Искусство

Salon culture in Japan: making art, 1750–1900 celebrates the British Museum’s rich collection of technically sophisticated artworks created as part of Japanese cultural salons in the late 18th and 19th centuries, featuring lively figures in daily life and festivals, elegant birds and flowers, ferocious animals, and lyrical landscapes.

This book accompanies the special 2024 display in the British Museum Mitsubishi Corporation Japanese Galleries, City life and salon culture in Tokyo and Osaka: 1770–1900.

In early modern Japan, cultural salons were creative spaces for people of all ages and social levels to pursue painting, poetry and other artistic endeavours, as serious but amateur practitioners. They all used a pen- or art-name. Individuals were therefore able to socialise and interact broadly through these artistic activities, regardless of official social status as regulated by the shogunal government. The idea of communal and collaborative creativity seems to have been especially ingrained around the area of Kyoto and Osaka. Each of the two cities had a distinct character: Kyoto was the national capital, where the emperor and aristocrats resided, and Osaka was the centre of commerce.

Only a fraction of these technically sophisticated artworks has previously been published in colour. With five essays by leading experts that explore this fascinating cultural phenomenon from different angles, and eight shorter insights that delve into specific historical aspects and the personal connections and legacies of cultural figures, this book offers a new perspective on Japanese art and society in the late 18th and 19th centuries.

About the Authors:

Principal contributors from the British Museum
Rosina Buckland, Curator, Japanese Collections
Timothy T. Clark, Honorary Research Fellow
Alfred Haft, JTI Project Curator for Japanese Collections
Akiko Yano, Mitsubishi Corporation Curator, Japanese Collections
with C. Andrew Gerstle, Professor Emeritus, SOAS University of London

Supporting contributors
Akama Ryo, Ritsumeikan University
Akeo Keizo, Osaka University of Commerce
Paul Berry, Kyoto University of Foreign Languages
Hirai Yoshinobu, National Museum
of Modern Art, Kyoto
Scott Johnson, Kansai University
Nakatani Nobuo, Kansai University
Ellis Tinios, Leeds University

Japanese swords, particularly those wielded by famous samurai warriors, hold a continuing fascination for collectors of fine arts and historical military weapons. This book is designed to enhance one's appreciation for the wide variety of Japanese swords (as well as their related polearms), their manufacture and their preservation.

A fascinating opening chapter explains how the elite Samurai class dominated Japan for more than a thousand years, how technological and ideological advances overtook the Samurai in the 1860s, heralding a more up-to-date political and military system of governance, and how such changes affected Samurai sword design and manufacture.

Subsequent chapters present topics of greatest relevance to today's sword collector: namely, the modern Japanese sword; different types of swords and their construction and testing; collecting and studying Japanese swords (and the tremendously important etiquette involved); and techniques of preserving and polishing swords.

This book is beautifully illustrated with paintings, photographs, drawings, and maps. In addition, there is an in-depth glossary and useful tables explaining Japanese calligraphic symbols relating to swords, both of great value to the collector.

About the Author:

Clive Sinclaire is an instructor in the kendo form of martial arts and has been collecting Japanese swords for more than forty years. He is Chairman of the To-ken Society of Great Britain and frequently writes articles on Japanese sword culture and collecting that are featured on the society's website (www.To-ken.com) as well as in magazines. He has become a frequent visitor to Japan in the course of his research and studies, and in particular to the NBTHK (Nihon Bijitsu To-ken Hozon Kyodai) sword shows.

Samurai warriors ruled Japan for 700 years and are widely admired as the most skilled swordsmen who ever lived.

- 1000 pieces
- The finished puzzle is 74 x 51 cm inches
- Quality design & easy to handle pieces
- Full color A3 sized Poster (74 x 51 cm) included for reference
- Features a classic Japanese woodblock print by the artist Toyohara Kunichika

This ukiyo-e woodblock print by the artist Toyohara Kunichika (1835 -1900) shows a Kabuki enactment of a battle between Samurai fighters in a bamboo grove. The warrior astride a brown horse raises his riding crop high above his head, ready to bring it down on his enemy.

About the Author:

Toyohara Kunichika (1835 - 1900) was a well-known ukiyo-e woodblock print artist in Japan. As a teenager he began studying under Tokyo's leading print-maker, Utagawa Kunisada. He was successful throughout the Edo period (1603 - 1867) and the Meiji Era (1868 - 1912). He most often painted beautiful women and contemporary social life, alongside some landscapes and historical scenes. He has historically been dismissed by Western art collectors, but a 2008 show at the Brooklyn Museum and resulting article in the New York Times led to a resurgent interest in Kunichika in the 21st century. 

Tuttle Studio draws inspiration from the modern and traditional cultures of Asia to create its language workbooks and resources, journals, stationery, gift wrapping products and origami paper. It is a division of Tuttle Publishing, a leading publisher of books on the languages, history, art and cultures of Asia. The company was founded in 1832 in Rutland, Vermont (USA) and opened a branch in Tokyo, Japan in 1948.

The Samurai warrior is one of the most famous types of soldier, with his intricate armour, longbow and distinctive katana sword, as well as his strict martial code. But samurai warfare and military culture are much misunderstood in the modern era. In Samurai Weapons & Fighting Techniques, Thomas D. Conlan traces the history and development of samurai warfare over seven centuries, beginning with the historic dominance of the mounted, bow-armed samurai, moving through the introduction of naginata-wielding ashigaru (skirmishers) and pike formations, and finishing with the revolutionary introduction of firearms and cannon. Conlan analyses the success of particular samurai dynasties, such as the Ashikaga, Uesugi and Tokugawa clans, and examines the role of many of the great battlefield commanders – such as Oda Nobunaga, Takeda Shingen and Tokugawa Ieyasu – at key battles like Kawanakajima (1561), Nagashino (1575) and the siege of Osaka (1615).

The book is illustrated throughout with more than 300 detailed line drawings and colour photographs showing the weapons, equipment, techniques and tactics of the samurai. Types of armour – such as ō-yoroi, haramaki and paper armour – and weapons – such as the tachi long sword, wakizashi short sword and yari (pike) – are depicted in detail.

Expertly written, Samurai Weapons & Fighting Techniques is a highly illustrated, accessible introduction to samurai warfare for both the military enthusiast and general reader.

About the Author:

Thomas D. Conlan is Professor of East Asian Studies & History at Princeton University. He was formerly Associate Professor of Asian Studies at Bowdoin College, Maine. A graduate in Japanese History from the Universities of Michigan and Kyoto, he was awarded his Ph.D from Stanford University in 1998. His books include The Violent Order of Fourteenth Century Japan.

A lush new volume devoted to the best works by beloved American Impressionist and portraitist John Singer Sargent, whose dazzling use of light and color depicts modern subjects with arresting intimacy.

An ideal introduction to the painter’s work, Sargent: The Masterworks features 100 of his most beloved paintings. Illustrating all aspects of his diverse oeuvre — portraits, landscapes, mural commissions — in oil and watercolor, this handsome new book includes works from both private and public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s infamous Madame X.

Author Stephanie L. Herdrich draws on a wealth of new research to provide both an essential overview and a more nuanced understanding of the great American painter. Richly illustrated, the book’s three chapters cover the artist’s career from his childhood and early years in Paris, to his mid-career portraits made in England and United States, and his later years painting out of doors. An illustrated chronology contains fascinating details and archival imagery about the artist’s life. Sargent’s cosmopolitan upbringing and education made him perfectly suited to capture the upwardly mobile bourgeoisie and aristocrats of his era, creating sensual portraits that depict his sitters with startling vibrancy. Though he achieved tremendous success in portraiture, Sargent focused on painting outdoors after 1900, achieving the most brilliant and personal images of his career. One of the greatest portraitists and watercolorists of his time, Sargent remains one of the most well-known and well-loved of all American artists.

About the Author:

Stephanie L. Herdrich is assistant curator of American painting and sculpture at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. She was cocurator of Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends (2015) and Navigating the West: George Caleb Bingham and the River (2015) and is coauthor of American Drawings and Watercolors in The Metropolitan Museum of Art: John Singer Sargent (2000).

Ever wondered why Yayoi Kusama dresses in dots or dreamt of asking Picasso: why the Breton tee?

Enter sARTorial, a fun guide to the signature looks of 60 key artists from the 19th century to today. Short texts unpack the style essentials from icons such as Claude Monet to millennials including Tauba Auerbach, revealing how they construct their looks and why it reflects the works they create.

Featuring fantastic images of the artists in all their splendour, sARTorial is essential reading for anyone looking to decode the ‘drobe, and gain valuable insight into the cult of the artist.

About the Author:

Katerina Pantelides studied Russian ballet and the body at the Courtauld Institute of Art, where she also taught. She has written style-related pieces for several publications.
 

Egon Schiele left an enormous artistic legacy that is all the more powerful for the brevity of his career. Isabel Kuhl's lively text follows Schiele's trajectory from an artist in the Art Nouveau style to a powerful interpreter of human sexuality and considers the many hardships, including exile and even imprisonment, faced by Schiele as a young and rebellious artist with a singular vision. Gorgeous reproductions of his most emblematic works are presented chronologically, allowing readers to appreciate the evolution of Schiele's radical style, his uncanny use of colour and line, and his willingness to confront an oppressive society. From unflinching portraits to precisely detailed landscapes, Schiele's artistry shines through on every page.

About the Author:

Isabel Kuhl is an art and architecture historian. Among her many books are Vincent van Gogh, 50 Buildings You Should Know, and 50 Sculptures You Should Know.

What is creature design? We all have a notion — mostly consisting of evocative images of otherworldly beings galloping, swimming, flying, and often attacking the hero of an epic film or story. But what makes a creature believable? In the follow-up to her best seller, Animals Real and Imagined: The Fantasy of What Is and What Might Be, world-renowned artist Terryl Whitlatch reveals the secret behind believable creature design: anatomy.

Anatomy is the cornerstone of successful creature design, whether the creature is real or imaginary. Accurate anatomy is often the key to suspension of disbelief, allowing you to draw imaginary creatures that viewers will believe in.

We invite you to delve into the intricate workings of numerous animal anatomies — and the beauty they possess — in the Science of Creature Design: Understanding Animal Anatomy. Whitlatch’s delightful and charismatic illustrations will inform and thrill readers with every turn of the page. She shares valuable techniques reaped from years working for Lucasfilm and Walt Disney Feature Animation, and on such films as Jumanji, Brother Bear, and The Polar Express. In addition, Whitlatch possesses an endless love for real animals that continues to inspire her fantastic imaginary creatures, which have captivated audiences around the world.

About the Author:

Terryl Whitlatch is an accomplished, scientifically and academically trained illustrator who extensively studied vertebrate zoology and animal anatomy. She has worked for various zoos and museums in the United States and as senior consultant on Wildlife Art and Animal Anatomy for the World Wildlife Fund. She is considered to be one of the top creature designers and animal anatomists working in the field today. In a career spanning more than 25 years, Whitlatch has many projects to her credit, including Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: The Special Edition, Jumanji, Men in Black, Brother Bear, Dragonheart, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Curious George, The Polar Express, and Beowulf. For over seven years, she worked for Lucasfilm, Industrial Light & Magic, and George Lucas's JAK Films. Her illustration skills and comprehensive knowledge of animal anatomy and movement are essential in the development of believable creature creation.

The self as a subject is one of the most fascinating and fruitful of artistic enterprises. From the 15th century to today, this collection brings together some of the best examples of self-portraiture to explore the genre’s evolution over the centuries as well as the enduring questions of selfhood and self-representation that have besieged human experience for centuries before social media and the selfie.

Is a self-portrait of an artist a medium of reflection? Or is it merely a black void, the “false mirror,” as the Surrealist René Magritte entitled his 1928 painting of an eye? How much does it impart about contemporary notions of beauty, power, and status? From Albrecht Dürer to Egon Schiele, Fra Filippo Lippi to Frida Kahlo, this far-reaching collection explores the numerous ways in which artists have taken themselves as subjects, the variety of ingenious methods and perspectives they have used, and the intriguing questions they raise.

About the series:

- Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Genre series features:
- approximately 100 colour illustrations with explanatory captions
- a detailed illustrated introduction plus a timeline of the most important political, cultural, and social events that took place during that period
- a selection of the most important works of the epoch, each presented on a 2-page spread with a full-page image and accompanying interpretation, as well as a portrait and brief biography of the artist

Sensuous, bold and topical – this volume with its varied illustrations presents the entire spectrum of Jewish ideas about sexuality. In doing so it examines widely-held and contradictory stereotypes, according to which Jewish tradition either supports sexuality or restricts it through stringent regulations.

The popular series and dating shows 'Unorthodox', 'Shtisel' and 'Jewish Matchmaking' cater to a surprising desire for a peek into the intimate life of Jews. Whether their protagonists are ultra-Orthodox, secular or somewhere in between: Pop culture simplifies a topic that has been the subject of profound discourse within the Jewish world ever since the commandment to “be fruitful and multiply.” Rabbis and religious scholars, sex therapists, scientists and artists grapple with traditional ideas and contemporary challenges, and explore Jewish positions on sexuality in all its diversity.

Artists include Judy Chicago, Nicole Eisenman, R. B. Kitaj, Roee Rosen, Gil Yefman, et al.

About the Authors:

Miriam Goldmann works as an exhibition curator at the Jewish Museum Berlin.
Joanne Rosenthal is a freelance curator based in the United Kingdom.
Titia Zoeter is a curator and exhibition maker at the Joods Museum Amsterdam.

A visually compelling and panoramic analysis of the eclectic culture of shamanism

Entering trance states, healing body and soul, invoking animals as spirit guides and journeying to incorporeal realms – these skills have been central to shamanism over thousands of years and across much of the world, from the Evenki shamans of northern and central Asia to contemporary Neo-Shamans of the West.

Join cultural and social anthropologist Max Carocci as he explores an eclectic array of shamanic artefacts and images, decoding the symbolism and explaining their extraordinary shamanic ritual practices. Marvel at the adornments of a Siberian shaman’s coat; examine the prehistoric rock art that depicts mystical transformations of shamans into animals; and discover the psychotropic plants that open our minds to interdimensional journeys of healing and wisdom.

Carocci makes the manifold meanings encoded in the forms, colours and purposes of shamanic images and objects clear, painting a vibrant and in-depth picture of shamanic cultures past and present.

About the Author:

Max Carocci is a cultural and social anthropologist and is currently adjunct professor in Art History and Visual Cultures at the American University in London. For twelve years, he designed and taught the World Arts programme for Birkbeck College, London, in partnership with the British Museum. He is the co-editor of Art, Shamanism and Animism (2022), and has curated numerous exhibitions and collections for institutions, including the British Museum, the Horniman Museum, the Weltkulturen Museum in Frankfurt, Germany, and the Musée du Nouveau Monde in La Rochelle, France.

A unique behind-the-scenes look at Japanese business and how the animated films of Hayao Miyazaki were introduced to the world.

This highly entertaining business memoir describes what it was like to work for Japan’s premiere animation studio, Studio Ghibli, and it's reigning genius Hayao Miyazaki. Steve Alpert, a Japanese-speaking American, was the “resident foreigner” in the offices of Ghibli and its parent Tokuma Shoten and played a central role when Miyazaki’s films were starting to take off in international markets. 

Alpert describes hauling heavy film canisters of Princess Mononoke to Russia and California, experiencing a screaming Harvey Weinstein, dealing with Disney marketers, and then triumphantly attending glittering galas celebrating the Oscar-winning Spirited Away.

His one-of-a-kind portraits of Miyazaki and long-time producer Toshio Suzuki, and of sly, gruff, and brilliant businessman Yasuyoshi Tokuma, capture the hard work and artistry that have made Ghibli films synonymous with cinematic excellence. 

And as the lone gaijin in a demanding company run by some of the most famous and influential people in modern Japan, Steve Alpert tackles his own challenges of language and culture. No one else could have written this book.

About the Author:

Steve Alpert studied Japanese Literature at Columbia University under Donald Keene and Edward Seidensticker. He speaks Japanese and Chinese fluently, having lived in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Taipei for a combined total of over 35 years. Alpert worked in Tokyo as a vice president at a major bank, as president of an American TV animation company, and as head of international sales at Japan's premier animation studio, Studio Ghibli, cofounded by Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata . He has translated more than a dozen Japanese films and several short works of Japanese fiction. His book in Japanese about his experiences working at Studio Ghibli was published in 2015 by Iwanami Shoten. He lives near New Haven, CT.

Celebrated world-wide for his modern romantic jewels that push the boundaries of contemporary design, Shaun Leane has been responsible for creating a new genre of jewellery; precious, poetic, with a sense of eternity, yet relevant to today’s world.

Illustrated with a breath-taking combination of high fashion shots and detailed close-ups of the pieces themselves. Captured by photographers Nick Knight, Robert Fairer and Chris Moore, along with a dedicated photo essay of unseen backstage images recorded by Leane’s close friend Ann Ray.

Shaun Leane is introduced by the jeweller himself, then divided into three distinct parts: His heritage and training, by Joanna Hardy; reflections on Leane’s famous collaboration with Alexander McQueen, by Claire Wilcox; and his modern classic commercial jewellery style, by Vivienne Becker. Altogether, this book provides a vital overview of an artist that will be of interest to anyone who follows the contemporary jewellery and fashion scene.

- Introduction from Shaun Leane and essays by three esteemed authors: Joanna Hardy, Claire Wilcox and Vivienne Becker
- Featuring multiple, stunning, unseen photographs by world renowned photographers
- A comprehensive visual record of the life's work of this renowned jewellery designer, known for his work with Alexander McQueen
- An exceptional book, printed to the highest standards

About the Authors:

Joanna Hardy is a gemologist, offering consultancy and evaluation. She brings her substantial knowledge of the field to this book, having worked for De Beers, Philips and Sotheby's. With Thames & Hudson, she has previously published Collect Contemporary Jewelry, Emerald and Ruby. She is a regular guest on Antiques Roadshow. 

Claire Wilcox is the Chair in Fashion Curation at the London College of Fashion as well as Senior Curator of Fashion at the Victoria & Albert museum since 2004. Among the exhibitions she curated at the V&A are Vivienne Westwood (2004) and From Club to Catwalk: London Fashion in the 1980s (2013) and Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty (2015). 

Vivienne Becker is a jewellery writer, historian and journalist, having authored several books on the subject. She is a Contributing Editor to How to Spend It magazine (Financial Times), and her list of published books include Art Nouveau Jewelry, Fabulous Costume Jewellery and Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat's Jewel Box, which topped the NY Times bestseller list

Tracing the Iranian-born artist’s personal journey in exile from her native Iran, this book presents Shirin Neshat’s iconic early videos and photographs along with new work making its global debut.

In the 1990s, Shirin Neshat’s startling black-and-white videos of Iranian women won enormous praise for their poetic reflections on post-revolutionary life in her native country. Writing in the New Yorker, Peter Schjeldahl called her multi-screen video meditations on the culture of the chador in Islamic Iran “the first undoubtable masterpieces of video installation.”

Over the next twenty-five years, Neshat’s work has continued its passionate engagement with ancient and recent Iranian history, extending its reach to the universal experience of living in exile and the human impact of political revolution. This book connects Neshat’s early video and photographic works — including haunting films such as Rapture, 1999 and Tooba, 2002 — to her current projects which focus on the relation of home to exile and dreams such as The Home of My Eyes, 2015, and a new, never-before-seen project, Land of Dreams, 2019. It includes numerous stills from her series, Dreamers, in which she documents the lives of outsiders and exiles in the United States.

This volume also includes essays by prominent Iranian cultural figures as well as an interview with the artist. Neshat has always been a voice for those whose individual freedoms are under attack.

With this monograph, her audience will gain a deeper understanding of Neshat’s own emotional, psychological, and political identities, and how they have helped her create compassionate portraits of the fraught and delicate spaces between attachment and alienation.

This title includes a book and 4 CDs.

Jazz is his great passion. Siggi Loch, formerly one of the biggest international record bosses, now head of the ACT label, has been the companion of many noted stars. And he has been closer to these musicians than professional photographers have.

Since the 1960's, Siggi Loch has captured the 'magic moments' of jazz, blues, and rock on film. This book shows his fascinating pictures, from Louis Armstrong to Ray Charles, Klaus Doldinger, Johnny Griffin, Dexter Gordon, Cannonball Adderley, Little Richard, Nils Landgren and many others.

Music CDs: The music itself that Siggi Loch has produced over the last four decades is no less interesting. A treat for the ears, which bring the photos to life.