A fascinating collection that explores the disciplines' many intersections and common concerns, Art and Alchemy also sheds light on how our understanding of the world and our position in it has changed over time.
The Mystery of Transformation
Paperback
Publication Date: 02/04/2014
The idea of transforming stones into silver, common copper into gold, has captured the popular imagination for centuries. At its peak in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, alchemy, the "royal art," served as both a catalyst for developments in the nascent chemistry of the day and a framework for making sense of this rapidly changing science. Throughout history, alchemists have also been seen as practitioners of an arcane spiritual act symbolizing the cleansing of the human soul. These shifting interpretations that straddle science and art have made alchemy a particularly fruitful subject for artists, from the renowned painters of the High Renaissance to contemporary artists like Sigmar Polke and Anish Kapoor. Lavishly illustrated, Art and Alchemy accompanies an exhibition of the same name at the Museum Kunstpalast in Dusseldorf that brings together historical texts and a selection of artworks that take alchemy as their inspiration. Among the works discussed are Melancholy by Lucas Cranach the Elder, an oil painting that plays on the classical alchemical element; Jan Brueghel the Elder's The Allegory of Fire; and a variety of works by Dutch painter, draftsman, and printmaker Hendrick Goltzius. Alchemy also continues to play an important role in the works of contemporary artists like Yves Klein, Joerg Lenzlinger, Gerda Steiner, and Anselm Kiefer, and their works are included, as are contributions from contemporary scientists who offer the results of their recent research. In addition to providing an apt theme for artistic interpretation, alchemical practices were often used to produce art, as with the preparation of the old-world pigments leadwhite and vermillion, demonstrating the manifold connections between the two disciplines.
A fascinating collection that explores the disciplines' many intersections and common concerns, Art and Alchemy also sheds light on how our understanding of the world and our position in it has changed over time.
A fascinating collection that explores the disciplines' many intersections and common concerns, Art and Alchemy also sheds light on how our understanding of the world and our position in it has changed over time.
- ISBN:
- 9783777422077
- 9783777422077
- Category:
- Theory of art
- Format:
- Paperback
- Publication Date:
- 02-04-2014
- Language:
- German
- Publisher:
- Hirmer Verlag
- Country of origin:
- Germany
- Pages:
- 264
- Dimensions (mm):
- 287x209x26mm
- Weight:
- 1.47kg
Click 'Notify Me' to get an email alert when this item becomes available
Great!
Click on Save to My Library / Lists
Click on Save to My Library / Lists
Select the List you'd like to categorise as, or add your own
Here you can mark if you have read this book, reading it or want to read
Awesome! You added your first item into your Library
Great! The fun begins.
Click on My Library / My Lists and I will take you there
Click on My Library / My Lists and I will take you there
Reviews
Be the first to review Art and Alchemy.
Share This Book: