Ancient art

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A.D. Trendall

"The red figure vases produced by the Greek colonists in South Italy and Sicily in the later fifth and the fourth centuries BC were at first closely modeled on Athenian prototypes. But they quickly evolved, exhibiting the highly individual styles and characteristics that are explored in this fascinating study. The red figure vases of the period are not only immensely pleasing as works of art, but of great interest and importance for the light they shed on mythology and drama, local customs and the relations between the Greek settlers and the native inhabitants. Some of the latter, especially in Apulia, seem to have acquired considerable wealth and wer able to indulge their taste for very large vases, elaborately decorated with exuberant floral pattern-work and multi-figured compositions. Close to 600 illustrations reproduce a wide selection of the more significant vases, and demonstrate not only their considerable artistry, but also the endless fascination of their subject matter."--Publisher description.

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Stuart Cary Welch and Kimberly Masteller

"Stuart Cary Welch's collection of Persian, Turkish, and Indian art is renowned throughout the world for its quality and depth. In 1999 Welch made a generous gift of drawings from his collection to the Harvard University Art Museums. Spanning five centuries and extending from Istanbul to Calcutta, the drawings represent the great empires of the Ottomans in Turkey, the Safavids in Iran, and the Mughals in India. This illustrated book presents more than seventy superb drawings from the Stuart Cary Welch collection - some of which are counted among the greatest Persian, Turkish, or Indian drawings ever made - and explores the connections between the arts and artists of the three cultures."--BOOK JACKET.

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Peter Held

Presents a series of essays about the life and accomplishments of the Japanese American artitst, describing her work as a potter, her incorporation of Eastern and Western techniques, and her transition into abstract sculpture and installation art.

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Chris Spring

"Angaza Afrika - the Swahili for 'shed light on Africa' - is a statement of this book's mission: to illuminate Africa's immensely fertile artistic landscape. Africa has emerged from its colonial past and is asserting its own identity. African art is not only confined to the continent itself, but has spread throughout the world. From the enforced migrations of the slave trade through the upheavals of the post-colonial period, African art and artists are also now established in Europe, North America, the Carribean and South America." "This book brings together more than 60 of Africa's most creative contemporary artists. Their work leaps off the page with more than 350 colour images. In addition to painters, sculptors and photographers, there are also a number of artists whose work embraces performance and installation. The materials they use range from the traditional to the highly unorthodox, as does their imagery." "This is the first book on contemporary African art to harness the creative energy pulsating from not only the continent but also from the rich global community that has developed outside it."--Jacket.