For seven years, photographer and artist Lena Herzog followed the evolution of a new kinetic species. Intricate as insects but with bursts of equine energy, the "Strandbeests," or "beach creatures," are the creation of Dutch artist Theo Jansen, who has been working for nearly two decades to generate these new life-forms that move, and even survive, on their own. Set to roam the beaches of Holland, the Strandbeests pick up the wind in their gossamer wings and spring, as if by metamorphosis, into action. As if it were blood, not the breeze, running through their delicate forms, they quiver, cavort, and trot against the sun and sea, pausing to change direction if they sense loose sand or water that might destabilize their movement. Coinciding with a traveling exhibition, Herzog's photographic tribute captures Jansen's menagerie in a meditative black and white, showcasing Jansen's imaginative vision, as well as the compelling intersection of animate and inanimate in his creatures. The result is a work of art in its own right and a mesmerizing encounter not only with a very surrealist brand of marvelous, but also with whole new ideas of existence.

Rita McBride is a US-American artist whose installations explore cultural and sociological issues using the language of architecture. At first sight, the sculptures and installations are composed of recognizable daily objects - machines, steps, tubes, even water towers - that transport us to a standardized world, where repetition itself establishes a code that facilitates comprehension. However, the familiarity of form is disturbed by the materials used - a car made of raffia, tubes out of marble or ficus leaves modelled in Murano crystal - producing a sensation of unease and uncertain significance. This exhibition catalog includes a photographic essay by the artist and photographer Anne Pohlmann capturing the way in which the museum's activity changes the architecture of its space over the course of a year.

Acknowledged as one of the major sculptors and avant-garde artists of the twentieth century, Constantin Brancusi (1876-1957) also remained one of the most elusive. His mysterious nature was not only due to his upbringing in Romania - which, at the time, was still regarded by much of Europe as a backward country haunted by vampires and werewolves - but also because Brancusi was aware that myth and an 'aura of otherness' appealed to the public. This self-mythology is embodied in his white atelier in Montparnasse, Paris. In "Constantin Brancusi", Sanda Miller looks beyond the mythology of the artist to show us Constantin the Romanian student, as well as Brancusi the celebrated artist. Using new material, including private correspondence from Brancusi's archive in Paris, works from Romania, and Brancusi's own photos of his studio, the author weaves together and interprets a wealth of information, bringing to life his early years in Romania, his move to Paris and his years at his studio. She relates how his art scandalized the Paris salon, yet also explores how his work connects with the folk art of his homeland. She also provides colourful evocations of Brancusi's relationships with colleagues, dealers, friends and lovers. An innovative reassessment of Brancusi's life and work, Sanda Miller's perceptive book allows Brancusi to take his rightful place among the most important of the intellectual personalities who shaped twentieth-century modernism.

Between the ninth and seventh centuries BC the small kingdom of Assyria in northern Iraq expanded through conquest to dominate the region from Egypt to Iran. The power of the Assyrian kings was reflected in the creation of a series of magnificent palaces in which the walls of principal rooms and courtyards were lined with huge panels of alabaster carved with images of the monarch as priest, victorious warrior and hunter. Together, the sculptures constitute some of the most impressive and eloquent witnesses of the ancient Middle East. This book serves as a superb visual introduction to what are undoubtedly some of the greatest works of art from the ancient world, showcasing a series of specially taken photographs of the British Museum's unrivalled collection of Assyrian sculptures. These stunning images capture the majesty of the Assyrian king, his magnificent court and its protecting divinities, through individual panels or extraordinary, often overlooked details, such as incised embroidery on robes, the contours of flesh and musculature, the turn of a horse's head or the order within the apparent chaos of battle. An introduction sets the sculptures in their cultural and art-historical context. A brief history of Assyria and the royal palaces is followed by an overview of their discovery, reception and understanding. These are the earliest examples of complex narrative art, and their multilayered meanings occupied entire rooms in which the raw emotion and energy of animals and humans was captured with remarkable vitality. Many of these exceptional carvings rank among the greatest achievements in the history of art.

In the year 1260 Nicola Pisano, the sculptor who initiated the revival of classicizing ideals that would later form a major component of Italian Renaissance art, created a remarkable and unusual monument for the Baptistry of Pisa, a hexagonal pulpit supported by seven colorful columns and displaying on its parapet five visually compelling narrative reliefs; several years later he designed a second pulpit, this time for the cathedral of Siena. Toward the end of the century, his son Giovanni received a pulpit commission for the parish church of Sant'Andrea, Pistoia, to be followed a few years later (c. 1302) by another one for the cathedral of Pisa. These four extraordinary monuments, each building upon both older traditions and its own immediate predecessors, yet each a highly innovative and original solution, are the primary subject of this book.

Volume 1 of 2. Lorenzo Ghiberti, sculptor and towering figure of the Renaissance, was the creator of the celebrated Bronze Doors of the Baptistery at Florence, a work that occupied him for twenty years and became known (at Michelangelo's suggestion, according to tradition) as the Doors of Paradise. Here Richard Krautheimer takes what Charles S. Seymour, Jr., describes as "a fascinating journey into the mind, career, and inventiveness of one of the indisputably outstanding sculptors of all the Western tradition." This one-volume edition includes an extensive new preface and bibliography by the author. Richard Krautheimer, Professor Emeritus of the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University, currently lives in Rome. He is the author of numerous works, including the Pelican Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture and Rome: Profile of a City, 312-1308 (Princeton). Princeton Monographs in Art and Archaeology, 31. Originally published in 1983. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Volume 2 of 2. Lorenzo Ghiberti, sculptor and towering figure of the Renaissance, was the creator of the celebrated Bronze Doors of the Baptistery at Florence, a work that occupied him for twenty years and became known (at Michelangelo's suggestion, according to tradition) as the Doors of Paradise. Here Richard Krautheimer takes what Charles S. Seymour, Jr., describes as "a fascinating journey into the mind, career, and inventiveness of one of the indisputably outstanding sculptors of all the Western tradition." This one-volume edition includes an extensive new preface and bibliography by the author. Richard Krautheimer, Professor Emeritus of the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University, currently lives in Rome. He is the author of numerous works, including the Pelican Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture and Rome: Profile of a City, 312-1308 (Princeton). Princeton Monographs in Art and Archaeology, 31. Originally published in 1983. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

A nucleus of sculptures cast by Andrea di Alessandri, commonly called from his native city, 'Il Bresciano', or from his products, 'Andrea dai bronzi', has been identified over the centuries. His style has been described as having similarities both with the High Renaissance of Sansovino and the Mannerism of Vittoria, the two successive master sculptors of sixteenth-century Venice, though he cast major bronzes for both. Andrea's signed masterpiece is a Paschal Candlestick in bronze, over two metres high and with sixty or more fascinating figures, made for Sansovino's magnificent lost church of Santo Spirito in 1568 and now in Santa Maria della Salute. The author's identification in 1996 of a pair of magnificent Firedogs with sphinx feet (which in 1568 had been recommended to Prince Francesco de'Medici in Florence), and in 2015 of an elaborate figurative bronze Ewer in Verona, have been the culmination of the process of recognition. Archival research has at last revealed the span of Andrea's life as 1524/25-1573, as well as many significant facts about his family and patronage. So the time is ripe for a comprehensive, well-illustrated, book on Il Bresciano, a 'new' and major bronzista in the great tradition of north Italy.

Influenced by Gaudi's Parc Guell in Barcelona, and the mannerist park of Bomarzo, Niki de Saint Phalle decided that she wanted to make something similar; a monumental sculpture park created by a woman. In 1974, she was donated some land in Garavicchio, Tuscany, about 100 km north-west of Rome along the coast. The garden, on which planning started in 1978, contains sculptures of the symbols found on Tarot cards. It opened in 1998, after more than 20 years of work. The garden was still incomplete when Niki de Saint Phalle died. With elaborate illustrations and sensitively written texts this book presents in detail the formation of the garden and the underlying ideas.

Screening Statues: Sculpture and Cinema is the first book to focus on the relationship between sculpture and the silver screen. It covers a broad range of magical, mystical and phenomenological interactions between the two media, from early film's eroticized tableaux vivants to enigmatic sculptures in modernist cinema. Sculptures are literally brought to life on the silver screen, while living people are turned into, or trapped inside, statuary. The book examines key sculptural motifs and cinematic sculpture in film history through a series of case studies and through an extensive reference gallery of 150 different films. Considering the work of directors like Georges Melies, Jean Cocteau and Alain Resnais, as well as films like House of Wax, Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans, this is an innovative exploration of two different media, their artistic traditions and their respective theoretical paradigms.

Carved for a Roman city prefect who was a newly baptized Christian at his death, the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus is not only a magnificent example of "the fine style" of mid-fourth-century sculpture but also a treasury of early Christian iconography clearly indicating the Christianization of Rome--and the Romanization of Christianity. Whereas most previous scholarship has focused on the style of the sarcophagus, Elizabeth Struthers Malbon explores the perplexing elements of its iconography in their fourth-century context. In so doing she reveals the distinction between "pagan" and Christian images to be less rigid than sometimes thought.

Against the background of earlier and contemporary art and religious literature, Malbon explicates the relationship of the facade's two levels of scenes depicting stories from the Old and New Testaments, the connection between the scenes on the facade with those on the lid and ends of the sarcophagus, and the integration of pagan elements within a Christian work. What emerges is a carefully constructed iconographic program shedding light on the development of early Christian art within late antique culture.

Originally published in 1990.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

"With this new edition of Ice Carving Made Easy, Second Edition, Joe Amendola shares with all present and future ice carvers the resurgence of this historic art form. This book will guide and inspire thousands of chefs and artists to enjoy the artistic fulfillment, professionalism, and camaraderie of the exciting art of ice carving." —Larry Malchick, President, National Ice Carving Association "The information on the history, tools and accessories, different methods, types of ice blocks, and the safety and precautionary measures in ice carving will be of tremendous help to many young enthusiasts in their goal to become professional ice sculptors." —Hiroshi Noguchi, C.E.C., A.A.C., Executive Chef, Stouffer Orlando Resort Here is the first new American ice carving manual to be released in ten years! Written by a culinary master, Joe Amendola, it addresses current developments in the field of ice carving. It emphasizes American and European subjects and designs in an attempt to offset the exclusivity of oriental designs in available Japanese books. The organization of Ice Carving Made Easy, Second Edition allows for carvers of every proficiency to use the book with success—each stage of creating a carving is discussed, from manufacturing of ice to the final presentation. Such introductory topics as the handling of ice, hand and power tools, and templates are described in as much detail and given as much attention as the more complex sections about carving faces, fusing, and developing multiple block sculptures. Each of the 34 ice sculptures that Amendola presents is supported by step-by-step instructions that allow the novice and expert alike to create show-pieces that will add a special touch to banquets, buffets, and special events.

Robert Gober rose to prominence in the mid-1980s and was quickly acknowledged as one of the most significant artists of his generation. Early in his career, he made deceptively simple sculptures of everyday objects--beginning with sinks and moving on to domestic furniture such as playpens, beds and doors. In the 1990s, his practice evolved from single works to theatrical room-sized environments. In all of his work, Gober's formal intelligence is never separate from a penetrating reading of the socio-political context of his time. His objects and installations are among the most psychologically charged artworks of the late twentieth century, reflecting the artist's sustained concerns with issues of social justice, freedom and tolerance. Published in conjunction with the first large-scale survey of the artist's career to take place in the United States, this publication presents his works in all media, including individual sculptures and immersive sculptural environments, as well as a distinctive selection of drawings, prints and photographs. Prepared in close collaboration with the artist, it traces the development of a remarkable body of work, highlighting themes and motifs that emerged in the early 1980s and continue to inform Gober's work today. An essay by Hilton Als is complemented by an in-depth chronology featuring a rich selection of images from the artist's archives, including never-before-published photographs of works in progress.
Robert Gober was born in 1954 in Wallingford, Connecticut. He has had numerous one-person exhibitions, most notably at the Dia Center for the Arts, New York; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; and Schaulager, Basel. In 2001, he represented the United States at the 49th Venice Biennale. Gober's curatorial projects have been shown at The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; The Menil Collection, Houston; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. He lives and works in New York.

The art of Makoto Azuma uses flowers and plants as its starting point, but juxtaposes their timeless yet transient beauty with an incredibly diverse range of striking settings. In a series of sculptures, installations and interactive events, he delights in blurring the boundaries between nature and artifice. Azuma founded the floral atelier Jardins des Fleurs in 2002, taking commissions from private clients as well as brands and corporations, both in Japan and all over the world. His parallel career as an artist began in 2005 and involves creating and exhibiting artworks that turn flowers and plants into a medium for self-expression. In 2008, Azuma founded AMKK (Azuma Makoto Kaju Kenkyujo), a group specializing in experimental floral creation, with the aim of seeking new forms of botanical beauty and new ways to exhibit them. His works have travelled the globe, from barren deserts to frozen expanses, from thousands of feet below the sea to the very edge of space. Featuring more than sixty projects captured in breathtaking photography, this beautiful book is the most comprehensive showcase of Azuma's art ever published.

Rachel Whiteread has single-handedly expanded the parameters of contemporary sculpture with her casts of the outer and inner spaces of familiar objects, sometimes in quiet monochrome, sometimes in vivid jewel-like colour. She won the Turner Prize in 1993, the same year as her first large-scale public project, House, a concrete cast of a nineteenth-century terraced house in London's east end. This book, by writer and editor Charlotte Mullins - the first significant survey to examine Whiteread's career to date - has been substantial updated with a new chapter containing 10 major works, including Tate's Turbine Hall installation Embankment and Cabin, Whiteread's first permanent public sculpture in America. Born in London in 1963, Rachel Whiteread is one of Britain's most exciting contemporary artists. Her work is characterised by its use of industrial materials such as plaster, concrete, resin, rubber and metal. With these she casts the surfaces and volume in and around everyday objects and architectural space, creating evocative sculptures that range from the intimate to the monumental.

Preserving art, freedom, and human dignity in the age of the totalitarian state was one of the great challenges of the twentieth century. In Centaur, Slavic scholar Albert Leong chronicles the life and work of the greatest living Russian sculptor and philosopher of art. Based on extensive research in the formerly closed Soviet archives, exclusive interviews with Neizvestny, his family, and friends, Centaur tells the amazing story of a visionary artist and World War II commando officer who narrowly escaped death on the battlefield, successfully defied Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, and the KGB to create acclaimed works of monumental art. Forced into exile to the West in 1976, Ernst Neizvestny returned in triumph to the Soviet Union in 1989 to design the first monuments in Russia to the countless victims of Stalinist political repression. Supplemented by 75 photographs, Centaur will engross specialists and general readers interested in biography, cultural history, art, architecture, politics, and Russian/Soviet studies. Visit the Ernst Neizvestny Studio Web site.

This book showcases and puts into historical context a host of sculpted works created in the 1920s and 1930s in the decorative vernacular defined loosely today as `Art Deco'. Whether designed as free-standing statuary for the domestic market or commissioned for some form of architectural placement, as a frieze on a building's facade or as a public monument or pool fountain, the works shown demonstrate a sometimes bewilderingly broad range of styles and stylistic influences: from the chevrons, sunbursts, maidens, fountains, floral abstractions and ubiquitous biche (doe) of the Parisian geometric style to the crisp, angular patterns of the zig-zag, jazz-age, streamlined aesthetic of the 1930s. Alastair Duncan organizes his subject into three main categories: the first features work by avant-garde sculptors (Csaky, Janniot, Pompon, etc), often as pieces uniques or small editions; the second shows commercial sculpture, comprising mainly large-edition statuary, commissioned as decorative works for the burgeoning 1920s domestic market; while a final, third category covers architectural and monumental sculpture from West and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, North America, Brazil and beyond. With artists' biographies and details of manufacturers, a full glossary and a thematic index, this volume is the essential and authoritative guide for all those interested in the Art Deco style, from the amateur collector of animalier sculpture to professional historians of the period.