"The Contributions of Artists Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Maurice Denis, and Ker Xavier Roussel to the French avant-garde of the 1890s, as members of the Nabis, are widely recognized. What is less known about these artists' careers is their extraordinary work in decorative painting - work on a large or unusual scale for private interiors. This illustrated book focuses on the many decorative works carried out by the four artists between 1890 and 1930. During these years, they moved beyond the narrow parameters of easel painting and applied their wholly untraditional aesthetic of decoration to a wide range of works for domestic interiors, from wall-size ensembles to folding screens. The cosmopolitan group of patrons who made this work possible ranged from the avant-garde circle of La Revue Blanche to prominent members of the French establishment. An examination of their role and tastes is another fascinating feature of this publication." "The book and accompanying exhibition reunite paintings that have long been dispersed, introducing contemporary viewers to a group of bold and evocative works, which had a wide-ranging, though little-recognized, influence on modern art. As the book's authors argue, the aesthetic embodied by these works indeed helped set the stage for the large, non-narrative paintings by artists as diverse as Rothko and Lichtenstein that came to dominate the avant-garde after World War II."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Conservation of Easel Paintings, Second Edition provides a much-anticipated update to the previous edition, which has come to be known internationally as an invaluable and comprehensive text on the history, philosophy and methods of the treatment of easel paintings. Including 49 chapters written by more than 90 respected authors from around the world, this volume offers the necessary background knowledge in technical art history, artists’ materials and scientific methods of examination and documentation. Later sections of the book provide information about the varying approaches and methods for treatment and issues of preventive conservation, as well as valuable reflections on storage, shipping, and exhibition. Including exciting developments that have taken place since the last edition was published, the book also covers new techniques of examination, especially MacroXRF scanning and Reflectance Transmission Imagery. Drawing on research presented at recent professional conferences, information about innovative methods for cleaning modern and contemporary paintings and insights into modern oil paints is also included. Incorporating the latest regulations and understanding of health and safety practices and integrating theory with practice throughout, Conservation of Easel Paintings, Second Edition will continue to be an indispensable reference for practicing conservators. It will also be an essential resource for students taking conservation courses around the world.

This book is based on my 30+ years of elite athlete/corporate executive coaching. It speaks about the psychology of performance.

Most art books are not in the first person, so while there is some truth to the analyses, some things are always off. Robert C. Jackson set out to interview 20 contemporary representational artists (himself included) and showcase their artwork within the context of their interviews. Here you will meet Steven Assael, Bo Bartlett, Debra Bermingham, Margaret Bowland, Paul Fenniak, Scott Fraser, Woody Gwyn, F. Scott Hess, Laurie Hogin, Robert C. Jackson, Alan Magee, Janet Monafo, John Moore, Charles Pfahl, Scott Prior, Stone Roberts, Sandra Mendelsohn Rubin, Daniel Sprick, Will Wilson, and Jerome Witkin. Each of these artists has a very elusive qualityâa unique voice. Seeing their work from across a room they are all recognizable. Their artworks are showcased in this large book with more than 140 images of their paintings as well as photographs of the artists in their studios and an epilogue by Pamela Sienna.

A dazzlingly original and ambitious book on the history of female self-portraiture by one of today's most well-respected art critics. Her story weaves in and out of time and place. She's Frida Kahlo, Loïs Mailou Jones and Amrita Sher-Gil en route to Mexico City, Paris or Bombay. She's Suzanne Valadon and Gwen John, craving city lights, the sea and solitude; she's Artemisia Gentileschi striding through the streets of Naples and Paula Modersohn-Becker in Worpswede. She's haunting museums in her paint-stained dress, scrutinising how El Greco or Titian or Van Dyck or Cézanne solved the problems that she too is facing. She's railing against her corsets, her chaperones, her husband and her brothers; she's hammering on doors, dreaming in her bedroom, working day and night in her studio. Despite the immense hurdles that have been placed in her way, she sits at her easel, picks up a mirror and paints a self-portrait because, as a subject, she is always available. Until the twentieth century, art history was, in the main, written by white men who tended to write about other white men. The idea that women in the West have always made art was rarely cited as a possibility. Yet they have - and, of course, continue to do so - often against tremendous odds, from laws and religion to the pressures of family and public disapproval. In The Mirror and the Palette, Jennifer Higgie introduces us to a cross-section of women artists who embody the fact that there is more than one way to understand our planet, more than one way to live in it and more than one way to make art about it. Spanning 500 years, biography and cultural history intertwine in a narrative packed with tales of rebellion, adventure, revolution, travel and tragedy enacted by women who turned their back on convention and lived lives of great resilience, creativity and bravery.

Creative Lettering and Beyond combines the artistic talents, inspirational tips, and tutorials of four professional hand letterers and calligraphers for a dynamic and interactive learning experience. After a brief introduction to the various tools and materials, artists and lettering enthusiasts will learn how to master the art of hand lettering and typography through easy-to-follow step-by-step projects, prompts, and exercises. From the basic shape and form of letters to cursive script, spacing, and alignment, artists will discover how to transform simple words, phrases, and quotes into beautiful works of hand-lettered art. The interactive format and step-by-step process offers inspirational instruction for a wide variety of fun projects and gift ideas, including hand-rendered phrases on paper and digitally enhanced note cards. Artists will also discover how to apply lettering to linen, coffee mugs, calendars, and more. Numerous practice pages and interactive prompts throughout the book invite readers to put their newfound lettering skills to use, as well as work out their artistic ideas. Covering a variety of styles and types of lettered art, including calligraphy, illustration, chalk lettering, and more, artists will find a plethora of exercises and tips to help them develop their own unique lettering style.

"In the 1970s, Japanese robotics expert Masahiro Mori published an article that coined and theorized the idea of the "uncanny valley" as a measurable correlation between the human likeness of a machine and people's comfort level with its presence. Criticized as flawed from the moment of its appearance and eventually debunked by empirical studies, Mori's original mapping of the "uncanny valley" may have no scientific grounding, but the term still endures as an apt metaphor for a technologically induced terrain of philosophical, biological, and social uncertainty. With the development of major technologies from the atom bomb to the digital computer and the emergence of cybernetics and artificial intelligence as academic disciplines since the Second World War, this terrain is no longer the sole purview of life-like automatons or robots but is increasingly occupied by developments in machine intelligence, biodigital mergence, and related issues of cloning and other forms of genetic manipulation that have reshaped the debate around the liminality of humanity. As the construction and definitions of subjectives and societies are increasingly organized and shaped by technological events that imitate or improve upon-even if only partially-fundamental functions of our bodies and minds, the question of what it means to be or remain human has been reopened for debate"--