Glittering Images: a Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars Free

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Written with energy, erudition, and wit, Glittering Images is destined to change the way we think about our high-tech visual environment. A problem with discussing art in books or textbooks is that reproduced images never do the real thing justice. It's even worse when they're reproduced in black and white. My copy of "Glittering Images" is the paperback format, and it's very good quality with color plates for each piece discussed, although if you want to study in detail, it'd be best to find the images online where you'd be able to zoom in and out. However, it is much appreciated that Paglia and the publisher produced a quality edition in paperback this book originally came out in hardback. The introduction is thought-provoking, and it is one I wish everyone who has any kind of interest in the arts would read. Paglia states: "Members of the art world and residents of metropolitan regions with major museums suffer from a tragic complacency about the current status and prestige of art. The fine arts are shrinking and receding everywhere in the world. Video games, digitally animated movies, and televised sports have far more energy and variety as well as manifest impact on younger generations. The arts are fighting a rearguard action, their very survival at stake. Museums have embraced publicity and marketing techniques invented by Hollywood to attract large crowds to blockbuster shows, but the big draws remain Old Master or Impressionist painting, not contemporary art Art makes news today only when a painting is stolen or auctioned at a record price. I actually wish I could quote the entire introduction. Although I kind of know Camille Paglia is considered to provide sometimes-controversial opinions in general, not just on artand that I have her much-longer "Sexual Personae" in my TBR I'd love to be reading this next, but alas, it is back at the house in another state we're trying to sellher essays in "Glittering Images" did not strike me as providing controversial opinions on the artworks she chose to discuss. Each of the essays showcase in chronological order an artwork Paglia choses to cover, and thus, because there are 29 essays, there are only 29 pieces of art discussed. Therefore, this book is not an extensive survey on art history. Still, most readers unless they are closed-minded to art in general -- even those who love art history such as mewill take away new information -- and at least some of it providing food for thought-- from reading this volume. Paglia thinks highly of the art of painting -- she states "the decline of painting has cut aspiring artists from their noblest lineage" p. As a final declaration, she discusses George Lucas and how his Star Wars film series have proved him to be one of the best modern artists to date. Additionally, Paglia covers pieces that occasionally seem idiosyncratic in her choices for discussion. For instance, Essay 10 "Lord of Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars Sea" covers a painting done in the Mannerist style " I had never heard of Bronzino until now. And, I had not even known that Andrea Doria was a real person -- I thought that the shipwreck that occurred in that I've heard about was just a random feminine name. Paglia does mention the shipwreck but explains that Andrea Doria was a prominent leader during 16th century Italy. My overall impression is that Paglia chose pieces that appealed Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars her, arranged them in chronological order, then provided a history of each with occasional insight. She does all this in a very readable manner. Those that might be disappointed in this book might be ones who had been hoping for a more encompassing view of art history -- or for more of whatever controversial views she is known for I have to read more of her to find out what those views are, exactly. She states that this book is for a general audience who might not have frequent access to art. I did like this book very much and actually want to re-read this and maybe skim some Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars, though again in the near future. Edited to add: one more point Paglia provides an index but not a bibliography she says the latter would add too many pages. This was frustrating when she mentions art criticism by Oscar Wilde and Walter Pater -- if she isn't going to include a bibliography, then at least perhaps she could have mentioned in the text the specific titles of what she is referring to. Some 29 essays providing an introduction to art. The big gripe a lot of people will inevitably have with this is that a lot will be left out - could you imagine the difficulty of trying to introduce somebody to literature with only 29 books? Still, it's a very respectable introduction and cross-section of European and North American art, and the author's opinions are very Over the years, I've run into Camille Paglia's essays at unexpected times, and I seem to always come away thoughtful and, occasionally, amused. Clearly coming from a perspective distant from my own, politically and culturally a member of East Coast academia, I never the less found her insights and way of putting things provocative. When I heard that her newest book argued that George Lucas was one of greatest, if not the greatest, of modern artists, I was intrigued. First off, because I've been a Star Wars fan since I was a child making light Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars out of wrapping paper tubes. And second, because I've occasionally, like many other fans, wondered if Lucas had lost his way with the Prequels. How does an art critic find Lucas, who has turned Star Wars into one of the most profitable franchises in history, to be an artist? Of course, I was intrigued. Paglia describes the piece of art, starting in the Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars era and passing through ancient Greece, the middle ages, the Renaissance, and so on. Each entry is two to three pages long and provides background Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars narrative, analysis and context for the work. The writing is fluid, colorful, and, like I had found in Paglia before, intriguing. I'm not an art critic, let alone an art historian. At best, I can appreciate Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars few pieces of well known art. What I found in Paglia was an informative survey of art through the ages. In the introduction Paglia argues that what we are losing in our quest to get to the top of the education ladder is an appreciation of what art has brought us to where we are. It's fascinating reading, even if there are a few pieces of art from the modern era looked--to me--more like spatters of paint than art. I recommend it, whether you are an experienced art critic or a novice, as I am. And Lucas? I'll let you discover on your own why Paglia thinks he is today's greatest living artist. Exceedingly basic and fairly uninteresting. The fight scene between Vadar and Obi-Wan is somehow art? Come on. Here at Walmart. 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WIth full-color illustrations throughout From the best-selling author of Sexual Personae and Break, Blow, Burn and one of our most acclaimed cultural critics, here is an enthralling journey through Western art's defining moments, from the ancient Egyptian tomb of Queen Nefertari to George Lucas's volcano planet duel in Revenge of the Sith. America's premier intellectual provocateur returns to the subject that brought her fame, the great themes of Western art. Passionately argued, brilliantly written, and filled with Paglia's trademark audacity, Glittering Images takes us on a tour through more than two dozen seminal images, some famous and some obscure or unknown--paintings, sculptures, architectural styles, performance pieces, and digital art that have defined and transformed our visual world. And in a stunning conclusion, she declares that the avant-garde tradition is dead and that digital pioneer George Lucas is the world's greatest living artist. Write a review See all reviews Write a review. Average Rating: 5. October 28, See more. Written by a librarything. Average Rating: 3. March 30, Reviewed by HadriantheBlind HadriantheBlind. April 29, Reviewed by publiusdb publiusdb. Average Rating: 2. November 11, Reviewed by Michael. Xolotl Michael. Ask a question Ask a question If you would like to share feedback with us about pricing, delivery or other customer service issues, please contact customer service directly. Your question required. Additional details. Send me an email when my question is answered. Review of Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars – FANgirl Blog

WIth full-color illustrations throughout From the best-selling author of Sexual Personae and Break, Blow, Burn and one of our most acclaimed cultural critics, here is an enthralling journey Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars Western art's defining moments, from the ancient Egyptian tomb of Queen Nefertari to George Lucas's volcano planet duel in Revenge of the Sith. America's premier intellectual provocateur returns to the subject that brought her fame, the great themes of Western art. Passionately argued, brilliantly written, and filled with Paglia's trademark audacity, Glittering Images takes us on a tour through more than Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars dozen seminal images, some famous and some obscure or unknown--paintings, sculptures, architectural styles, performance pieces, and digital art that have defined and transformed our visual world. And in a stunning conclusion, she declares that the avant-garde tradition is dead and that digital pioneer George Lucas is the world's greatest living artist. Written with energy, erudition, and wit, Glittering Images is destined to change the way we think about our high-tech visual environment. A problem with discussing art in books or textbooks is that reproduced images never do the real thing justice. It's even worse when they're reproduced in black and white. My copy of "Glittering Images Over the years, I've run into Camille Paglia's essays at unexpected times, and I seem to always come away thoughtful and, occasionally, amused. Clearly coming from a perspective distant from my own Egyptian art is a vast ruin of messages from the dead. Clean and simple in form, Egyptian painted figures float in an abstract space that is neither here nor there. The background is coolly blank. Everything is flattened into the foreground, an eternal present where serenely smiling pharaohs offer incense and spools of flax to the gods or drive their chariot wheels over fallen foes. Hieroglyphics hang in midair, clusters of sharp pictograms of a rope, reed, bun, viper, owl, human leg, or mystic eye. Resurrection was the master value of a civilization that dreamed of conquering the Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars of death. At the heart of Egyptian religion was a corpse--the mummy of the great god Osiris, swaddled in linen strips. Osiris was murdered and dismembered by his evil brother, Set, who scattered his fourteen body parts throughout Egypt. Isis, Osiris''s sister and devoted wife, collected and reassembled them--except for the missing penis, which she fabricated in wood or clay. As Osiris''s embalmer and enhancer, therefore, Isis acted as a resourceful proto-artist, assembling materials and molding a work of mummiform sculpture that would be reproduced in Egyptian art and cult for three thousand years. Passage to the afterlife meant a descent to the underworld. Souls hoping for rebirth invoked Osiris and literally became him. Despite its preoccupation with death, Egyptian art is rarely claustrophobic. The beyond was no spectral twilight but a lively zone of physical needs and pleasures. Warehousing stools, chairs, tables, chests, clothing, perfumes, ointments, jewelry, games, daggers, boomerangs, chariots, and jars of extracted viscera, the tomb was a distillation of real life. The urbane aristocrats promenading across the walls are wide-eyed and cheerful as they face the great unknown. Their majestically enthroned guardian gods often seem faintly comic, with the large heads of birds, beetles, or hippopotamuses, vestiges of primitive animism. Resurrection also symbolizes our modern recovery of Egypt. For a millennium after the fall of Rome, Egypt was wrapped in a haze of occult legend. After Islam''s arrival, it became a closed world whose pagan remains were ignored and neglected. Napoleon''s invasion helped start Egyptology: a French officer''s discovery of the Rosetta Stone led to the decipherment of hieroglyphics, while the immense, multivolumed report by Napoleon''s team of surveyors and scientists set off a craze for Egyptian style that swept European architecture and decor and would even produce America''s Washington Monument. Over the next century, thanks to photography, knowledge of Egypt was gradually spread throughout the world. The ancient Egyptians have finally achieved their immortality. From earliest times through the Middle Kingdom, the rulers of Egypt were buried in sprawling necropolises at the desert''s edge near the Delta, as the Nile fans out -toward the sea. The principal sacred districts were at Saqqara and Giza, where the Great Sphinx, hacked out Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars bedrock, still guards Chephren''s mammoth pyramid. After a devastating Syrian invasion, the capital of Egypt was moved four hundred miles south to Thebes. There the upstart warrior pharaohs of the New Kingdom created their own cemetery Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars toward the setting sun across the Nile--the Valley of the Kings, scarcely more than a dry gulch behind the high, horned escarpment of the Libyan Plateau. Pyramids or telltale markers of any kind were prudently avoided. The coffins were buried deep in the rock and the entryways heaped with rubble. Nevertheless, most tombs in the Valley of the Kings were looted within two centuries. One that escaped detection belonged to a minor king, Tutankhamen, who died young. When his tomb was found and opened inthe staggering treasures, such as his solid-gold mummy case, gave tantalizing hints of what the grave goods of a star pharaoh must have been. Royal wives and children were buried in the nearby Valley of the Queens, where eighty tombs called "Houses of Eternity" have been found. The most lavish one belonged to Nefertari, first and favorite wife of the imperialistic Rameses II, who sired at least forty-five sons from eight wives and who ruled for more than sixty years during the thirteenth century B. Nefertari''s unusual status was signaled by her figure being made the same size as the king''s at her shrine at Abu Simbel, where four seated colossi of Rameses were cut from a Nubian cliff on the Nile. Nefertari her name means "the Most Beautiful of Them All" was of noble but not royal blood. She may have been a cousin or even a younger sister of Nefertiti, charismatic queen of the rebel monotheist ruler Akhenaten. Nefertari bore Rameses''s firstborn son, who died tragically young, perhaps inspiring the story in Exodus of God''s curse upon Pharaoh. In Cecil B. Nefertari had at least five more children, but Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars robust Rameses whose -well--preserved mummy survives in the Cairo Museum outlived them all. Hence his successor, Merneptah, was the son of a lesser, rival queen. Nefertari''s tomb was discovered in by Ernesto Schiaparelli, an Italian scholar and museum director. Sunk forty feet into the bedrock, it has a twofold axis aligned to the compass points and consists of two large ceremonial chambers, annexed by side chapels and niches and connected by a staircase. All that remains of the queen''s pink granite sarcophagus is a smashed lid. The tomb''s ceilings were painted midnight blue and spangled with gold stars to represent the heavens, while the walls and square columns were adorned with religious scenes and symbols. The raw limestone surfaces were first coated with a rough plaster of Nile mud, which was sculpted in low relief. A thin layer of fine plaster was then applied, upon which the designs were painted in tempera--always mineral pigments mixed with an unknown binder, perhaps a gum from the acacia trees of Thebes. A sparkling egg glaze was used as a sealant. Nefertari''s tomb would suffer damage from an earthquake and serious deterioration from rock-salt crystals slowly deposited behind the plaster by seeping rainwater. Thanks to a major rescue project by the Getty Conservation Institute in collaboration with the Egyptian Antiquities Organizationthe tomb has been repaired, stabilized, and reopened to the public. The conservators'' meticulous cleaning and consolidation with no new paint whatever have revealed the murals'' still brilliant color. The paintings are a narrative of Nefertari''s journey toward the afterlife. She is presented as a pilgrim soul seeking justification and resurrection. There are oddly few references in the tomb to her husband and none to her children or life story. Everything is focused on Nefertari''s spiritual quest. Respectful yet confident of her worthiness, she is a plucky, solitary wayfarer confronting the awesome powers and mysteries of the cosmos. Demons wait to pounce at each of five gates out of a traditional twelve leading to Duat, the netherworld. But Nefertari knows the sacred formulas, passes her test, and wins resurrection, proved by her being repeatedly called "the Osiris. Camille Paglia. Glittering Images : A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars - -

Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars is a book by American cultural critic Camille Pagliain which the author discusses notable works of applied and visual art from ancient to modern times. Paglia wrote that she intended it to be a personalized "journey" through art historyfocusing on Western works. Paglia writes that she felt inspired to write given that she worries 21st century Americans are overexposed to visual stimulation by the "all-pervasive mass media" and must fight to keep their capacity for contemplation. The book features twenty-nine sections, with glossy full-color illustrations, each focused on a specific piece. After its October 16, release, the book received positive reviews from publications such as The Philadelphia Inquirer and Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars Wall Street Journal[2] [3] while it also picked up more critical, negative reviews from publications such as The New York Times Book Review. While touching on the themes of Paglia's previous work, Glittering Images focuses on modern cultural ignorance. Paglia discusses twenty-nine examples of visual artwork. Paglia begins by describing the ancient Egyptian funerary images of Queen Nefertari[1] a royal whose name means "the most beautiful of them all". Paglia refers to how the civilization "dreamed of conquering the terrors of death", and she notes how "Egyptian painted figures float in an abstract space that is neither here nor there", describing the visual power of this "eternal present" depicted. These pieces of Cycladic art are cited as "daring explorations of form and structure" foreshadowing the future. The author then describes the ' Charioteer of Delphi ', a work from the fifth century BC that she writes embodies well the ancient Greek ideals of "young male beauty" and the building of character through personal striving. She states how she finds the chariot racing athlete "grave and dignified" Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars his meditative expression, giving a "look that would become canonical for gods and heroes in the classic tradition". The book goes on next to the famous mosaic of Saint John Chrysostom in the Hagia Sophiaa piece that Paglia writes as having an "implacable intensity of gaze" making it a great piece of Byzantine art[10] and additionally to the late eighth century Ireland's Book of Kellsan "intricately decorated manuscript of the Gospels that is one of the most beautiful objects surviving from medieval Europe. Paglia next discusses Bronzino 's 'Portrait of Andrea Doria as Neptune', writing that as a work of the Mannerism movement it shows a "polished theatricality" arresting to the viewer, [13] and Gian Lorenzo Bernini 's ' Chair of Saint Peter ' in the Vatican Citya 17th-century work showing how Baroque art often "overwhelms the senses with flamboyant grandeur". The book details ' Marilyn Diptych ', a silkscreen that replicates a photo of Marilyn Monroe over and over with image variations, and the work is lauded for strongly showing the "multiplicity of meanings" in the actress' life and legacy. The book additionally cites Eleanor Antin 's conceptual art project ' Boots'. Paglia praises the work, writing that "boots, like Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars creator, are outsiders, eternal migrants questing for knowledge and experience. Writer John Adams of The New York Times Book Review published a critical review of the book, viewing it as being "so agenda driven and so riddled with polemic asides that its potential to persuade is forever being compromised. He supported how Paglia "encourages us to read more closely and to look more imaginatively" at the world of art historythough concluded that her praise of George Lucas was assessing art "by its reach rather than its depth", and thus Paglia "has journeyed to the wrong continent, and what she has found glittering there is fool's gold. Journalist Gary Rosen of The Wall Street Journalhowever, praised the book's "impressive range" and accessibility for a general audience. He argued that "[f]or the most part, Ms. Paglia chooses well, from works both celebrated and obscure", and he stated that the author "is especially good at the difficult trick of providing context for the newcomer to art history without being tedious for a more experienced reader. Rothan author and the president of Wesleyan University. He wrote, "Artists, questing outsiders, are still with us, still finding their way, making their way. Perhaps some of them will be inspired by the glittering images Camille Paglia offers here. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Books portal. Glittering Images: A Journey Through Art from Egypt to Star Wars New York Times. Retrieved July 7, The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 17, The Philadelphia Inquirer. Roth December 28, The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 19, Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description is different from Wikidata. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. Download as PDF Printable version. Add links. Cover of the first edition. Applied and visual arts. Print Hardcover and Paperback.