Art is a multi-faceted part of human society, and often is used for more than purely aesthetic purposes. When used as a narrative on modern society, art can actively engage citizens in cultural and pedagogical discussions. Convergence of Contemporary Art, Visual Culture, and Global Civic Engagement is a pivotal reference source for the latest scholarly material on the relationship between popular media, art, and visual culture, analyzing how this intersection promotes global pedagogy and learning. Highlighting relevant perspectives from both international and community levels, this book is ideally designed for professionals, upper-level students, researchers, and academics interested in the role of art in global learning.

Winner of the MLA Aldo and Jeanne Scaglione Prize for Italian Studies 2016 Winner of the American Association for Italian Studies Book Prize 2016 This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Written by one of Europe's leading critics, Ecocriticism and Italy reads the diverse landscapes of Italy in the cultural imagination. From death in Venice as a literary trope and petrochemical curse, through the volcanoes of Naples to wine, food and environmental violence in Piedmont, Serenella Iovino explores Italy as a text where ecology and imagination meet. Examining cases where justice, society and politics interlace with stories of land and life, pollution and redemption, the book argues that literature, art and criticism are able to transform the unexpressed voices of these suffering worlds into stories of resistance and practices of liberation.

It is evident that modernity is a popular mountain for analysis and reflection of a largely controversial nature. Numerous theories have also been written about the beginning as well as the end of modernity. The aim of Modernologies is to achieve an account of the state of artistic research and to discuss selected contributions to the subject matter that appears central after two to three decades of an ever intensely blazing conflict over the legacy of modernity and modernism.

Sanctuary Dishonored: The Decline and Fall of the Maxfield Parrish Estate. Robin Lee, through an incredible twist of fate, was invited to write and record her music, inspired by the great American artist Maxfield Parrish, at the very time his iconic art studio was on the verge of being gutted. Lee had the foresight to capture with her camera and video recorder numerous pictures and footage of Parrish's workshop and grounds just before and as they were being torn apart. This great tragedy in art history will unfold before your eyes, and Robin captures in her words and pictures the sense of wonder and shock as the process unfolded. As if guided by the restless spirit of Maxfield Parrish himself, Lee has become the messenger to the rest of the world, telling the tragic tale of what once was and is now lost to us forever, except for these pages and the subsequent works she will be releasing. 56 pages w/color photos 8.5 x 8.5

It has recently become apparent that criticism has fallen on hard times. Either commodification is deemed to have killed it off, or it has become institutionally routine. This book explores contemporary approaches which have sought to renew criticism's energies in the wake of a 'theatrical turn' in recent visual arts practice, and the emergence of a 'performative' arts writing over the past decade or so.

Issues addressed include the 'performing' of art's histories; the consequences for criticism of embracing boredom, distraction and other 'queer' forms of (in)attention; and the importance of exploring writerly process in responding to aesthetic experience. Bringing together newly commissioned work from the fields of art history, performance studies, and visual culture with the writings of contemporary artists, "After Criticism" provides a set of experimental essays which demonstrate how 'the critical' might live on as a vital and efficacious force within contemporary culture.

The Peacock Revolution in menswear of the 1960s came as a profound shock to much of America. Men's long hair and vividly colored, sexualized clothes challenged long established traditions of masculine identity. Peacock Revolution is an in-depth study of how radical changes in men's clothing reflected, and contributed to, the changing ideas of American manhood initiated by a 'youthquake' of rebellious baby boomers coming of age in an era of social revolutions. Featuring a detailed examination of the diverse socio-cultural and socio-political movements of the era, the book examines how those dissents and advocacies influenced the youthquake generation's choices in dress and ideas of masculinity. Daniel Delis Hill provides a thorough chronicle of the peacock fashions of the time, beginning with the mod looks of the British Invasion in the early 1960s, through the counterculture street styles and the mass-market trends they inspired, and concluding with the dress-for-success menswear revivals of the 1970s Me-Decade.

Focusing on the impact of the Cultural Revolution on the development of contemporary art in China, this anthology of essays and images present fresh and critical perspectives on how one of the most disturbing periods of modern Chinese history has affected the creativity of contemporary Chinese artists.

Rana Begum RA (b.1977) is an artist known for her wide ranging works, from the intimate to the monumental. Using a variety of materials and exploring the use of light, she blurs the boundaries between sculpture, architecture, design and painting to create works that are both playful and ambiguous. This comprehensive monograph expands on previous writings to investigate the ideas behind the artist's varied use of materials, including wood, metal, ready-made industrial components and MDF. With a focus on her processes, the ways in which Begum's work intersects with architecture and design are drawn out, while key sources of inspiration - from the environments in which the artist works, to Islamic art and minimalism - are discussed. Combining contextual essays and an extensive interview with the artist, the development of Begum's work - from painting and furniture design to installations and light sculptures - is traced to present an in-depth overview of the multifaceted, complex work of this fascinating artist.

This book provides an informal biography of the wunderkind who became one of America's greatest living artists and most well-known architects. Many are familiar with the art and architectural design work of Maya Lin, but the compelling details of her personal background are less well known. This book not only focuses upon Lin's substantial achievements throughout her life, but also presents Maya Lin's "prehistory," describing family events in China that led to her parents' flight to the United States. Author Donald Langmead guides readers through Lin's ancestry and family connections in precommunist China; her childhood and youth in Athens, Ohio; the story behind the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC; her career after 1982 (by decades); and emphasis on environmental conservation. Written for a young adult and general readership, Maya Lin: A Biography provides an up-to-date description of how she became one of the most famous and respected artists in America. Provides a timeline of Maya Lin's significant life events, artworks, and exhibitions Includes various photographs to accompany the text Contains a bibliography organized by types of sources, including writings by Maya Lin, books, monographs and catalogues, transcripts of interviews, and videos Includes an index of important people and artworks

For Kurt Jackson (b.1961), 'Painting the sea could become an obsession, an entire oeuvre in its own right, an endless life absorbing task.' And, as this book attests, Jackson's dedication to capturing its constant shape shifting - stillness to thundering force, shallows to mysterious depths - have brought forth paintings that communicate the sea's ebb and flow, its magic and elusiveness. Kurt Jackson's Sea captures the beauty of the artist's constantly evolving relationship with one of nature's most challenging subjects. Two hundred colour images complement Jackson's reflections on his interactions with inspirational coastal landscapes - largely experienced in his native Cornwall, but stretching way beyond the county too.