Search Results (267)

This article offers a critical reading of the fishing neighbourhood of Paramos, located on the northern coast of Portugal, through a methodological approach that combines documentary photography and cognitive cartography. The study investigates the relationships between identity, landscape, and power within a territory marked by spatial fragmentation, symbolic exclusion, and functional indeterminacy. By means of a structured visual essay supported by field observation and interpretive maps, Paramos is examined as a liminal urban enclave whose ambiguities reveal tensions between memory, informal appropriation, and control devices. Drawing on authors such as Lefebvre, Augé, Hayden, Domingues, Foucault, and Latour, the article argues that the photographic image, used as a critical tool, can unveil hidden territorial logics and contribute to a more inclusive and situated spatial discourse. Full article

This article examines the persistent conceptual and structural obstacles that pluralism faces within the Euro-United-Statesian art system, particularly in the fields of criticism, art history, and aesthetics. The study situates its inquiry within broader debates around the politics of difference and the decolonization of knowledge, aiming to understand how theoretical frameworks historically incorporated plurality in ways that ultimately neutralize its disruptive potential. Methodologically, the article combines philosophical analysis with a critical rereading of canonical texts by figures such as Clement Greenberg and Arthur Danto, juxtaposed with insights from Indigenous, Black, and decolonial thinkers. The findings suggest that pluralism, while rhetorically embraced, is frequently rendered compatible with a teleological and universalizing narrative that privileges Western aesthetic trajectories. As a result, forms of difference are tolerated only insofar as they can be translated into hegemonic terms. The article concludes by advocating for critical practices that sustain rather than resolve difference, calling for frameworks capable of embracing dissonance, incommensurability, and multiple ontologies without collapsing them into sameness. In doing so, it repositions the contemporary struggle over meaning in art not as a problem to be overcome, but as a necessary symptom of epistemic plurality. Full article

The article analyzes the meanings embedded in street art in Florence that portrays women, likely created by female artists. Between 18 May and 27 May 2024, during the Communities and Artistic Participation in Hybrid Environment (CAPHE) project, we observed a significant number of feminist street art pieces in Florence’s historic center. Using qualitative content analysis based on Gillian Rose’s methodology (2016), we interpreted the collected visual materials through semiotic and socio-cultural lenses. The findings revealed the deliberately interventionist nature of the analyzed works, addressing themes such as gender inequality, human rights, violence against women, and cultural stereotypes. This street art serves as a social manifesto and a means of activating both the local community and tourists, aligning with global feminist discourse while addressing Florence’s local issues. We conclude that Florence’s street art provides a space for visual resistance, education, and the promotion of gender equality and women’s emancipation in the context of contemporary social challenges. Full article

This article presents a multidimensional analysis of the work of the Māori artist Hori from postcolonial, cultural, and autoethnographic perspectives. Drawing on the researcher’s experience as a visitor in Ōtaki, Aotearoa/New Zealand, an environment deeply rooted in Māori heritage, the text demonstrates how Hori’s art becomes a field of negotiation over identity, visual decolonization, and dialogue with global currents of socially engaged art. Particular attention is given to Matariki, the Māori New Year, as a context for cultural renewal, community strengthening, and the emphasis on values such as whakapapa (genealogy) and whenua (land). Through the author’s autoethnographic reflexivity, interpretation emerges as a relational process that takes into account local meanings, universal experiences of resistance, as well as the ethical and epistemological challenges involved in researching Indigenous cultures. In effect, Hori’s work appears as a transnational visual language in which aesthetics intertwines with politics and local epistemologies engage with global discourses on power, memory, and identity. Full article

This article examines the place of Croatian art within Hungarian art exhibitions around the turn of the century. Over close to a decade, from the 1896 Millennial Exhibition until the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, the way Croatian art was displayed within Hungarian exhibitions had changed. While it might seem that the ultimate absence of Croatian art in later Hungarian displays is an example of Hungarian chauvinism, the opposite is the case: Croatian art still continued to be displayed, but not as a subsidiary of Hungarian art. Full article

For the Norman kings of Sicily and the ecclesiastical authorities who ruled their dioceses, Byzantine art served as both a symbol of luxury and a model of prestige. Similarly to the mosaics of Palermo, Monreale, and Cefalú, as well as textiles and goldsmithing, the manuscripts preserved in the National Library of Madrid stand as prime examples of the fascination that the dignitaries of the Kingdom of Sicily had for Byzantine esthetics. Among these manuscripts, the Sacramentary of Messina (Madrid, BNE Ms. 52) is perhaps the most striking. This Latin sacramentary, comprising 303 folios, features illuminated initials, a calendar with depictions of classical topics, such as the Spinario and a compelling depiction of August inspired by the Byzantine Koimesis, the months and zodiac, and two full-page illustrations depicting the Virgin Glykophilousa, the Crucifixion, and the Deesis. This study has a dual focus. First, it aims to analyze the iconographic peculiarities of the monthly images in this Latin calendar. Second, it seeks to provide new insights into the manuscript’s patronage and its place of origin. In this context, one of the most striking and significant aspects of the sacramentary’s iconography is the prominent role of the Virgin, a theme that will also be examined in this study. Archbishop Richard Palmer emerges as the leading candidate to have been the driving force in the patronage of the manuscript to the Royal scriptoria of Palermo. Full article

Challenging the still widespread modernist and Eurocentric understanding of Pollock’s art as a formal advance based in Picasso’s cubism, this study explores the pervasive impact of Mexican art, political culture, and myth on the creation of Pollock’s Birth c. 1941. The recent discovery of Pollock’s early exposure to Diego Rivera’s use of the Mesoamerican myth of Quetzalcoatl invites a reconsideration of the sources of his art. The myth of Quetzalcoatl challenged Pollock, who responded not just to Rivera but also to Siqueiros’ understanding of the political significance of art and to Orozco’s call for Quetzalcoatl’s return in a modern migration of the spirit at Dartmouth College. Made aware of the positive potential of this mythic symbolism by his Jungian psychotherapy, we see Pollock using it to counter the destructive force of fascism depicted in Picasso’s Guernica 1937. In the process he discovers his own artistic identity in Birth as a mythmaker in a time of war, capable of generating new Pan-American symbols and forms to challenge the hegemony of Picasso. Full article

Dongba painting is an ancient art form created by the ancestors of the Naxi people. As a masterpiece of Dongba scroll painting, The Road to Heaven, exemplifies the simplicity and beauty of the primitive Dongba religion and stands as a unique treasure within Naxi painting, possessing significant value for both art and religious research. The Road to Heaven serves as an essential religious ritual artifact in the Dongba religion of the Naxi people. Utilizing the format of a long scroll painting, it depicts the Naxi people’s reflections on the origins of life; the relationships between humans, nature, and society; and the exploration of life’s ultimate destiny, thereby presenting a distinctive worldview. This article constructs a theoretical analysis framework based on an iconographic study of The Road to Heaven, exploring the unique artistic representation, aesthetic spirit, worldview, and religious origins of the Naxi people to gain a deeper understanding of the construction of their spiritual homeland. At the level of pre-iconographic description, this article primarily analyzes the subject matter and contents of The Road to Heaven, the materials employed in the painting, and its artistic features. The iconographic analysis examines the thematic elements of The Road to Heaven; the virtual world structure of the Dongba religion’s imagined realms of gods, humans, and spirits; and its simple, natural, vivid, and imaginative aesthetic style. At the level of iconological interpretation, in this article, the characteristics of the religious beliefs shown in The Road to Heaven and the main factors influencing its aesthetic spirit are analyzed. We reveal that although the Dongba religion intersects and integrates with Tibetan Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, Daoism, and other ideologies and cultures, ancestor worship remains a dominant force guiding Naxi behavior. The unique natural environment, historical migrations, and multicultural exchanges of the Naxi people are the primary factors shaping their aesthetic spirit. By systematically analyzing The Road to Heaven from the perspective of iconology, this study provides evidence of its profound connections with Naxi social history, offering a more comprehensive view of the Naxi people’s aesthetic spirit and cultural connotations while presenting new approaches for researching The Road to Heaven. Full article

The issue of royal deaths, along with studies on the ceremonial framework, the artistic and ideological aspects of their funerals, the rituals of power succession, and the public manifestation of dynastic power, represents a significant area of research in contemporary humanities. This article explores the origins and evolution of mourning and funeral ceremonies for Polish monarchs, and subsequently, based on various sources, examines the fixed and variable elements of the funerals of Sigismund I the Old (r. 1507–1548), Sigismund II Augustus (r. 1548–1572), and Stephen Báthory (r. 1575–1586), which followed a ceremonial protocol established in 1548. Additionally, it addresses the challenges of reconstructing the visual aspects of these ceremonies, with particular attention paid to their artistic and ideological components and their connections to the funerary traditions of other European rulers. Full article

This article examines nomadism through the conceptual framework of philosopher Rosi Braidotti, analyzing its implications for contemporary artistic practices. By focusing on case studies, including Italian artist Mario Merz’s igloos and Peruvian artist Jimena Kato’s perilous constructions, this article explores material precariousness and material agency as a means of engaging politically with topics such as migration, diasporic cultures, and the contested notion of home. It seeks to elucidate the dynamic interplay between balance and imbalance, revealing the transformative essence of being. Central to this discussion are three key concepts drawn from Braidotti’s work: (1) the nomadic subject, (2) performativity, and (3) potentiality. These categories are crucial for understanding how nomadism, as both a theoretical and practical approach, redefines subjectivity and materiality in art. The analysis suggests that these artistic practices embody a nomadic ontology, where movement and instability become generative forces for creation, challenging traditional notions of fixed identity and static form. The article contributes to the ongoing discourse concerning the intersection of philosophy and contemporary art, proposing that nomadism offers a valuable lens through which to view the evolving relationship between the artist, their materials, and the broader socio-cultural context. Full article

In contemporary art, the representation of the “body”, particularly the female body, has emerged as a crucial site of feminist critique and exploration. This is especially evident in the works of Iranian female artists, who challenge prevailing local and global discourses surrounding female embodiment. This study examines how artists such as Shirin Neshat (b. 1957), Parastou Forouhar (b. 1962), and Shadi Ghadirian (b. 1974) use their art to redefine representations of women’s bodies within the socio-political context of post-revolutionary Iran. The restrictive post-revolutionary environment, marked by mandatory hijab laws and stringent social codes for women, has profoundly impacted artistic expression. These artists navigate this complex landscape, utilizing their work to contest both the imposed limitations and the Western gaze that often reduces Iranian women to stereotypes. By interrogating these artistic representations through a feminist lens, this paper explores the intersection of gender, politics, culture, and artistic expression, examining how these artists contribute to a broader redefinition of the female body in contemporary feminist art. This study employs a qualitative, descriptive–analytical approach grounded in feminist theory, including perspectives beyond Western thought, to analyze how these Iranian artists navigate, subvert, and reimagine traditional representations of women. By analyzing specific works, this study aims to offer a nuanced understanding of how these artists challenge both Iranian and global audiences to reconsider the boundaries of gender, identity, and power within their specific cultural and historical context. Full article

God the Father was considered so completely inexpressible and unembodied that his visual appearance in early modern masterpieces has long challenged the theological accuracy of such works. A recent discovery complicates that issue. Albrecht Dürer’s 1500 Self-portrait as Christ is incorrectly considered an isolated example of divine self-representation. It was, in fact, as shown here, part of a long tradition throughout Europe between at least the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries. The praxis, potentially sacrilegious, raises questions about the truth of art at its highest level. To address this conundrum, this article analyzes works by three eminent, but very different, artists: Michelangelo, Raphael, and Dürer. Two current methodologies—visual exegesis and the poetics of making—support the argument. The analysis reveals that there is a fundamental unity to their work, which has not been recognized on account of three popular misconceptions about the nature of art, divinity, and the mind. This article concludes that depictions of God the Father and Christ by these artists are neither heretical nor false because, as the evidence shows, all three were part of a continuous spiritual tradition embedded within their craft. Full article

Just as Gothic cathedrals have long dominated the perception of medieval architecture, the spectacular drawings of the German lodges have shaped our view of the medieval design process. However, their towering importance has diverted scholarly attention from alternative drafting practices and reinforced the view of a homogeneous Gothic design practice based on quadrature. Historians generally accept that in the 16th century a new Renaissance graphic language challenged and ultimately replaced the Gothic tradition north of the Alps. However, this antagonistic narrative of one dominant practice superseding the other needs to be re-examined because hitherto neglected drawings for other types of buildings reveal that medieval drafting practice was more varied and open to new developments than is often believed. This paper will examine three rare sets of architectural drawings, together consisting of over thirty sheets, made for three stone sluices in the provinces of Utrecht and Holland between 1556 and 1563. They show that for technically demanding hydraulic works, drawings directed every step of the process, from enabling discussion of the most suitable design to guiding the stonemasons in the execution of the work. Moreover, they demonstrate that for such projects, Gothic masters did not adhere to tradition but engaged with new design methods, using scale, colour, and multiple views to convey all aspects of the project, thus indicating that changes in style and method were not always interrelated. Full article

This article examines the artistic contributions of two members of the ‘artes’ group, active in Lviv (Lwów during the interwar period) from 1929 to 1935: Aleksander Krzywobłocki (1901–1979) and Margit Reich-Sielska (1900–1980). Situated within the ‘artes’ milieu, which emerged as the most cohesive community among phenomena with a surrealist profile in the history of Polish art, their creative endeavors have faded from the collective memory of subsequent generations of art historians and critics, both within and beyond Poland. With the aim of elucidating the distinctive characteristics of Krzywobłocki and Sielska’s artistic attitudes, deeply rooted in the cultural landscape of interwar Galicia, this study explores their work as both manifestations of the avant-garde milieu in Lviv and contributions to the transnational surrealist movement. This examination takes a relational approach, considering their artistic output within a framework of trans-local and trans-regional connections. Drawing upon the works of various surrealists active in different European centers, I juxtapose the artistic approaches of Krzywobłocki and Sielska with other practitioners of the movement to highlight both convergences and differences in their expressions. By situating their artistic profiles within the broader modalities of surrealism as a polycentric movement and within the unique cultural context of Lviv—a city marked by its multiethnic, multicultural, and multiconfessional character—I argue that their imaginings should be classified as idiosyncratic idioms of surrealism. This hybrid expression, which developed on the peripheries of European artistic hubs, is primarily distinguished by an ‘archetypal load of tension’—a continual quest for archetypal content that has been lost in the modern world. Full article

The Macartney Embassy, the first official British diplomatic mission to China, contributed to the visual record and understanding of China in Britain. The embassy artists were ambitious in their mission to deliver authentic visual knowledge of China to the British at the same time that they were subconsciously influenced by both the old chinoiserie tradition, and the nascent British Enlightenment thought process. In contrast to contemporary Britain’s scientific and humanitarian advancements, the embassy’s portrayal of China was pastoral, barbaric, and autocratic, allowing the British to revel in the humanism and progressivism of their own values and social system. Full article