Chronicles three decades of conversation between Lawrence Weschler and light and space master Robert Irwin. This book surveys many of Irwin's site-conditioned projects - in particular the Central Gardens at the Getty Museum and the design that transformed an abandoned Hudson Valley factory into Dia's new Beacon campus.
In his first major publication for four years (excepting the smaller, project-led Arch and Wall), Andy Goldsworthy examines the complementary dimension in his work to the sheer physicality of Stone and Wood. The recent work included here is at once new and recognisable: an illustrated chronology by curator and long-time admirer Terry Friedman reveals themes that he has revisited and variegated over 25 years, and to which time has lent an increasingly influential angle, while remaining rooted in the British landscape. The creation of a work a day connects up his life in a continuous artistic narrative, while his earthy materials often draw on centuries of artisan heritage, while embracing seasonal change. The issue of power is fundamental to his working: there is a sense in which he plays God with the potential of his resources, and for the observer, some of the magic lies in the split moment when one sees his instilled order without mental recourse to his hand. The effect can be strikingly epiphanic. At the other end of the spectrum, his communion with the elements puts him at their mercy, subjugating to their will, and investing his creations with an unpredictability fundamental to his intention. Snow melts, ice collapses, clay cracks, wind blows; he is "nurturing" rather than "forcing" a form into being.
The photographic records are sublime, and vital to his ephemerality, whether in Montreal, Digne, Nova Scotia, Holland, New Mexico or Cornell. The accompanying text, a continuing dialogue for Goldsworthy, explores still further his familiar conceits, though diary excerpts give evidence of the toil behind the beauty, and bring out the unpredictability of his work, from which he unflaggingly draws inspiration, whether on a beach, in a river, in a wood, or in a gallery. One is left with an intuitively organic sense of continuity, of which this absorbing and lavish volume is itself a record of regenerative temporality: "What I have made so far gives me a strong sense of the work yet to come." --David Vincent
Joseph Cornell created a 'poetic theatre of memory' from his fantasies. This volume probes Cornell's imagery in his earliest Surrealist-inspired collages of the 1930s, his box constructions of the 1940s and 1950s, his experimental films, and his final collages in his last years.
With the increasing disappearance of stained glass in medieval churches, the surviving wood carvings on church misericords and bench ends are extremely important in providing an insight into the medieval mind. The carved images were often used to convey the messages of the Christian faith in the Middle Ages but they were not just concerned with religion and religious symbols – they also told stories of mythology, humour and satire, showing illustrations of everyday life and people. This book outlines the history of church seating and discusses the craftsmen and the influences behind their work. Using illustrations, the author then explains the subject matter of these wood carvings, revealing how one can discover so much about medieval life – the spiritualism, moralism and the wit – within the carvings still found in churches today.
With the increasing disappearance of stained glass in medieval churches, the surviving wood carvings on church misericords and bench ends are extremely important in providing an insight into the medieval mind. This book outlines the history of church seating and discusses the craftsmen and the influences behind their work.
An illustrated book which traces the life and work of Gianlorenzo Bernini. Covering his career from his brilliant beginnings to his last mature works, it focuses on his techniques in drawing, modelling and carving. It also considers his relationship with patrons and his reputation as an artist through the centuries.
Benvenuto Cellini is an artist-craftsman, one of the greatest sculptors in the renaissance, passionately devoted to art, the worshipper and frequenter of the great men of his time, the 'divine' Michelangelo, who came to his studio. This autobiography gives an account of his daily life in Renaissance Florence and Rome, its studios, and its taverns.
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini, celebrated Italian goldsmith (1500-1571), in which Cellini tells the story of his life and art and also depicts the manners and morals of both the rulers and their subjects in 16th Century Italy. This new edition includes new notes on the text and a chronology.
Mouldmaking and Casting is a technical manual of the many techniques of this ancient craft and art form. With step-by-step illustrations, it explains the materials required and the processes involved to create reproductions of a range of pieces.
