Hold It Against Me: Difficulty and Emotion in Contemporary Art


Jennifer Doyle - 2013
    She encourages readers to examine the ways in which works of art challenge how we experience not only the artist's feelings, but our own. Discussing performance art, painting, and photography, Doyle provides new perspectives on artists including Ron Athey, Aliza Shvarts, Thomas Eakins, James Luna, Carrie Mae Weems, and David Wojnarowicz. Confronting the challenge of writing about difficult works of art, she shows how these artists work with feelings as a means to question our assumptions about identity, intimacy, and expression. They deploy the complexity of emotion to measure the weight of history, and to deepen our sense of where and how politics happens in contemporary art. Doyle explores ideologies of emotion and how emotion circulates in and around art. Throughout, she gives readers welcoming points of entry into artworks that they may at first find off-putting or confrontational. Doyle offers new insight into how the discourse of controversy serves to shut down discussion about this side of contemporary art practice, and counters with a critical language that allows the reader to accept emotional intensity in order to learn from it.

Audrey in Rome


Luca Dotti - 2011
    This private album of rare snapshots—many never published before—show Hepburn in her everyday life as she strolls around the city, alone or with her family, arriving at or leaving the airport, buying postcards and flowers; walking her Yorkie Mr. Famous, carrying pastries to a Sunday lunch with her mother-in-law, having breakfast, and more. This is Audrey as we have never seen her before.Divided into three distinct parts—the 1950s, the 1960s, and the 1970s, Audrey in Rome captures day-to-day moments of this iconic actress’s life all the while examining the evolution of her personal style. Throughout, renowned fashion editor Sciascia Gambacini provides knowledgeable commentary on Hepburn’s covetable look and the designers of her clothing, accessories, and hairstyles, pointing both to the styles of times as well as to Audrey’s aesthetics and influence. Fans will love seeing how Audrey dressed off screen and stage—her minimalist approach to elegance is in full view. Each chapter discusses the actress’s life, films, and style during each decade. Key aspects of her style are pointed out and explored throughout the book: the basket bag, the little black dress, the pill box hat with a scarf tied around it, her array of ballet flats, loafers, cropped trousers, day dresses and coats, even evening wear. The book also contains set photographs of the films she made during her Rome years (Roman Holiday, War and Peace, The Nun's Story, Breakfast at Tiffany's), including images of Audrey with her directors, costars, and even on break in costume. Irresistible as the actress herself, Audrey in Rome opens the door to Hepburn's personal world.

The Lost Soul Companion: A Book of Comfort and Constructive Advice for Black Sheep, Square Pegs, Struggling Artists, and Other Free Spirits


Susan M. Brackney - 2000
    The ultimate survival guide for starving artists, writers, performers — and anyone whose dreams can’t be contained by an office cubicle.Filled with down-to-earth advice and sustenance for your most far-flung dreams, The Lost Soul Companion is the perfect guide for anyone grappling with the darker side of creativity.A source of support when your day job gets you down, a refreshing reservoir of humor when you’re knee-deep in rejection slips, this remarkable little book offers both inspiration and compassion, plus surefire strategies for surviving in what can sometimes seem like “a world of meanies.”From the anti-procrastination “chopstick plan,” to the importance of staying well nourished (toaster-oven-snack recipes included), The Lost Soul Companion will speak to anyone with big dreams and creative spirit who nonetheless finds it tough some days just to get out of bed.

Dividing Sword


Katrina D. Hamel - 2020
    A Pharisee disciple will do whatever it takes to secure his future, even betray those he loves. A young woman longs for peace and safety, but her heart pulls her far from home. What are they willing to give up for their faith?From the temperamental Sea of Galilee to the tinder-box that is Jerusalem, this journey through Matthew's gospel will sweep you into the first-century world. Witness the epic events of the gospel with all its wonder and conflict. See Jesus through the eyes of a woman and a Pharisee.Beth believes Jesus offers healing and hope, but his plan for her husband rises like the waves of the sea to wash away her dreams for the future. Afraid of being left behind, she chases after her husband Peter, but in traveling with Jesus she finds more questions than answers. As her husband pursues the Nazarene with his whole heart and her cousin's bitterness towards Jesus grows, she wonders, what place can a woman have in the coming kingdom?Reuben believes the way to a restored Israel is through careful obedience to law and tradition, and Jesus of Nazareth is challenging tradition at every turn. Under the watchful eye of his secretive rabbi, Reuben hopes he can rise above obscurity and take his place as a leader among men, but a disastrous confrontation with the Nazarene threatens to destroy his budding career. When his dreams collide with the people he loves, is he willing to do what it takes?“Powerful, imaginative, stirring! Get ready for a unique, substantive, and emotional journey down a stream that flows cleverly from, around, and through the Gospel of Matthew" —Gary D. Collier (Ph.D.), Director of the Institute for the Art of Biblical Conversation“This well-written book provides insight and reading pleasure. Even though we know the story, each chapter brings a new surprise. Hamel takes the abbreviated account in the Gospel and expands it using the knowledge we have about ancient Palestinian culture.” —Rev. Richard Davies (Ph.D.), Dean Emeritus, Martin University

Nineteenth Century Art: A Critical History


Stephen F. Eisenman - 1994
    This classic textbook examines the artistic movements and achievements of that time.

Jean Haines' Atmospheric Watercolours: Painting with Freedom, Expression and Style


Jean Haines - 2012
    Jean Haines’ enthusiasm for watercolours burst through every page of this inspirational book that will guide you, step by step, to creating beautiful and unique paintings of your own, whatever your ability.

A History Of Fine Arts In India And The West


Edith Tomory - 2006
    BOOKS

Portraiture


Shearer West - 2004
    How has portraiture changed over the centuries? How have portraits represented their subjects, and how have they been interpreted? The book provides a clear, yet thorough overview of the history of portraiture in terms of social, political, economic, and psychological factors over a broad time span. Issues such as identity, modernity, and gender are considered within their cultural and historical contexts.Shearer West uncovers intriguing aspects of portraiture-a genre that has often been seen as purely representational, featuring examples from African tribes to Renaissance princes, and from stars such as David and Victoria Beckham to everyday people. West examines the many meanings and uses of portraits throughout the ages and includes a wide range of artists from Botticelli to Picasso, and Hans Holbein to Frida Kahlo. In the process, she reveals the faces of the past in an exciting new way. Beautifully illustrated throughout, this book is a unique and accessible introduction to the history of portraiture.

The Silk Weaver's Wife


Debbie Rix - 2017
    It was of a young woman, seated at an easel; she was painting a silk moth, its eggs nestling on a mulberry leaf.’ 1704: Anastasia is desperate to escape her controlling and volatile father and plans to marry in secret. But instead of the life she has dreamed of, she finds herself trapped in Venice, the unwilling wife of a silk weaver. Despite her circumstances, Anastasia is determined to change her fate… 2017: Millie wants more from her relationship and more from her life. So when her boss Max abruptly ends their affair, she takes the opportunity to write a feature in Italy. Staying in a gorgeous villa, Millie unexpectedly falls in love with the owner, Lorenzo. Together they begin to unravel an incredible story, threaded through generations of silk weavers. And Millie finds herself compelled to discover the identity of a mysterious woman in a portrait… A gorgeously written, richly evocative story, The Silk Weaver’s Wife is perfect for readers who love Kate Morton and Gill Paul. What everyone is saying about Debbie Rix: ‘A spellbinding, epic journey spanning centuries, across countries, continents and vast perilous oceans… The past is vividly brought back to life in great detail and in full colour, from the food they ate to the clothes they wore… I really enjoyed reading this magnificent story.’ Relax and Read Books ‘Perfect historical fiction mixed with present day. I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed this book. I gobbled it up over the afternoon and night. Definitely want to read this author again.’ Nik Book Lover ‘The book is beautifully written and the Italian setting is perfectly drawn in both modern and historical settings, with sufficient detail to bring Pisa vividly to life, clearly by someone who loves it and knows it well… this is a wonderful story.’ Being Anne Reading ‘An amazing book rich in detail and filled with characters you are rooting for… Now having read two books from Debbie Rix she has proven to me just what a storyteller she is as she takes her readers on a journey through the past to a time that should not be forgotten. This book is a beautifully crafted novel full of secrets, love, friendship and family bonds… Definitely one not to be missed.’ Shaz’s Book Blog ‘A wonderfully written novel… definitely a book to add to your library. Not only was it highly informative, but immensely entertaining.’ Historical Novel Review ‘An enchanting, engaging tale that I recommend to anyone interested in Italian history and architecture, or just a good novel.’ History and Other Thoughts ‘Debbie manages to evoke the sights, sounds and smells as though you are standing right there. A truly lovely novel.’ Reading Room with a View ‘Debbie had me completely transported back to 12th Century Pisa, and I loved every second of it.

Finders Keepers: A Tale of Archaeological Plunder and Obsession


Craig Childs - 2010
    We visit lonesome desert canyons and fancy Fifth Avenue art galleries, journey throughout the Americas, Asia, the past and the present. The result is a brilliant book about man and nature, remnants and memory, a dashing tale of crime and detection.

I Am Secretly an Important Man


Steven "Jesse" Bernstein - 1996
    "The work is deeply felt...Bernstein has been there and brought it back. Bernstein is a writer." [William S. Burroughs]

Wagstaff: Before and After Mapplethorpe: A Biography


Philip Gefter - 2014
    Even today remembered primarily as the mentor and lover of Robert Mapplethorpe, the once infamous photographer, Wagstaff, in fact, had an incalculable—and largely overlooked—influence on the world of contemporary art and photography, and on the evolution of gay identity in the latter part of the twentieth century.  Born in New York City in 1921 into a notable family, Wagstaff followed an arc that was typical of a young man of his class. He attended both Hotchkiss and Yale, served in the navy, and would follow in step with his Ivy League classmates to the "gentleman's profession," as an ad executive on Madison Avenue. With his unmistakably good looks, he projected an aura of glamour and was cited by newspapers as one of the most eligible bachelors of the late 1940s. Such accounts proved deceiving, for Wagstaff was forced to live in the closet, his homosexuality only revealed to a small circle of friends. Increasingly uncomfortable with his career and this double life, he abandoned advertising, turned to the formal study of art history, and embarked on a radical personal transformation that was in perfect harmony with the tumultuous social, cultural, and sexual upheavals of the 1960s.Accordingly, Wagstaff became a curator, in 1961, at Hartford's Wadsworth Atheneum, where he mounted both "Black, White, and Gray"—the first museum show of minimal art—and the sculptor Tony Smith's first museum show, while lending his early support to artists Andy Warhol, Ray Johnson, and Richard Tuttle, among many others. Later, as a curator at the Detroit Institute of Arts, he brought the avant-garde to a regional museum, offending its more staid trustees in the process.After returning to New York City in 1972, the fifty-year-old Wagstaff met the twenty-five-year-old Queens-born Robert Mapplethorpe, then living with Patti Smith. What at first appeared to be a sexual dalliance became their now historic lifelong romance, in which Mapplethorpe would foster Wagstaff's own burgeoning interest in contemporary photography and Wagstaff would help secure Mapplethorpe's reputation in the art world. In spite of their profound class differences, the artistic union between the philanthropically inclined Wagstaff and the prodigiously talented Mapplethorpe would rival that of Stieglitz and O’Keefe, or Rivera and Kahlo, in their ability to help reshape contemporary art history.Positioning Wagstaff's personal life against the rise of photography as a major art form and the simultaneous formation of the gay rights movement, Philip Gefter's absorbing biography provides a searing portrait of New York just before and during the age of AIDS. The result is a definitive and memorable portrait of a man and an era.

Ancient India


R.C. Majumdar - 1952
    The work is divided into three broad divisions of the natural course of cultural development in Ancient India: (1) From the prehistoric age to 600 B.C., (2) From 600 B.C. to 300 A.D., (3) From 300 A.D. to 1200 A.D.The work describes the political, economic, religious and cultural conditions of the country, the expansionist activities, the colonisation schemes of her rulers in the Far East. Political theories and administrative organizations are also discussed but more stress has been laid on the religious, literary and cultural aspects of Ancient India.Among the more important additions may be mentioned the chapters on the prehistoric age, including the Indus Valley Civilization, more detailed account of the ancient republican clans and the various medieval local dynasties, specially those of the south and the development of art and colonisation. Important changes, though much less extensive, have been made in chapters dealing with political theory and administrative system, as well as social and economic condition and an entirely new section on coins has been added. Considerable other modifications and rearrangements, involving re-grouping of chapters, have been made and more copious footnotes and fuller bibliography have been added for the guidance of advanced students.The book is of a more advanced type. It would meet the needs not only of general readers but also of earnest students who require a thorough grasp of the essential facts and features before taking up specialized study in any branch of the subject. It would also fulfil requirements of the candidates for competitive examinations in which Ancient Indian History and culture is a prescribed subject.

Henri Matisse: A Second Life


Alastair Sooke - 2014
    In a body of work spanning over a half-century, he was variously a draughtsman, a printmaker, a sculptor and a painter. This short book is both a biography and a guide to his art. It focuses on the extraordinary works that Henri Matisse made during the last period of his life - the large-scale cut-outs on coloured paper, including his famous Blue Nudes, The Snail and Large Composition with Masks.

Johanna: A Novel of the Van Gogh Family


Claire Cooperstein - 1995
    When she married Theo van Gogh, Johanna had everything she wanted - a husband who adored her, an exciting life as part of Paris's thriving art scene, and escape from a doting but oppressive father. Her happiness evaporated with Vincent's suicide. Shattered by his brother's death, Theo suffered a mental collapse from which he never recovered. When he died, Johanna was left with an infant son and an art collection most thought worthless. The Impressionist and Independent artists Theo had championed, such as Monet and Gauguin, were considered incompetents by all but the most avant-garde critics. Determined not to live with her parents, Johanna supported herself and her child by opening a boardinghouse, which shortly became a gathering place for the literati and modern artists of Amsterdam, as well as the feminists of that period.