Founded in 1848 as a secret society, the Pre-Raphaelites rejected classical ideals and the dominant artistic genre painting of their era for what they saw as a more spiritual, sincere, and naturalistic approach. Founded by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, they evolved into a seven-member "brotherhood" that included poets and critics as well as painters. Moving away from the classical compositions exemplified by Raphael (hence the group's name), the Pre-Raphaelites rather turned to medieval culture and the jewel-like colors of Quattrocento art for inspiration. Their principal themes were initially religious, but also included subjects from literature and poetry, as exemplified by Sir John Everett Millais's famous Ophelia, drawn from Shakespeare's Hamlet. Inspired by the theories of John Ruskin, they were also committed to the close study of nature. This book presents key works from the Pre-Raphaelite group to introduce their reactionary principles, their dazzling colors, their interest in love, death, and nature, and their extensive influence on latter-day Symbolism and beyond. About the series Born back in 1985, the Basic Art Series has evolved into the best-selling art book collection ever published. Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Art History series features: approximately 100 color illustrations with explanatory captions a detailed, illustrated introduction a selection of the most important works of the epoch, each presented on a two-page spread with a full-page image and accompanying interpretation, as well as a portrait and brief biography of the artist

The cross-cultural exchange of ideas that flourished in the Mediterranean during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries profoundly affected European and Islamic society. Gardens of Renaissance Europe and the Islamic Empires considers the role and place of gardens and landscapes in the broader context of the information sharing that took place among Europeans and Islamic empires in Turkey, Persia, and India. In illustrating commonalities in the design, development, and people’s perceptions of gardens and nature in both regions, this volume substantiates important parallels in the revolutionary advancements in landscape architecture that took place during the era. The contributors explain how the exchange of gardeners as well as horticultural and irrigation techniques influenced design traditions in the two cultures; examine concurrent shifts in garden and urban landscape design, such as the move toward more public functionality; and explore the mutually influential effects of politics, economics, and culture on composed outdoor space. In doing so, they shed light on the complexity of cultures and politics during the Renaissance. A thoughtfully composed look at the effects of cross-cultural exchange on garden design during a pivotal time in world history, this thought-provoking book points to new areas in inquiry about the influences, confluences, and connections between European and Islamic garden traditions. In addition to the editor, the contributors include Cristina Castel-Branco, Paula Henderson, Simone M. Kaiser, Ebba Koch, Christopher Pastore, Laurent Paya, D. Fairchild Ruggles, Jill Sinclair, and Anatole Tchikine.

Par rapport a ses contemporains du XVIe siecle tardif a Venise, El Greco (1541--1614) incarne leur exact oppose, un artiste au talent inne, extraordinairement doue, mais fermement decide a suivre sa propre voie. Tout au long de sa carriere, depuis ses debuts en Crete jusqu'a ses sejours a Venise, a Rome, puis son installation a Tolede, en Espagne, "Le Grec" est demeure a la marge de ses pairs, synthetisant differentes traditions artistiques de l'Occident pour creer un langage pictural unique. Le style singulier de El Greco traduit un rejet du naturalisme autant que de la facilite. Des peintures comme Le Christ depouille de sa tunique (1577-1579), L'Enterrement du comte d'Orgaz (1586-1588) et L'Ouverture du Cinquieme Sceau de l'Apocalypse (1608-1614) revelent des figures allongees et tourmentees, des couleurs irreelles et un traitement experimental de l'espace, autant d'elements s'opposant a une lecture rapide et orientee, mais temoignant d'un art d'une profondeur epique et d'une grande beaute spirituelle. Souvent considere d'un oeil critique et suspicieux durant sa vie, El Greco fut redecouvert par un petit nombre d'admirateurs fervents parmi les peintres modernes, comme Pablo Picasso, Roger Fry et le pionnier du collectif "Der Blaue Reiter", Franz Marc. Aujourd'hui, l'artiste appartient au cercle restreint des grands maitres de la peinture, autant comme figure d'exception de son temps que comme artiste de reference a travers les siecles. Cette introduction de reference, issue de la Petite Collection 2.0 proposee par TASCHEN, explore les influences et les caracteristiques de la vision singuliere et radicale de El Greco, de l'univers symbolique des icones byzantines et les valeurs humanistes de la Renaissance aux premices d'une pratique conceptuelle. A propos de la collection Chaque volume de la Basic Art Series de TASCHEN contient: une chronologique detaillee de la vie et de l'oeuvre de l'artiste qui rend compte de son importance culturelle et artistique une biographie concise une centaine d'illustrations couleur accompagnees de legendes explicatives