissioner Vicent Todoli (1985) and a
selection of contributions by varaious people who worked on the
projects : Suzie Aron, Nestor Garcia Canclini, John Mason,
Muntadas, Paul Schimmel, Cesar Trasobares and James Wines. The book
ends with a detailed chronology illustrated by Jose Luis Gallero.
Fighting History is the first book to engage with the story of
British history painting and its survival into contemporary
practice today. Beautifully illustrated with works from the Tate
collection, as well as a number of paintings from other
institutions and from practicing artists, the book traces the
tradition of history painting from the baroque allegory of the
seventeenth-century court to contemporary works by Dexter Dalwood,
Jeremy Deller, Michael Fullerton, and others. Three short essays
address themes in history painting, from the question of the
shifting meanings of 'history painting' to an account of the great
radical artists in the genre. In an interview with Dexter Dalwood,
one of Britain's most celebrated contemporary painters, the artist
explains the enduring significance of history painting in
twentieth-century art and in his own practice. Includes
contributions from Mark Salber Phillips, Dexter Dalwood, Clare
Barlow and M. G. Sullivan.
Learn how to paint on your iPad like the professionals in
Beginner's Guide to Procreate, a comprehensive introduction to this
industry-standard software. Accessible and versatile, Procreate is
an ideal tool for anyone wanting to give digital painting a go.
Step-by-step tutorials, quick tips, and inspiring artwork ensure
you'll have all you need to create stunning concept art quickly and
easily.
Used for self-exploration or divination, Tarot has, for more than a
500 years, been the most popular and accessible of all esoteric
tools, looming large in today's mainstream culture. Why? Because
the cards are inexpensive and easy to carry-a perfect traveling
companion and, therefore, an invitation to a journey inward and
out. Humans are drawn to playing games and feel driven to find
meaning in the chaos of paradoxical signs. The vivid iconography of
the "arcanas" speak to us like no other language, moving us to the
core, weaving through each cards a universal story, a metaphorical
pathway of transformation. This 400 page book presents for the
first time a close look at 500 years of figurative card decks
created or used for fortune telling, divinations, and oracle
purposes and will explore, one card at the time, their iconographic
roots at the cross-roads of the medieval imaginarium, Western
esoteric wisdom, folklore, and also contemporary art and pop
culture. With hundreds of images drawn from more than 100 decks,
rarely published and often forgotten in library archives, it will
offer the first visual history of tarot.
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