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Books > Arts & Architecture > History of art / art & design styles
This essay explores the development of Salvador Dali, from the
early phases of childhood, the bizarre and complex aims of his
first experiments, to his absorption into high society of Paris in
the 1930s, and his inclusion in the Surrealist movement from 1928
to 1939. The essay focuses on the makeup of a provocative and
original personality acutely reflexive, intelligent and
pathologically driven. As a creative signifier of considerable and
generative impact, Dali can be identified as a unique sounding
board for his own and succeeding times.
Life of Newlyn/St Ives artist famed for his paintings of animals
and birds.
This catalogue accompanies an exhibition at the Barber Institute of
Fine Arts that will shine a spotlight on Pieter Brueghel the
Younger (1564 - 1637/38), an artist who was hugely successful in
his lifetime but whose later reputation has been overshadowed by
that of his famous father, Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c.1525 -
1569). Peasants and Proverbs: Pieter Brueghel the Younger as
Moralist and Entrepreneur shares recent research into the Barber's
comical yet enigmatic little painting, Two Peasants Binding
Firewood, setting out fresh insights and offering a new
appreciation of a figure whose prodigious output and business
skills firmly established and popularised the distinctive
'Brueghelian' look of Netherlandish peasant life. Born in Brussels,
Pieter Brueghel the Younger was just five years old when his
renowned father died prematurely. Clearly talented, by the time he
was around 20 years old, Brueghel the Younger was already
registered as a master in Antwerp's Guild of Saint Luke. Between
1588, the year of his marriage, and 1626, he took on nine
apprentices, demonstrating that he had established a successful
studio. His workshop produced an abundance of paintings, ranging
from exact copies of famous compositions by his father, to
pastiches and more inventive compositions that further promoted the
distinctive Bruegelian 'family style', usually focused on scenes of
peasant life. He was, as a consequence, later deemed a second-rate
painter, capable of only producing derivative works. This
exhibition and book highlight how a more sophisticated
understanding is now emerging of a creative and capable artist, and
a savvy entrepreneur, who exploited favourable market conditions
from his base in cosmopolitan Antwerp. From this deeper
understanding of his practice, his favoured subjects and the market
for them, we gain a more profound and compelling insight into the
society in which he operated and its preoccupations and passions. A
dozen other versions of Two Peasants Binding Firewood exist and, by
examining some of them alongside the Barber painting, and using the
insights gleaned from recent conservation work and technical
analysis, the exhibition and book will explore how Brueghel the
Younger operated his studio to produce and reproduce paintings, and
the extent to which the entire enterprise was motivated by trends
in the contemporary art market.
This catalogue accompanies the first exhibition devoted to a
fascinating group of drawings by the Anglo-Swiss Henry Fuseli
(1741-1825), one of eighteenth-century Europe's most idiosyncratic,
original and controversial artists. Best known for his notoriously
provocative painting The Nightmare, Fuseli energetically cultivated
a reputation for eccentricity, with vividly stylised images of
supernatural creatures, muscle-bound heroes, and damsels in
distress. While these convinced some viewers of the greatness of
his genius, others dismissed him as a charlatan, or as completely
mad. Fuseli's contemporaries might have thought him even crazier
had they been aware that in private he harboured an obsessive
preoccupation with the figure of the modern woman, which he pursued
almost exclusively in his drawings. Where one might have expected
idealised bodies with the grace and proportions of classical
statues, here instead we encounter figures whose anatomies have
been shaped by stiff bodices, waistbands, puff ed sleeves, and
pointed shoes, and whose heads are crowned by coiffures of the most
bizarre and complicated sort. Often based on the artist's wife
Sophia Rawlins, the women who populate Fuseli's graphic work tend
to adopt brazenly aggressive attitudes, either fixing their gaze
directly on the viewer or ignoring our presence altogether. Usually
they appear on their own, in isolation on the page; sometimes they
are grouped together to form disturbing narratives, erotic
fantasies that may be mysterious, vaguely menacing, or overtly
transgressive, but where women always play a dominant role. Among
the many intriguing questions raised by these works is the extent
to which his wife Sophia was actively involved in fashioning her
appearance for her own pleasure, as well as for the benefit of her
husband. By bringing together more than fi fty of these studies
(roughly a third of the known total), The Courtauld Gallery will
give audiences an unprecedented opportunity to see one of the
finest Romantic-period draughtsmen at his most innovative and
exciting. Visitors to the show and readers of the lavishly
illustrated catalogue will further be invited to consider how
Fuseli's drawings of women, as products of the turbulent aftermath
of the American and French Revolutions, speak to concerns about
gender and sexuality that have never been more relevant than they
are today. The exhibition showcases drawings brought together from
international collections, including the Kunsthaus in Zurich, the
Auckland Art Gallery in New Zealand, and from other European and
North American institutions.
This book discusses what differentiates 'architecture' from
'building', focusing on a whole range of architectural works. It
explores the role of the Roman concepts of 'durability', 'utility',
and 'beauty', the heart of what architecture strives for. In this
engaging, original work, Max Jacobson and Shelley Brock present a
compelling case for the importance of architecture in our
day-to-day lives. The book explores what differentiates
'architecture' from 'building', focusing not only on the 'great'
buildings of the world but also on the whole range of architectural
works from indigenous structures to contemporary buildings. The
core of the book is an exploration of the role of 'durability',
'utility', and 'beauty' in architecture. These three concepts
(originally coined by Vitruvius during the Roman empire as
Firmitas, Utilitas, and Venustas) remain at the heart of what
architecture strives for.
Islamic architecture has enriched design with a wide variety of
structural shapes, including among others, unique arches, a wide
variety of vaults and domes which allow for new forms to be
developed. This volume deals with the design of many types of
buildings in Islamic countries, including not only the better known
public buildings like mosques, mausolea, citadels and forts, but
also houses and gardens, engineering works such as bridges and
dams, irrigation systems and many others which have also had a
profound impact on society. There is much to learn from past
experiences to arrive at solutions that are environmentally sound
and sustainable in the long term. As conventional energy resources
become scarce, the Islamic design heritage can offer invaluable
lessons on how to deal in an efficient manner with cases of hard
and extreme environments. Traditional architecture and urban
environments in most Islamic countries are now being eroded by
overemphasis on a global type of architecture and city planning. As
a consequence, many regions are losing their identity. The included
research reviews these developments in the light of what the
classical Islamic urban designs and architectures have to offer
modern society. Equally as important is the analysis of the
materials employed and the types of structural elements,
particularly those unique to Islamic architecture. Associated
topics considered are music, textiles and ceramics, which are
essential parts of the architectural fabric. Also included are
papers on construction materials, not only stone and brick but also
more perishable materials like adobe, wood and reeds. Preserving
this heritage also requires the development of appropriate
conservation techniques in response to the different materials used
and the ways structural forms work, including under extreme
conditions, such as earthquakes. The influence of Islamic
architecture on the development of new structural form, shape and
design in Western countries is also a focus of the included
studies.
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 climate change forecasts and pandemic maps to Lego sets and
Ancestry algorithms, models encompass our world and our lives. In
her thought-provoking new book, Annabel Wharton begins with a
definition drawn from the quantitative sciences and the philosophy
of science but holds that history and critical cultural theory are
essential to a fuller understanding of modeling. Considering
changes in the medical body model and the architectural model, from
the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century, Wharton demonstrates
the ways in which all models are historical and political.
Examining how cadavers have been described, exhibited, and visually
rendered, she highlights the historical dimension of the modified
body and its depictions. Analyzing the varied reworkings of the
Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem-including by monumental commanderies of
the Knights Templar, Alberti's Rucellai Tomb in Florence,
Franciscans' olive wood replicas, and video game renderings-she
foregrounds the political force of architectural representations.
And considering black boxes-instruments whose inputs we control and
whose outputs we interpret, but whose inner workings are beyond our
comprehension-she surveys the threats posed by such opaque
computational models, warning of the dangers that models pose when
humans lose control of the means by which they are generated and
understood. Engaging and wide-ranging, Models and World Making
conjures new ways of seeing and critically evaluating how we make
and remake the world in which we live.
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