Product Description
Chic Chicago: Couture Treasures from the Chicago History Museum features the most stunning piecesfrom one of the greatest costume collections in the world. From its earliest days, Chicago was viewedas a grimy upstart consumed by business and the almighty dollar. Nicknames such as hog butcher tothe world, gangland, and second city persist even today. In response to this perception, a small numberof wealthy women purchased and wore high fashion in the hope of claiming Chicago as chic; fashion, they believed, was a powerful way to overcome this prejudice and to re-imagine Chicago as a place of beauty, sophistication, and elegance.The Chicago History Museum, one of the city s earliest cultural institutions, now houses many of these chiccreations from designers such as Worth, Poiret, Dior, Halston, Miyake, and Versace. This volume showcasesthe designs and the designers, as well as the women who wore them and helped make Chicago chic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great book on Chicago's Society Fashions
After having seen this exhibit at the FIT in New York City, I bought the book thinking that it would be just like the other books I have on fashion exhibitions of the high society. But this is different, it gives you a brief history the owner of the dress, and when available a photo- bio on the person who wore the dress. Perhpas a bit like a gossip magazine, but nevertheless it is a good thing to know in association to who wore the dress, why she would have bought the dress and where she wore the dress to. Beautifully detailed dresses, great photo shots and a good coffee table book to spark interestng conversation.

awesome book!
This exhibit was absolutely breathtaking- and it was great to have a memento from the visit! BEAUTIFUL pictures, detail shots- a Must have. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A must for a Hawaiians
A must read, an excellent account of the young life of King Kamehameha with all the drama & intrigue of a great novel.

Activities in court circles
John Papa Li likes surfin ... Read more

Product Description
Wood—perhaps no natural material has been used longer by man, and none seems more suited to human tastes and needs. Its properties are the result of a long evolutionary history as an integral part of the earth's forests. This story describes what it is, explores how it is put together, and recounts the story of wood from its origin, giving us new insights into this familiar material all around us, as well as into the petrified wood that occurs so abundantly in the fossil record. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Additional product information
Wood -- perhaps no natural material has been used longer by man, and none seems more suited to human tastes and needs. Its properties are the result of a long evolutionary history as an integral part of the earth's forests. This look at wood describes what it is, explores how it is put together, and recounts the story of wood from its origin, giving us new insights into this familiar material all around us, as well as into the petrified wood that occurs so abundantly in the fossil record.
... Read more

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Product Description
Spurred first by the civil rights debates of the 1960s and '70s then by the culture wars of the following decades, the Chicago Historical Society (CHS) increasingly sought to give visitors and patrons a voice in retelling the city's history. In response to debates over the authority to interpret the past, CHS engaged in community outreach and sponsored multicultural exhibits and programs. Yet, in this analysis of the society's evolving relationship with its diverse constituencies, Catherine M. Lewis finds that prevailing assumptions about the museum as a commemorative site dedicated to civic pride undermined CHS's bold attempts to create a public forum.

Based on more than 250 interviews with staff at CHS and museums around the country, as well as research into formerly inaccessible public and private papers, The Changing Face of Public History offers a behind-the-scenes look at the ways in which one of the most innovative museums in the US has continually grappled with issues confronting not only museum professionals but all those concerned about the role history plays in the lives of American citizens. ... Read more

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Designed as a concise introduction to a complex subject matter, The History of Cotton surveys centuries of heritage linked to one of the American South's most storied and important agricultural products and one of humankind's oldest crops. Beginning in ancient Asia and Africa, the story of cotton spans continents and cultures to arrive in the New World.

Accessible to students and general readers alike, this study quickly narrows its focus to the important role of cotton in the South, looking specifically at the cotton industry; methods for growing, harvesting, and ginning cotton; cotton classification; uses of cottonseed; and the dreaded infestation of the boll weevil. The concluding chapter chronicles the development of the South Carolina Cotton Museum, the sponsoring agency of this volume.

The History of Cotton includes sixty-one black-and-white and ten color photographs, many from the Cliff Smith Postcard Collection, to provide a visual record of cotton's role across America--particularly in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, California, and Massachusetts. ... Read more

Product Description
This beautiful book is the first comprehensive guide written in a generation to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, home of one of the preeminent collections of art in the United States with more than 2,500 treasures, ranging from ancient Chinese bronzes to Titian`s Europa to the first Matisse acquired by an American museum. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

More info on the books!
A nice guide book to the ISG Museum with lots of details and great photos, I would have liked for the book to have more photos though. I would also have liked more information on the books in Isabella's collection. Overall it is a fine keepsake to take home after a visit to the museum.

before and after you visit the museum
I bought and read this book prior to my visit to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum so that when I was there I knew a little about the pieces in her collection.The book is a great source of information about the rooms and the art but it also covers the life of Isabella Gardner.I recommend buying the book ahead so that you know which pieces of art you really want to concentrate on.

The book has color photos of up close shots of the art and photos of the various rooms so that you can see the art in its setting.

It is arranged by floor (there are three) and then by room and finally by the individual piece, making it very easy to use and it is a great size for carrying with you through the museum.

The history in the book is excellent and gives a great overview of Isabella's life and pursuit of art.

A guide to Isabella's life and her home
This small museum guide available at ISGM bookshop in great quantity but difficult to find elsewhere (amazon has it)is a delight to read. Differently from other museum guides it dosen't only deal with the works exposed in Isabella Stewart Gardner's home Fenway Court, but it also briefly reviews this brillant and eccentric woman's life and so brings us even closer to her.
The visit to the ISGM is a great experience because what we see is not a museum but a person's house, a house used for receiving, entertaining, exposing unusual things and precious objects, a house for praying and reading, and meditating, a house full of lifetimes memories and loved masterpieces. Illustrating the intermingling of Mrs. Gardner's life and her masterpiece was not easy. Mr. Goldfarb, director of the Museum is at the height of this task and with a few well done strokes draws Isabella's portrait and at the same time describes in great detail not only the works of art contained in the mansion but also their history, the way they came into the collection and many interesting news on their artists.
The book is well illustrated with expecial focus on the disposition of the pieces and the complete description of all the rooms of the house.
A useful tool for ISGM visit but also a book that is enjoyable before, after and also without the visit.

A must-read prior to seeing the museum
Having been to the ISGM (Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum) before reading either "Mrs. Jack" or this book, if planning a trip to the museum I highly recommend you read at least one of these books.The museum is truly magnificent, however my only criticism is that the administration of the museum cannot seem to decide if they have a "house museum" (like the Newport mansions) or an art museum.There is precious little information posted within the meusum to tell you what it is you're looking at - the guidebooks available at the museum woefully inadequate.After reading Mrs. Jack I realize that much of this may have been stipulated by Isabella herself - she expected you to know what it was you were seeing without cheats like descriptions.Art for art's sake.It did not matter if Rembrandt painted a canvas - you either like it or you don't - merely wanting to see it because it's a priceless Rembrandt is too bourgeois for Isabella to have considered.In her day, in her level of society, you could still buy a Rembrandt or a Vermeer, 100 years later this is a lot harder to do, making these paintings more rare to us than her.She knew John Singer Sargent personally, so having your portrait painted by him was probably less of a big deal than we see it as today - anyone in her level of society could hire him, so to her - what was the big deal?100 years more time has made it a big deal to us.

One Woman's Way to Make a Home
More than a few of my well-traveled friends have raved about The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston as their favorite museum in all the world.And why not?Wait until you see it--you'll feel right at home.

Imagine creating for yourself a life that is perfectly delicious.Imagine creating for the world a home museum experience unequaled in all the world.The Hyde Museum in Glens Falls, NY, held that honor for me until I learned the story and saw the pictural views of Fenway Court Isabella Gardner created as her home, which after her death in 1924 was changed to be called The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Most museum books have wonderful pictures without so rich a story of a strong, courageous woman of impeccable, impassioned taste.No one could have created Fenway Court except Isabella Gardner.Few have created such a wonderful life for themselves and left such an amazing legacy.And, she also managed to maintain her beauty and figure. And what a negotiator she was to gain possession of a piece of art she felt Fenway must own.

I feel empowered to have learned her story. ... Read more

Product Description
Born out of the 1859 Pikes Peak gold rush, Boulder sits along the Front Range where the Rocky Mountains meet the plains. Discoveries of gold, silver, telluride, and coal nearby put the little supply town on the map, and early miners, farmers, and businessmen prospered there. The railroad's arrival in 1873 brought more newcomers who cultivated a diverse community full of new businesses, social organizations, and schools, and the town flourished despite the social problems and economic fluctuations that were typical of early mining towns. By the 1890s, education, health, and tourism had become significant to Boulder's economic development, a pattern that continues to this day. Great change came about during the early 1900s in the form of a citywide alcohol prohibition, the influenza epidemic, and the closure of the Switzerland Trail railroad in 1919, but Boulder weathered these difficult times even as it witnessed the end of the great railroading era. ... Read more

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This first comprehensive handbook of the Museum presents over fourhundred masterpieces from its encyclopedic collections of Asian art; costume and textiles;European decorative arts (including arms and armor); European painting and sculpture; prints,drawings, and photographs; American art; twentieth-century art, and the art of Africa andMexico. Each work is illustrated in full color and is accompanied by a short didactic textcontributed by Museum curators. Introductory essays describes the formation of the variousdepartments of the Museum. Bibliography. Index. ... Read more

Product Description
The material conditions in which the production and consumption of art takes place is a topic of increasing importance in art history.Studies Art as an industry and a public practice, looking at how nations, institutions and private individuals present art to the community and how art museums are shaped by cultural, social and political determinants. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Fantastic
The boook was for my academic course..... and I was surprised by the reponse of amazon. They delivered it to me so fast. Thanks a lot. And the quality of the book is good too.....
Book is basically related to museum culture and importance of rituals in those spaces.

Duncan the hateful
As the title of Miss Duncan's book suggest, she sees the museums as almost religious institutions that entice the visitor to "enact a performance of some kind". Their very identity and meaning are constructed through this ritualistic practice, which is neither natural nor neutral. In the introduction the author states that she has no ambition in propagating what an art museum should be. In fact she does not indicate if she has such a clear cut ideal thought-out at all. The purpose of her research is to see, decipher and describe. There are, it turns out, two ways - two ideals in fact - a museum is presented to the public: the educational museum and the aesthetic museum. The first type proposes to educate the visitor, treating the exhibits as "art-historical objects", while in the second they are unique, original works of art to be reflected upon by the sophisticated guest, sheltered by the museum. Duncan insists that either way, all this happens in a "ritual-like" atmosphere, and that is what she wants to prove in her book. She deals with this aspect specifically in the first chapter. The older museums were practically all built in a style that consciously copied the architecture of old Greek and Roman temples and were often compared to them. The visitor, already mentally prepared for an enlightening experience, would receive (in a seemingly "objective" and disinterested package) rational and verifiable knowledge - a truth that is so obvious as to be irrefutable, when in fact it is highly subjective and hierarchical.
In the second chapter, Duncan traces the development of the museum from the princely gallery into today's public, secular space, and maintains that this space is neither quite as clearly public, nor secular as it would like to be seen. Here, the Louvre and the National Gallery in London are primary examples. The museum here serves particular needs of the bourgeois state and its ideology.
The third chapter follows the "museum boom" in the United States that begun in the late 19th century. Duncan sees it as a pretentious attempt of the new republic with no history to boast to be seen as civilized and a part of wider Western culture. She follows the mushrooming of "American Louvres", museums that ideologically support White Protestants' view of themselves and their political power. Here, an American museum equals money.
Private museums that once belonged to rich collectors are dealt with in the fourth chapter. The characters of the often ruthless and predominantly white men are vividly brought to life, together with how they saw themselves, and how they wished their collections to reflect this.
The final chapter deals in great length with the nature of modern art, and its use in today's museums.

The premise that museums are ritual sites is highly problematic and on closer examination cannot be supported by facts. The argument that older museums were built in the style that closely followed that of the temples of antiquity is a hollow one, for in the late eighteenth and throughout the nineteenth century, all structures of significance were built that way. Banks, schools, parliaments, city markets, private houses, ch?teaux, family crypts, public baths and indeed museums were built in that style. Does it mean that all of these were ritualistic, temple-like places? Hardly. Duncan either doesn't know it or doesn't grasp the significance. Instead she tells us that in art museums, it is the visitors who perform the ritual. And I think therein lies the problem. While it is perfectly reasonable to say that a great majority (if not all) of people attending a mass in a church are there for a specific - ritualistic - reason, such assumption won't work when studying the behavior of museum-goers who may be there for a number of causes. First of all, there is absolutely nothing about timing one's visit to a museum that would suggest this. There is nothing regular about the visits and such a visit is often accidental as much as planned. Once inside the museum, I have never seen anything that would suggest any shared patterns of the visitors' conduct that would support this `ritual' theory. I have always interpreted what is more-or-less silence or only quiet talk as a mere politeness towards people around, rather then any sort of `ritualistic behavior'. I am silent in a hospital too. Whether one wants to admire one particular work of art or even see it as such is one's free choice. No museum in the world could force me to look at something longer then I want to. I have seen people, particularly in American museums, to behave no differently the they would elsewhere. Museums can place all manner of things for us to see in every way they can, to represent whatever they want them to represent, but in the end it is up to us to accept it or not. If someone wants to worship, why should I care?
Duncan quotes Goethe as he impatiently waited for the opening of the Dresden Gallery in 1768 and using his exaltations as a proof of the ritualistic nature of gallery visits. She probably doesn't realize, that if this was the very first day of a gallery functioning, in the 18th century when there were almost no public museums or galleries, there could be hardly any talk of an established ritual. Duncan states that the origins of the evolution of the museum from the princely gallery lie in the discourse "in which bourgeois and aristocratic modes of culture were pitted against each other" and that the museums such as the Louvre stand as monuments to the new bourgeois state as it emerged at the time of revolutions. Yet later in the second chapter she says that conversions of this type happened before revolution in Dresden and Vienna. Why aristocratic and ultra-conservative regimes such as Saxony and Austria had at the time, would promote a monument to bourgeois state remains a mystery our eager writer could not be bothered to explain. After all, even Bourbons were considering opening the Louvre to the public before the revolution. Between 1789 and 1871 France experienced several revolutions, was run by three monarchies, two empires, three republics, directory and a consulate, and went through the Paris Commune, yet none of these widely varied governments thought of closing down the museum. If the new type of museum was simply a monument to the bourgeoisie, then why was it kept on in Soviet Russia and the entire communist bloc? Little details like that could not bother Duncan. Her overall historical scholarship is below that of an eight-grader, and so she cheerfully states that by 1825 all western capitals, monarchical or republican had a national gallery. Obviously, the fact that in 1825, there was no republican government in Europe escapes her. It is the complete lack of in-depth knowledge on Duncan's part that allows her to arrogantly write that the countries of the third world have museums just so that they can receive western military and economic aid. It is not just that it is plainly insulting, but what is implied is that getting money and weapons from the west is as easy as building a museum. And why, then, do some third world countries that refuse aid from the west still build museums? If a major argument in (what I take for) a serious book is built on hot air like that, than the book is perhaps not as serious as we might think. Duncan, as is painfully obvious by now, has no taste. It is therefore no surprise that she hates those who do. With misplaced sarcasm she derides the practice of basing museums on `national genius', claiming this to be the governing pattern in the west by 19th century. I seriously doubt that, if only because hardly two, perhaps three countries in the west could possess such wealth of cultural heritage as to claim a genius and not be laughed at. British art galleries, for example, could hardly build their identity on such shaky ground. But Duncan does not care about facts. Or logic. She unworriedly states that museums were seen as instruments of "social change capable of strengthening the social order", without realizing that it is a contradiction in terms. Now the plot has been completely lost, and by chapter three Duncan doesn't talk about ritual anymore. What she wants is to hate and deride. To her, public museums set up in the United States in the second half of the 19th century are nothing but nests of hypocrisy, thinly veiled racist institutions, run by and for the white male, the root cause of all evil. Uncouth terms like the `WASP' are standard here and one is left wondering if all white male Protestants really are pathological liars. The impression one takes from this is that museum founders, donors and curators are twisted, dangerous psychopaths. Perhaps we should keep them under lock and key as soon as they even start rambling about museums. When talking about lives of museum donors, Duncan approaches something resembling mildly appealing writing, but only because the subject is interesting. Predictably, another pearl awaits us at the end of the fourth chapter where she idiotically writes that Andrew Mellon's refusal to have his name associated with the National Gallery "is an act, however, that also obscures the deep contradiction on which the National Gallery is built: that one man, single-handedly, was able to dictate, pay for, and carry out the creation of so potent a symbol of the nation's spiritual and material wealth". I don't see Duncan's point. So what if one man can do all this? One man was behind building of the Suez Canal, one man led India's independence movement, a single sixteen year old French girl in the 1420's saved her country, yet no one would claim there to be some "deep rooted" contradictions. One prefers to admire the courage and persistence of an individual. Duncan does not. To her, anyone out of the ordinary, above the average, is an elitist.
It all finally falls apart in the final chapter on modern art museums. These are places frequented by sexual deviants, all male. In fact, Duncan is convinced, all (!) of the modern art is about sex. This is just one of her bizarre beliefs, based on her strange, shamanistic psychoanalysis. I was, let me admit, a bit surprised to discover that as a man I had feelings of inadequacy and vulnerability in front of mature women (like Duncan, I presume) and was frightened of the vagina. Throwing in Latinisms just for good measure is apparently Duncan's idea of maturity.

Review
Excellent working with seller, received item very fast!Would definitely recommend business with this seller.

Informative, Easy To Read
Dr. Duncan's book was required reading in my undergraduate studies.She writes from two angles - first, being the traditional fine arts view, and second, a sociological view.Art is not created in a vacuum and isdirectly affected by the society it lives in.There is a value to lookingat art from this combined point of view.You have a clear picture why someart is considered valuable, while some is not.

Carol Duncan's book delvesinto the reasons why we have art museums and then focusses in on some notable museums of today.The small book is an easy and quick read. However, its relative ease and small size does not mean it does not inform. It is well researched and well edited.It is short, sweet and to thepoint.Too bad more art history books are not like that.

Informative and Easy to Read
Dr. Duncan's books discusses the history of art museums and focusses in on some notable, present day museums.Her approach combines the traditional art historian view with a sociological view.Art is not created in avacuum and reflects the society it lives within.Duncan's approach givesus insight into why some artwork is accepted while other artwork isnot.

This book was required reading in my undergraduate studies.It isone of the few I choose to have in my personal library as well.

CarolDuncan's book is small in size and easy to read.However, just because ofits ease and size, don't mistake its value to art history.It is wellresearched and well edited. It is short, sweet and to the point.Too badother art history books cannot be like that. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Mostly a directory
"Natural History Museums: An Illustrated Guide to over 350 Museums in the Eastern United States" by G.W. Bates is unfortunately, a little more than a directory or mailing list of such museums.In the center ofthe book are photos, generally of exhibits, of about 25 museums.However,there is no information on hours, nor any descriptions of exhibits, etc. Moreover, with a nominal publishing date of 1992, most of the addresses areprobably 15 years old at this time (mid-2000), and so, many, if not mosthave probably changed.Apparently, Volume 2 was never printed, which alsolimits the utility of the book as a mailing list. ... Read more

Product Description
Museums and the Public Sphere investigates the role of museums around the world as sites of democratic public space.

• Explores the role of museums around the world as sites of public discourse and democracy
• Examines the changing idea of the museum in relation to other public sites and spaces, including community cultural centers, public halls and the internet
• Offers a sophisticated portrait of the public, and how it is realized, invoked, and understood in the museum context
• Offers relevant case studies and discussions of how museums can engage with their publics' in more complex, productive ways

Product Description
Since antiquity, the achievements of the Greeks in art and architecture have elicited great admiration.From the Parthenon and the other temples on the Acropolis of Athens to the fabled palace of King Minos at Knossos on Crete to the walled city of Mycenae-home of the Trojan leader Agamemnon-Greek art and architecture continue to this day to fascinate visitors to Greece and influence Western aesthetics. This informative handbook traces Greek art and architecture from the third millennium to the first century B.C. Belozerskaya and Lapatin relate the rich development of styles, techniques, and motifs to the history of this period. The culmination of these developments in architecture, sculpture, and vase painting in the fifth century B.C. is illustrated in such masterpieces as the temples at Paestum in Italy, the sculptures of the Parthenon, the bronze charioteer from Delphi, and works of the Attic black- and red-figure vase painters. Also included in the book is a discussion of the spread of Greek culture to southern Italy and Sicily and the influence of Greek artistic traditions on Roman art. With more than three hundred illustrations, this book will serve as an attractive guide for students, travelers, and all those interested in ancient Greek civilization. ... Read more

Product Description
Agricultural Implements and Machines in the Collection of the National Museum of History and Technology - Smithsonian Studies in History and Technology, No. 17 is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by John T. Schlebecker is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of John T. Schlebecker then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

Product Description
"This small but richly textured collection of essays provides historical and philosophical perspectives of value not only to anthropology museums but to everyone involved in the collection, exhibition, and interpretation of material culture today."-Barbara Thompson, Museum Studies Journal ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Gorgeous fashion book
This is a gorgeous book: the costumes are photographed in full color with large reproductions.Cincinnati obviously has many wonderful pieces in its museum.There are 43 full color (or should I say colour, to go with the title) of costume.A few are details of a costume shown in another plate, otherwise the plates most often contain one, but sometimes 2 or 3 costumes.The pictures have brief captions with them, and more detailed information is included towards the end of the book.There are, in addition, more than 20 black and white historic illustrations.

This has a more substantial text than many similar works.The are separate chapters on "Acquiring a French Wardrobe", "The Fabric Scrapbooks of Hannah Ditzler Alspaugh, "Healthful, Artistic and Correct Dress".the bulk of the text is a review of fashion from 1837-1912.The text is happily divided into shorter time periods for a more detailed and meaningful discussion.This modern reader smiled at seeing the styles for 1866-1868 described as "severe", although of course, in context that makes sense. The divisions are not be a set scheme, but according to what the author deems best giving the flow of fashion.

There is much additional factual material: a list of abbreviations, a list of sources cited, notes, a glossary, a bibliography and a detailed index.Not only eye-candy, but a good research source.

I'm glad that I didn't wear, or worse, have to clean this kind of clothing, but as always for this period, the dresses are swooningly beautiful. ... Read more

Product Description
Amedeo Modigliani (1884--1920) is one of the greatest-and most misunderstood-artists of the twentieth century. His incisive portraits, erotically charged nudes, beautiful drawings, and primitivistic sculpture have been admired for decades. Modigliani's work, however, has typically been examined in the limited context of his so-called "bohemian," anti-intellectual lifestyle. This groundbreaking book revises this approach toward Modigliani's art, presenting a convincing revisionist examination of the unique historical, social, religious, and cultural significance of his oeuvre. Modigliani: Beyond the Myth looks at the artist and his art from a variety of important perspectives: his proud heritage as a Sephardic Jew, whose spirituality embraced non-Western, classical, and Christian iconography while retaining his own ethnic identity; his critical engagement with the dialogues of the most radical of his avant-garde contemporaries (Picasso, Chaim Soutine, Henri Matisse, and Brancusi); the influence of tribal art and Judaism on his portraiture; the representation of the female nude in his works from a feminist cultural perspective; and the remarkable reception of his work in Italy during his lifetime. Lavishly illustrated and including a detailed chronology of his life, this fascinating book situates Modigliani anew in the history of twentieth-century art. BACKCOVER: ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

The Nitty-Gritty
This review relates to the paperback edition...

A handsome and heavy piece of work with high quality reproductions. 241 pp, illustrated throughout in color. Chronology, Index. 17 pp of End Notes and Bibliography.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Modigliani Against the Grain
Faces of Modigliani: Identity Politics Under Fascism
Making and Masking: Modigliani and the Problems of Portraiture

Modigliani and the Bodies of Art: Carnality, Attentiveness, and the Modernist Struggle
Epilogue: The Modigliani Myth

Plates
Chronology
Notes
Bibliography

Excellent book.
Comprehensive and thorough book about the life and works of Amadeo Modigliani. A great reference book with many plates of his art.I am very glad to have this book, well worth it.

Great book about a great artist
I came along Modigilian's Artdruing a drawing class. I purchased a small book at a local bookstore first. I was so impressed over the artist and his paintings that I want to learn more about his work. He is a master painter of the early 20 th century.Some ofhis figures have a sence of sadenessin there way how they look . Some of theposes are oriented on classic old masters.Describtions are given in the book.Also you will see delightfulabstract forms and colors. I really can recomend the book to everyone who wants to learn more about this great artist.
The book also shows images of drawings and sculptures.

A good catalogue for a good exhibition
There have been many publications on Modigliani lately and also many exhibitions (in Paris, London, NY). This particular book, which is the catalogue for a show at the Jewish Museum, is, in my opinion, the most original one in that it attempts to study the artist setting aside all the rest (that is "the myth"). The beautiful reproductions enable the reader to see what a revolutionary portraitist Modigliani was, even sometimes minimalist (to use a fashionable word). The provenance of the works shows that he did have early admirers, and not only among his peers or dealers.

Modigliani's fine arts
I bought this book preparing a visit of an exhibition on paintings as well as my paission in arts, i.e. painting.
The book is full of pics and enough text about Amadeo.
Amadeo's paitings are really great... ... Read more

Product Description
From its inception in the early nineteenth century, the museum has been more than a mere historical object; it has manufactured an image of history. The museum believes in history, yet it behaves as though history could be summarized and completed. This twofold process explains the paradoxical character of museums. They have been accused of being both too heavy with historical dust and too historically spotless, excessively historicizing artworks while cutting them off from the historical life in which artworks are born. Thus the museum seems contradictory because it lectures about the historical nature of its objects while denying the same objects the living historical connection about which it purports to educate. The contradictory character of museums leads the author to a philosophical reflection on history, one that reconsiders the concept of culture and the historical value of art in light of the philosophers, artists, and writers who are captivated by the museum. Together, their voices prompt a reevaluation of the concepts of historical consciousness, artistic identity, and the culture of objects in the modern period. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Congratulations
To be honest: several times I felt envy reading this book. Maleuvre analysis the beginning of a museum-culture in the 18th and 19thcentury and does this with an extraordinary knowledge of philosophy, art and literature, especially French literature. His question of departure is: In what social context surges the museum and what impact has its birth to the relation between subject and object, the artwork. That is what a museum does: Create a distance between the individual and the sculpture. From the first to the last page the book is written on a high philosophical level, combining literature (Balzac, Proust) with philosophy (Hegel, Heidegger, Walter Benjamin and others). I was reading it line by line, a pleasure that I did not have in the last months. Congratulations to the author for this brilliant opening to a very interesting field of (hopefully) other studies in the future.

a text aboutmuseums in the 19th c.
this book is centred on the 19th century. it explains the logic behind museums during this century drawing comparisons with the domestic interior and the work of Balzac. So its contents refers in its majority to the culture, at large, of the 19th century and how this transformed the institution of the museum during this time. Therefore it is not a text exclusively on museums but in the cultural dynamics that shaped it during that period of time. ... Read more

Product Description
Representing the Nation gathers key writings from leading thinkers in cultural studies, cultural history, and museum studies to ask what role cultural institutions play in creating and shaping our sense of ourselves as a nation.With an international perspective, the contributors investigate whether cultural artifacts can represent all of us equally, as members of a given nation.The book opens with an exploration of the strategies involved in creating and sustaining a national culture while the second part examines the way the past is preserved, represented, and consumed as our "heritage."Part three looks at the historical development of the public museum and the book concludes with a section that focuses on issues facing museums today.

Contributors: Richard D. Altick, Arjun Appadurai, Tony Bennett, Carol A. Breckenridge, James Clifford, Philip Dodd, Carol Duncan, David Goodman, Stuart Hall, Robert Hewison, Eric Hobsbawm, Kenneth Hudson, Sharon Macdonald, Colin Mercer, Kevin Robins, Chris Rojek, Robert W. Rydell, Raphael Samuel, Roger Silverstone, Anthony D. Smith, John Urry, Patrick Wright. ... Read more