The Art Bookshelf
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The Art Bookshelf
Michelangelo's Medici Chapel
Edith Balas
American Philosophical Society
PO Box 40098, Philadelphia, PA 19106
0-87169-216-3 $40.00 1-215-440-3425
There are no surviving documents that explain Michelangelo's complex
sculptural
program for the Medici Chapel. The work as we have it is no more than an
unfinished, fragmentary realization of the artist's original conception.
Speculation about its meaning began quite early, for Michelangelo's
contemporaries were apparently no better informed than we. An
interpretation
made by Benedetto Varchi in 1549 (and since universally accepted) was by
his own
admission a personal opinion, not confirmed by the artist. In the 16th
century,
interpretations quite at variance with modern scholarly assumptions were
made:
for example, a German visitor of 1536 identified the figures now commonly
called
"Night" and "Day" as "Minerva" and "Hermes". Dr. Edith Balas contents that
the
artist deliberately veiled his meaning in obscurity, making his images,
lie the
language of contemporary Neoplatonic philosophers, intelligible only to an
intellectual elite. Assuming the role of the Magus, Michelangelo conceived
a
cryptic, magical world of potent allegorical images designed not simply or
primarily to commemorate the departed Medici, but to help achieve
elevation for
their souls. Dr. Balas' views owe a considerable debt to those of the
"neoplatonist" school, but she has further developed those ideas, and in
some
cases, differed from them. Michelangelo's Medici Chapel: A New
Interpretation is
an invaluable contribution of scholarship toward Michelangelo studies and
16th
century art history.
Samurai from Outer Space
Antonia Levi
Open Court
0-8126-9332-9 $18.95
Artists and individual interested in Japanese animation history will find
this
essential to studies: the first book-length discussion of Japanese
animation to
examine its historical roots and the reactions of overseas audiences. A
peppering of color photos enhances the appeal of a largely college-level
study.
Deco Type
Steve Heller & Louise Fili
Chronicle Books
0-8118-1135-2 $17.95
This is the first in a projected Art Deco design series, providing a focus
on
type design which gathers an array of typefaces - some hidden for decades.
Type
styles from around the world are presented in a fine set of color images
of
styles taken from numerous mediums. Essential for any in-depth study of
art deco
or typography.
Church Art and Architecture in the Low Countries Before 1566
Jeremy Dupertuis Bangs
16th Century Journal
MC111-L, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO 63501-4221
0-9400474-39-5 $65.00
The weighty price tag combined with the specialized subject matter may
limit
this book's audience to church studies libraries and those specializing in
art
and architectural history. These audiences will find the price well worth
it:
hundreds of black and white photos throughout detail early church
interiors and
exteriors, while discussions contrast and compare church art and religious
holdings. The extensive research which has resulted in such a study is
evident
in pages of in-depth description and history.
The Everyday Work of Art
Eric Booth
Sourcebooks
121 North Washington, Suite 2, Naperville, IL 60540
1-57071-192-5 $18.95 1-630-961-3900
The Everyday Work Of Art: A Curious Way Of Seeing asserts it is time for
Americans to reclaim the power of art in their lives. Relegated to
institutions
and museum walls, art has become unattainable and elitist. By revealing
the
skills that artists apply in their work, The Everyday Work Of Art gives us
the
tools to bring art back into our personal and professional lives. The
Everyday
Work Of Art identifies seven techniques to awaken our artistic selves and
reminds of the time when art was life-essential, like food, shelter, sleep
and
worship. The Everyday Work Of Art challenges us to redefine art to
encompass
every act of being, be it a child's crayon drawing, a corporate
presentation, or
a flawless presented dinner party. Filled with illuminating insights and
warm
anecdotes, The Everyday Work Of Art is an inspiring work offering a
stirring
argument for the importance of art. The Everyday Work Of Art is an
impressive
contribution to the national dialogue on the essentialness of art in
American
culture, schools, and communities.
Jacques-Louis David: The Farewell of Telemachus and Eucharis
Dorothy Johnson
A.J. Paul Getty Museum
Alice Acheson (publicity)
17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, CA 90265-5799
0-89236-236-7 $16.95 1-310-230-7075
Jacques-Louis David's brilliant painting of the young lovers Telemachus
and
Eucharis was created during the artist's last years, when the defeat of
Napoleon
and the return of the monarchy in France forced him into exile in
Brussels.
Several paintings from this period show his preoccupation with the
psychology of
love, but none depicts the emotions of parting more tenderly than this
painting
from 1818. Dorothy Johnson discusses how David's political involvement
affected
his personal life and career, taking him from history painting to
revolutionary
to exile. The effects of these experience came together at the end of his
life
in the creation of some of his richest and most complex works. Johnson
shows how
David's relationships with family and friends may have dictated his choice
of
themes. She also details his influence on the modern French school of
painting
and provides an analysis of this work's innovative iconography. This study
also
provides an analysis of the innovative inconography of the painting, the
context
in which it was created, as well as its contemporary reception. This is a
masterpiece of scholarship and 19th century art history.
The Ingenious Machine of Nature
Mimi Cazort
University of Chicago Press
0-888-84657-6 $49.95
Cazort and others consider four centuries of art and anatomy in a title
which
traces the birth of renaissance art and the field of anatomical study
around
1500. Enjoy an exhibition catalog of anatomical drawings, prints and
illustrations including examples by major and lesser-known artists alike,
complimented by a text which covers the teaching of anatomy and its
representation.
Romantic Oil Painting Made Easy
Robert Hagan
Cahill Art Enterprise
417 Main Street, Suite 200B, Carbondale, CO 81623
0-646-25893-1 $29.95
Romantic Oil Painting Made Easy reveals Robert Hagan's techniques for
creating
romantic oil paintings the easy way. Hagan shows, step-by-step, how to use
reference photographs and sketches to help assemble different elements to
form a
completely new setting, how to manipulate these elements to compose
enchanting
paintings using simple-to-understand "placement theory". Following the
instructions in Romantic Oil Painting Made Easy can enable any painter to
create
stunning backgrounds, place the first figure in a carefully chosen spot
serving
as the "command post" from which to "key" all other elements of the
painting.
The basic nuts and bolts of making a painting are described, along with
how to
work with the tow "mother colors". There are eight sensational
start-to-finish
demonstrations that are easily followed and emulated by the reader. The
exercises require only "Hagan's Basic Palette" and a few simple tools.
Color
palette, reference photographs, sample sketches, and helpful instructions
are
given for each set piece. Romantic Oil Painting Made Easy demystifies the
oil
painting process, enhancing the painting experience for the reader.
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