Spanning from the innauguration of James I in 1603 to the execution of Charles I in 1649, the Stuart court saw the emergence of a full expression of Renaissance culture in Britain. In "Art and Magic in the Court of the Stuarts," Vaughan Hart examines the influence of magic on Renaissance art and how in its role as an element of royal propaganda, art was used to represent the power of the monarch and reflect his apparent command over the hidden forces of nature.Court artists sought to represent magic as an expression of the Stuart Kings' divine right, and later of their policy of Absolutism, through masques, sermons, heraldy, gardens, architecture and processions. As such, magic of the kind enshrined in Neoplatonic philosophy and the court art which expressed its cosmology, played their part in the complex causes of the Civil War and the destruction of the Stuart image which followed in its wake.

Spanning from the inauguration of James I in 1603 to the execution of Charles I in 1649, the Stuart court saw the emergence of a full expression of Renaissance culture in Britain. Hart examines the influence of magic on Renaissance art and how in its role as an element of royal propaganda, art was used to represent the power of the monarch and reflect his apparent command over the hidden forces of nature. Court artists sought to represent magic as an expression of the Stuart Kings' divine right, and later of their policy of Absolutism, through masques, sermons, heraldry, gardens, architecture and processions. As such, magic of the kind enshrined in Neoplatonic philosophy and the court art which expressed its cosmology, played their part in the complex causes of the Civil War and the destruction of the Stuart image which followed in its wake.

A fresh look at the Eastern origins of Christopher Wren's architecture In this revelatory study of one of the great architects in British history, Vaughan Hart considers Christopher Wren's (1632-1723) interest in Eastern antiquity and Ottoman architecture, an interest that would animate much of his theory and practice. As the early modern understanding of antiquity broadened to include new discoveries at Palmyra and Persepolis, Wren disputed common assumptions about the European origins of Classical and Gothic architecture, tracing these building traditions not to the Greeks or Germans but to the stonemasons of the biblical East. In a deft analysis, Hart contextualizes Wren's use of classical elements-columns, domes, and cross plans-within his enthusiasm for the East and the broader Anglican interest in the Eastern church. A careful study of diary records reappraises Wren's working relationship with Robert Hooke (1635-1703), who shared in many of Wren's theoretical commitments. The result is a new, deepened understanding of Wren's work. Distributed for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art

This is the first English translation of Francesco Sansovino's (1521-1586) celebrated guide to Venice, which was first published in 1561. One of the earliest books to describe the monuments of Venice for inquisitive travelers, Sansovino's guide was written at a time when St. Mark's Piazza was in the process of taking the form we see today. With in-depth descriptions of the buildings created by the author's father, noted sculptor and architect Jacopo Sansovino (1486-1570), including the Mint, Library, and Loggetta, the volume presents a vivid portrait of Venice during a particularly rich moment in the city's history. An engaging introduction and scholarly annotations to the original text provide the modern reader with an appreciation of the history of this great city as well as a practical guide for seeking out and enjoying its Renaissance treasures.

Inigo Jones (1573-1652) is widely acknowledged to have been England's most important architect. As court designer to the Stuart kings James I and Charles I, he is credited with introducing the classical language of architecture to the country. He famously traveled to Italy and studied firsthand the buildings of the Italian masters, particularly admiring those by Andrea Palladio. Much less well known is the profound influence of native British arts and crafts on Jones's architecture. Likewise, his hostility to the more opulent forms of Italian architecture he saw on his travels has largely gone unnoted. This book examines both of these overlooked issues. Vaughan Hart identifies well-established links between the classical column and the crown prior to Jones, in early Stuart masques, processions, heraldry, paintings, and poems. He goes on to discuss Jones's preference for a "masculine and unaffected" architecture, demonstrating that this plain style was consistent with the Puritan artistic sensitivities of Stuart England. For the first time, the work of Inigo Jones is understood in its national religious and political context. Published for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art

The diverse works of architect Nicholas Hawksmoor (?1661-1736) ranged from small architectural details to ambitious urban plans, from new parish churches to work on the monument of his age, St. Paul's Cathedral. As a young man Hawksmoor assisted Christopher Wren and John Vanbrugh, emerging from these formidable apprenticeships to design some of the most vigorous and dramatic buildings in England. In this engaging book, architectural historian Vaughan Hart presents a fresh view of Hawksmoor's built and planned work. In addition, Hart offers the first coherent explanation of Hawksmoor's theory of architecture.
The book explains why Hawksmoor's buildings look the way they do, what contemporary events influenced his work, and how such ancient buildings as Solomon's temple and Mausolus's tomb inspired him. Underscoring the unique qualities of the architect's accomplishments and aspirations, Hart establishes with new clarity Hawksmoor's vital role in the development of English architecture.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone

Few Renaissance theorists have influenced the development of western architecture as much as Sebastiano Serlio (1475-1554). The collection of books which represents his lifetime's work was to become invaluable to the majority of northern European architects who, never having seen Rome, none the less marvelled at Italian antiquities. Hence when Christopher Wren designed St. Paul's cathedral, and when John Wood designed the streets of Bath, both architects had Serlio's books to hand. On his death Serlio had published the first five volumes of the planned seven-book treatise, and had witnessed their enormous popularity, especially amongst the many patrons and architects eager to emulate the splendours of antiquity and of Italian courts which sought her renaissance. Serlio's treatise begins with the rules of geometry and perspective, described in books one and two respectively, knowledge of which formed the traditional preserve of the painter. Serlio's beautiful woodcut illustrations in book three record the Golden Age of the Roman Empire, her Baths, Temples, Palaces and Arches, whilst his text in book four outlines the rules for designing modern elements ranging from fireplaces to facades based on these monuments. To the Tuscan, Doric, Ionic and Corinthian columns which had been discussed by the Roman author Vitruvius and the great quattrocento philosopher-architect Leon Battista Alberti, Serlio added the Composite and thereby established a canon of five Orders which held authority for over a century. The fifth book illustrates the use of these Orders in twelve temple designs of his own invention. This translation of Serlio's first five books by Vaughan Hart and Peter Hicks replaces theonly other English version, that produced in 1611 by Robert Peake, whose source was not the original Italian but a corrupt Dutch translation. As such this is the first English translation of Serlio's work to be based on his own editions and the first collection in any language of all five books taken from Serlio's corrected originals. It represents a major step in the recognition of Sebastiano Serlio as the most important architectural writer of the sixteenth century.