The life of the painter Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920) was chaotic and tragically brief. Consisting of a series of vignettes, mostly set in the painter's studio and peopled by his lover Jeanne Hébuterne (who ended her own life the day after Modigliani's death), the prostitutes who were his occasional models and several Bohemian visitors, the novel spans the last months of Modigliani's life, evoking the strange workings of the painter's troubled and often drug-fuelled mind and its expression in his paintings, ultimately succeeding in conveying something of the intense artistic life of Paris in the first decades of the twentieth century.

In today's art world many strange, even shocking, things qualify as art. In this book, Cynthia Freeland explains why innovation and controversy are valued in the arts, weaving together philosophy and art theory with many fascinating examples. She discusses blood, beauty, culture, money, museums, sex, and politics, clarifying contemporary and historical accounts of the nature, function, and interpretation of the arts. Freeland also propels us into the future by surveying cutting-edge web sites, along with the latest research on the brain's role in perceiving art. This clear, provocative book engages with the big debates surrounding our responses to art and is an invaluable introduction to anyone interested in thinking about art.

Like music, art is a universal language. Although looking at works of art is a pleasurable enough experience, to appreciate them fully requires certain skills and knowledge." --Carol Strickland, from the introduction to The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern * This heavily illustrated crash course in art history is revised and updated. This second edition of Carol Strickland's The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern offers an illustrated tutorial of prehistoric to post-modern art from cave paintings to video art installations to digital and Internet media. * Featuring succinct page-length essays, instructive sidebars, and more than 300 photographs, The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern takes art history out of the realm of dreary textbooks, demystifies jargon and theory, and makes art accessible-even at a cursory reading. * From Stonehenge to the Guggenheim and from Holbein to Warhol, more than 25,000 years of art is distilled into five sections covering a little more than 200 pages.

Catalog of an exhibition held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, April 5-July 4, 2011.

Edgar Award–Nominated Series: A courtroom case has dangerous implications for a presidential race—and a group of friends who thought they’d left the past behind . . . When defense attorney Joseph Antonelli attends a Harvard Law School reunion at Manhattan’s Plaza Hotel, he isn’t prepared for how unsettling his return will be. Long ago, at a party in this very hotel, a young woman fell from a window to her death. At the time, the event was ruled an accident, but the case is about to be reopened, and a possible witness, the vice president of the United States, is wary of its potential to ruin his political chances . . . When the trial begins, the nation’s eyes turn to the accused, and to the powerful players both within and beyond the White House who want the downtrodden suspect out of the way. But can Antonelli uncover just where the secrets lie—and exactly who is playing whom? “Maddening suspense, captivating courtroom scenes, and a marvelously twisted ending.” —Booklist Praise for the Joseph Antonelli Thrillers “Adroit and often elegant.” —Los Angeles Times “Absorbing.” —Orlando Sentinel “Electrically charged.” —The New York Times

The 35th anniversary of this classic of art theory.