While the foundations of the Josette and Jean-Claude Weill Collection lie in painting, their passion for seeking out exciting new forms soon led them to embrace the infinite diversity of tribal art. Expanded over the decades under the enthusiastic stewardship of their son Jean-Pierre, the collection now includes over 120 works of the very highest order, covering Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. Several large categories can be discerned, reflecting the Weill family’s liking for daring, expressionistic forms: Dogon and Tellem statues combining geometric shapes with textured surfaces, as well as Kongo powerful figures endowed with magic properties. The expressive arts of Nigeria, Cameroon, and Melanesia are also well represented in the collection. Among the more classic works there are pieces that have iconic status – such as the Bena Lulua statue that used to belong to Jacques Kerchache, Edward Robinson’s Fang reliquary figure, or the Biwat powerful flute plug from the Lemaire Collection – that testify to the sureness of the Weill’s taste and to the shrewd instinct that led them to appreciate this art from another world. An important group of finely carved small ivories makes up one-third of the whole collection. This book will provide an opportunity to unveil the Parisian collection shrouded in mystery, whose importance is matched only by its confidentiality. In order to enable the reader to capture the full richness and diversity of its contents, the works are all accompanied by notes written by experts, including Viviane Baeke (Africa Museum, Tervuren), Philippe Dagen (historian and art critic), Jean-Paul Colleyn (anthropologist), Bertrand Goy (author specializing in the Ivory Coast), Hélène Joubert (Musée du Quai Branly-Jaques Chirac), Hélène Leloup (historian and antiquarian), Sean Mooney (the Rock Foundation), and Philippe Peltier (formerly at Musée du Quai Branly-Jaques Chirac).

First to translate two of the oldest accounts of Musashi’s career – the Bushû denraiki and the Bukôden – William de Lange presents a full biography of the most famous yet enigmatic of swordsmen. In doing so, he draws extensively on a wealth of additional and often neglected sources to reconstruct the meandering course of Musashi’s eventful life: his dramatic encounter with Sasaki Kojirô on Ganryû island, his multiple bouts with the famed Yoshioka brothers, and the remarkable gestation of his life’s influential work: The Book of Five Rings. In the course of this highly readable account, many of the convenient myths that have arisen around Musashi are debunked. The more controversial incidents of the warrior’s life that have been left hidden, perhaps deliberately, are uncovered: his troubled relationship with his father, his whereabouts during the battle of Sekigahara, the siege of Osaka castle, and the birth and death of an illegitimate child, which was an event that deeply influenced his art. The biography reveals how Musashi’s path through life was shaped by strong personal traits: his reckless valor in the face of danger, his sensitive intelligence in the fields of art and architecture, his generosity toward peers and pupils, and his defiant stubbornness in old age. The complex yet human portrait that arises is a far cry from the accepted one-dimensional caricature of this medieval swordsman.

The Baptistery of San Giovanni is not only one of the most magnificent monuments in all Italy, but also a splendid anthology of great Florentine art in marble and stone, in mosaic and bronze, and the emblem of the religious and political ideals of Florence.

Mirabilia Italiæ is a unique series. It owes its existence to an innovative and ambitious project: an atlas of the great monuments of Italy that will display them in all their details, from the best known to the least. This series represents a completely new way of documenting art. Mirabilia Italiæ provides a guided tour of each monument, fully and accurately explained. Each atlas contains hundreds of color photographs, arranged in a precise topographical sequence and accompanied by diagrams showing the exact location of each detail. The atlas is complemented by a volume of texts edited by the premier scholars in the field, consisting of critical essays and descriptive notes. Essays examine the monument from the art-historical point of view, and record the alterations it has undergone over time. Descriptive notes analyze the content and significance of the images. Extensive cross-references link the essays and notes to the images, facilitating consultation of the work. The General Editor of Mirabilia Italiæ is Salvatore Settis, Director of the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa.

Text in English and Italian.

Founded probably in the 5th or 6th century, the Cathedral of Genoa was later rebuilt in Romanesque style and devoted to St. Lawrence the martyr. Money came from the successful enterprises of the Genoese fleets in the Crusades. After a fire in 1296, the building was partly restored, the inner colonnades rebuilt and matronei and frescoes added. In 1550 the Perugian architect Galeazzo Alessi was commissioned by the city magistrates to plan the reconstruction of the entire building, but the construction of the cathedral didn’t finish until the 17th century.

Among the artworks inside the church are ceiling frescoes, paintings and altarpieces by Luca Cambiaso, Federico Barocci, Lazzaro Tavarone and Gaetano Previati, while sculpture include works by Domenico Gagini, Andrea Sansovino, Giacomo and Guglielmo Della Porta. Impressive are also the works of art and silverware kept in the Museum of the Treasury which lies under the cathedral. One of the most important pieces is the Sacred bowl brought by Guglielmo Embriaco after the conquest of Cesarea and supposed to be the chalice used by Christ during the Last Supper.

Contributors include: Gianluca Ameri, Beatrice Astrua, Michele Bacci, Piero Boccardo, Antonella Capitanio, Marco Ciatti, Marco Collareta, Anna De Floriani, Clario Di Fabio, Grazia Di Natale, Gabriele Donati, Lucia Faedo, Marco Folin, Maria Flora Giubilei, Henrike Haug, Karin Kranhold, Anna Rosa Calderoni Masetti, Roberto Paolo Novello, Linda Pisani, Stefano Riccioni, Giorgio Rossini, Philippe Sénéchal, Carlo Tosco, Gerhard Wolf, Photographs by Ghigo Roli.

Text in English and Italian.

Adorned on the outside with a magnificent marble entrance, the Libreria Piccolomini possesses on the inside a jewel-like cycle of frescoes painted by Pinturicchio. For the first time this fresco cycle – of remarkable pictorial quality – is fully illustrated in all in inexhaustible narrative and chromatic richness. Mirabilia Italiæ is a unique series. It owes its existence to an innovative and ambitious project: an atlas of the great monuments of Italy that will display them in all their details, from the best known to the least. This series represents a completely new way of documenting art.

Mirabilia Italiæ provides a guided tour of each monument, fully and accurately explained. Each atlas contains hundreds of color photographs, arranged in a precise topographical sequence and accompanied by diagrams showing the exact location of each detail. The atlas is complemented by a volume of texts edited by the premier scholars in the field, consisting of critical essays and descriptive notes. Essays examine the monument from the art-historical point of view, and record the alterations it has undergone over time. Descriptive notes analyze the content and significance of the images. Extensive cross-references link the essays and notes to the images, facilitating consultation of the work. The General Editor of Mirabilia Italiæ is Salvatore Settis, Director of the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa.

Text in English and Italian.

The Scrovegni Chapel, a masterpiece in the history of painting in Italy and Europe in the 14th century, is considered to be the most complete series of frescoes executed by Giotto in his mature age. Mirabilia Italiæ is a unique series. It owes its existence to an innovative and ambitious project: an atlas of the great monuments of Italy that will display them in all their details, from the best known to the least. This series represents a completely new way of documenting art. Mirabilia Italiæ provides a guided tour of each monument, fully and accurately explained. Each atlas contains hundreds of color photographs, arranged in a precise topographical sequence and accompanied by diagrams showing the exact location of each detail. The atlas is complemented by a volume of texts edited by the premier scholars in the field, consisting of critical essays and descriptive notes. Essays examine the monument from the art-historical point of view, and record the alterations it has undergone over time. Descriptive notes analyze the content and significance of the images. Extensive cross-references link the essays and notes to the images, facilitating consultation of the work. The General Editor of Mirabilia Italiæ is Salvatore Settis, Director of the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa.

Text in Italian.

Exploring the vast range of materials and techniques used in the making of Tibetan clothing and ornaments, this book takes a closer, more intimate look at the different cultural groups within this diverse country, discussing how national costume relates to their everyday life. The technical approach will appeal to spinners, weavers, felt makers, braiders, embroiderers, jewellers and costume enthusiasts. The book will also interest many general readers in Europe and America who are fascinated by the aura of the Tibetan Region; the lifestyle of the people who live amongst Tibet’s high peaks, emerald forests, and stunning lakes command world-wide interest. Richly illustrated with the author’s evocative contemporary high quality photographs, dating from the mid 1980s, this book is a visual journey into the heart of the country. It documents the people, and their costumes and related crafts, focussing on the historical Tibetan regions of Amdo and Kham. Tibetan Dress is unique in its reflection of historical material. It combines this academic knowledge base with original observations and wide-ranging interviews with nomads and farmers, all of which centre around costumes locally possessed and worn by Tibetans today.

This history marks the tercentenary of Jacques de Gastigny’s founding bequest for La Providence, the French hospital for the Huguenot community in England. Its survival and continuing existence today bears witness to the tenacity of the community of Huguenot refugees and their descendants. Chapters on the successive phases of its history are illustrated with portraits of the Directors and Officers, and the silver, furniture, engravings, heraldry and other memorabilia associated with them. The book traces the history of this institution from the building of the original hospital in the parish of St. Luke’s, Finsbury, and the granting of the Royal Charter by George I in 1718, to the construction of a new building in Victoria Park, Hackney, in the 1860s designed by Robert Roumieu, an architect of Huguenot descent. In its present location in Rochester, Kent, La Providence provides sheltered housing for elderly people of proven Huguenot descent. For more information please visit: http://www.johnadamsonbooks.com/frenchhospital.html

“The first and taboo-breaking book on negative birthing experience. Will provide a big support for many women!” Tosca Gort, psychologist “An eye-opener for women with birth trauma and a must-read for care professionals who want to learn more.” Dr. Claire Stramrood, gynecologist “I wish this book had existed four years ago. My friends and family seemed to be pushing the joy of motherhood down my throat while, to me, the delivery felt more like a landslide. Thanks to Diana’s coaching, I became the old Maria again.” Maria, mum of two daughters Childbirth deeply affects the life of a woman and her partner. Fortunately the effect is usually a positive one. Many people declare the day their child was born as the most beautiful day of their lives. However, giving birth can also be a negative experience, with long-term consequences. This book explains how a negative birthing might affect you, your relationship with your baby and your partner. With the help of practical exercises and honest accounts from women who have overcome birth trauma themselves, you will learn to process this experience and restore your inner balance. Described as “The first and taboo-breaking book on negative birthing experience,” this book will provide a pillar for many women, who have been suffering in silence for too long.

The city is not just a place where creative talents meet and work, it is also a place where they live. Feeling Living magazine has selected 20 of the most fascinating and beautiful city abodes of people who spend their lives pushing the envelope of innovation and creativity. Scattered around major European cities, these lofts, houses, industrial-style spaces, and Hausmann-style apartments are often surprising, and always interesting. This book invites you into their homes, and shares with you their vision of city life. Text in English, French and Dutch.

From 22 September 2017 to 21 January 2018 Palazzo Strozzi will be hosting a splendid exhibition devoted to the art of the second half of the 16th century in Florence, the third and final act in a trilogy which began with Bronzino ISBN 9788874611546, in 2010 and was followed by Pontormo and Rosso Fiorentino ISBN 9788874612161, in 2014. Curated by Carlo Falciani and Antonio Natali, the show, and this accompanying book, explores the development of Florentine art in the second half of the century through the painting, sculpture, and draughtsmanship of such artists as Andrea del Sarto, Bronzino, Pontormo, Giorgio Vasari, Giambologna and Bartolomeo Ammannati. The exhibition will also provide a unique opportunity to celebrate the outstanding cultural and intellectual era that was marked by the Council of Trent and its Counter-Reformation, and by the figure of Francesco I de Medici, one of the most outstanding figures in the history of court patronage of the arts in Europe.

The Mughals established a mighty empire that dominated India for two centuries. With their passion for nature and art, the Mughal emperors laid out verdant gardens, built splendid monuments including the Taj Mahal, and commissioned beautiful books. Books were precious to the Mughal kings. Expensive and laborious to produce, they were symbols of royal wealth, power and intelligence. At the height of Mughal power, the imperial studios hummed with the activity of hundreds of papermakers, calligraphers, painters and bookbinders, all producing books for the royal libraries. Many manuscripts were illustrated with exquisite miniature paintings, in which the Mughals took a special delight. Today these books and paintings, treasured by museums around the world, offer us unique perspectives into Mughal lives.

Over the last decade in India, many cities have undertaken pathbreaking initiatives in resolving issues associated with urban transport, and, specifically, mass transit system. The Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) is now acknowledged as a key mode to help large-scale mobility of people. Today, eighteen cities in the country are at different stages of planning, design, execution and operation in their BRTS journey.

The Janmarg, as the BRTS is known in Ahmedabad, explored many options before choosing its design approach. Many of these experiments led to innovations and best practices. Since its inauguration in October 2009, Janmarg has been accepted as the first ‘complete’ BRTS in India.

This book traces the design journey of Janmarg, the alternatives that were considered, the rationale underlying the choices made, the innovations it fostered and lessons for the future for Ahmedabad and for other cities. The volume will be a valuable resource for researches as well as students.

Contents:
Background; BRTS Design; Basic Layout; Cross Sections; Junction Design; Placemaking; Street Design Elements; Transit Infrastructure System; Ideas for Future.

A fascinating exploration into the landscape painting career of one of Scotland’s best-loved designers and architects: Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

Known worldwide for his architecture and interior designs, Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868-1928) was also an extremely gifted painter. Towards the end of his life, he gave up his principal career as an architect and moved to the south of France where he devoted himself to painting in watercolor. Meticulously executed and brilliantly colored, these landscape watercolors are conceived with a sense of design and an eye for pattern in nature, which owes much to his brilliance as an architect and designer. This book charts Mackintosh’s time in France and explores his career as a landscape painter, placing his work in the context of the modern movement. The 44 paintings Mackintosh is known to have completed while in France are illustrated, and are supported by documentary photographs of the places he painted as well as extracts from his letters written to his wife and friends.

In the last twenty-five years contemporary art in Scotland has grown from a tiny and tightly knit community to a globally recognized center of artistic innovation and experiment. This book provides the first comprehensive and fully illustrated guide to the art of the period. Featuring the work of more than eighty contemporary artists who first made their careers in Scotland including Turner Prize winners Douglas Gordon, Simon Starling and Martin Boyce. An accessible introduction for new audiences and a handy reference guide to the art of this period.

“Nicholson’s Scottish paintings encapsulate her concerns with light, radiance and harmony which she expressed through flowers and the lyricism of the natural landscape.” – The Independent
Throughout her long and varied career, Winifred Nicholson (1893-1981) was concerned with light, color and radiance. Best known for her sensitive and joyful flower paintings, she married Ben Nicholson in 1920 and their mutually influential artistic relationship lasted, despite separation, until Winifred’s death. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, she made regular working trips to Scotland, often accompanied by the poet, Kathleen Raine. Frequently staying on the islands of Eigg and Canna and in Sandaig on the mainland, Winifred felt a deep affinity with the Scottish landscape and marvelled at the quality of light and the effects created by the ever-changing weather conditions. Her last painting expedition was to Eigg in 1980. Winifred Nicholson in Scotland is based on personal correspondence and the recollections of relatives, friends and painting companions. The book examines Winifred Nicholson’s love for Scotland and illustrates her Scottish paintings.

“Seldom does a collection of art history essays leave readers yearning for a second volume…”—Barbara Wisch, Renaissance Quarterly

Roman church interiors throughout the Early Modern age were endowed with rich historical and visual significance. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, in anticipation of and following the Council of Trent, and in response to the expansion of the Roman Curia, the chapel became a singular arena in which wealthy and powerful Roman families, as well as middle-class citizens, had the opportunity to demonstrate their status and role in Roman society. In most cases the chapels were conceived not as isolated spaces, but as part of a more complex system, which involved the nave and the other chapels within the church, in a dialogue among the arts and the patrons of those other spaces. This volume explores this historical and artistic phenomenon through a number of examples involving the patronage of prominent Roman families such as the Chigis, Spadas, Caetanis, Cybos and important artists and architects such as Federico Zuccari, Giacomo della Porta, Carlo Maderno, Alessandro Algardi, Pietro da Cortona, Carlo Maratta.

Giovanni Morelli changed the way we look at art. Before Morelli (1816-1891), the attribution of a painting to a particular artist or school was often based on overall impression, hearsay, even gut feeling. But Morelli, having trained as a medical doctor to look closely at anatomical detail, applied scientific rigor to understanding the works of masters such as Titian, Leonardo, and Raphael, and of other Renaissance and Baroque painters. By closely scrutinising, analysing and comparing details overlooked by most other collectors, critics, and curators, his radical ‘Morellian method’ became the basis of modern art connoisseurship. A proud Italian of Swiss Protestant heritage, Morelli was also a staunch patriot. He risked his life in the Italian Wars of Independence, and was elected four times to the parliament of the newly unified nation. In 1873 he was nominated senator for life. As a statesman he fought for his homeland’s cultural patrimony: at a time when many of Italy’s great art collections were being snapped up by foreign collectors and museums, he introduced some of the world’s first legislation to prevent their loss to the nation. The Life of Giovanni Morelli in Risorgimento Italy is the first full biography of this important figure, including his romantic friendships with remarkable women such as Clementina Frizzoni, Laura Acton Minghetti (wife of the Italian prime minister), and Princess Victoria (daughter of Queen Victoria and subsequently empress of Germany). At his death he bequeathed his art collection to the Accademia Carrara in Bergamo, the birthplace of his mother, a city he loved.

The Selous was my very first Africa experience, and it remains my favorite. Robert J. Ross’s extraordinary photographs take us into a natural world unlike any other on earth. A world of elephants. Of wild dogs. Of nature as it should be, can be, might be – if we keep these breathtaking images firmly in mind. A triumph! Bryan Christy, Director, Special Investigations Unit, National Geographic
The Selous Game Reserve in southern Tanzania is Africa’s oldest and largest protected area.  Proclaimed in 1896, and bigger than Switzerland, the Selous is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Selous remains one of Africa’s largest and greatest undisturbed ecosystems, teeming with life including one of the two largest elephant populations remaining on the African continent, probably half of all of the wild dogs in Africa, vast herds of buffalo as well as more lions than any other protected area on the continent as reported by National Geographic in August 2013. The game reserve is becoming more important by the day as the pressure on elephants and other species grows – problems that are addressed here in this book. New-York born photographer Rob Ross has spent much of the past four years photographing in this vast and difficult to access reserve. He has compiled more than 100,000 images showing all aspects of the reserves varied landscapes, seasons, flora and large and small fauna. The spectacular large-format photography book features a selection of the very best images including landscapes, wildlife portraits and behavior, night photography, impressionist style work and breath-taking aerials.

Hand-In-Hand: Ceramics, Mosaics, Tapestries, and Wood Carvings by the California Mid-Century Designers Evelyn and Jerome Ackerman is the first monograph of the artists whose oeuvre was critically influential and is now seen as the epitome of California mid-century modernism. With a preface by Jonathan Adler, the book tracks the couple’s careers in the decorative arts from their beginnings to the creation of Jenev Design Studio and its eventual shift to ERA Industries, as well as their involvement in every prestigious California Design exhibition from 1954 to 1976. Additionally, after almost 30 years of work they continued to create and develop their styles. The Ackermans became known for their uses of a wide spectrum of mediums including weaving, ceramics, wood carvings, and mosaics. The Ackermans’ individualistic and innovative techniques also ensured that great design be both accessible and affordable. Featuring many never-before-seen preparatory drawings and color guides, this book tells the heartening story of a successful collaboration and celebrated partnership, in not only design, but in life.

On April 27, 2018, six large-scale sculptures were unveiled along New York’s historic Broadway – from across from Lincoln Center, at 64th Street and extending up to 157th Street. The artist, Kathy Ruttenberg, most known for her fantastical mix of human, nature, and plant forms used in ceramics, watercolour, and sculpture, spent months planning, designing, and executing the works. From an armless mouse atop a squash-like pedestal, to an upside-down female Atlas, a woman caught in a contemplative moment while inside a snail’s shell, and a deer-man and his tree-lady partner who walk in an embrace these fairytale-like creatures are juxtaposed against New York’s chaotic urban landscape. In Dreams Awake also the name of the installation tracks Ruttenberg’s progress is tracked from concept to the final results. Sponsored by the Broadway Mall Association, the installation will be up through March 2019. Contents: Kathy Comes to Broadway Thinking Big: Kathy Ruttenberg’s Transition to Bronze Cavalcade Introduction All the World’s a Stage In Sync Transformation Ms. Mighty Mouse Snail’s Pace Topsy Turvy Fish Bowl Epilogue Acknowledgments Index Captions & Photography Credits

The Kabbalistic idea of creation, as expressed through light, space, and geometry, has left its unmistakable mark on our civilization. Drawing upon a wide array of historical materials and stunning images of contemporary art, sculpture, and architecture, architect Alexander Gorlin explores the influence, whether actually acknowledged or not, of the Kabbalah on modern design in his unprecedented book Kabbalah in Art and Architecture. Gorlin brings light to the translation of the mystical philosophy into a physical form, drawing clear comparisons between philosophy and design that will excite and exalt. Comprising ten chapters that each outline key concepts of the Kabbalah and its representations, both in historic diagrams and the modern built environment, Kabbalah in Art and Architecture puts forth an unparalleled and compelling reinterpretation of art and architecture through the lens of the Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism. A chapter on the Golem, and an epilogue that discusses German artist Anselm Kiefer’s powerful interpretations of the Kabbalah, complete this unique book.