Only a Promise of Happiness: The Place of Beauty in a World of Art

Book Description

Neither art nor philosophy was kind to beauty during the twentieth century. Much modern art disdains beauty, and many philosophers deeply suspect that beauty merely paints over or distracts us from horrors. Intellectuals consigned the passions of beauty to the margins, replacing them with the anemic and rarefied alternative, "aesthetic pleasure." In Only a Promise of Happiness, Alexander Nehamas reclaims beauty from its critics. He seeks to restore its place in art, to reestablish the connections among art, beauty, and desire, and to show that the values of art, independently of their moral worth, are equally crucial to the rest of life.

Nehamas makes his case with characteristic grace, sensitivity, and philosophical depth, supporting his arguments with searching studies of art and literature, high and low, from Thomas Mann's Death in Venice and Manet's Olympia to television. Throughout, the discussion of artworks is generously illustrated.

Beauty, Nehamas concludes, may depend on appearance, but this does not make it superficial. The perception of beauty manifests a hope that life would be better if the object of beauty were part of it. This hope can shape and direct our lives for better or worse. We may discover misery in pursuit of beauty, or find that beauty offers no more than a tantalizing promise of happiness. But if beauty is always dangerous, it is also a pressing human concern that we must seek to understand, and not suppress.

Customer Reviews:

A Broken Promise.......2007-05-09

I kept on reading through this book hoping to find the message, but, except for the early implication that beauty was but a vapor in the vision of the beholder and real art was for those critics qualified to go on endlessly about the hidden meaning of the work, it was not there. Tom Wolfe nailed this in The Painted Word, and I should have been warned. I wonder if this book had an editor. If so, he or she might have noticed that while many of the paintings, especially Manet's, were repeated several times, many obscure ones critical to appreciation of the text, were left to the reader's imagination. The book was too wordy and lacked organization, which might be consistent with its message. Worse, it exuded the sniffy attitude of an academician anxious for you to know the extent of his knowledge while demeaning yours. If beauty, as the ancient philosopher once wrote, is the good so good it leads to nothing better, then we are not decived in the contemplation of it for its own sake, even if it be, as Plato described it, but the shadow of pure Beauty. Some of the art here, was, indeed, beautiful, but none of the writing, and the promise broken was that of the reviewer who implied the book was a good read.

Beauty and Ethics.......2007-03-15

With so much of today's art having been reduced to silly and trite political statements, it is refreshing to be reminded that the greatest of artists, and the greatest of thinkers, have always consider genuine art to serve the purpose of elevating the human spirit. Alexander Nehamas masterfully reminds us of the profound philosophical tradition that understands the concept and experience of beauty to be essential to moving one toward a fuller life, a life that is centered on its concern for the well-being of the other. Along with rich philosophical reflections of thinkers ranging from Plato to Mann, Nehamas leads his reader on a journey of discovery: a journey that helps one discover what Plato considered to be the one basic human instinct: the instinct to respond to beauty. After reading this text, take a look at E. Scarry's work: Beauty and the Just, or some of the essays by I. Murdoch. You will, in the end, no longer be taken-in by today's artists who pose as poets, painters, or musicians, but who in fact simply use the aesthetic medium to propagate some sort of shallow and thoughtless political agenda.

"To think of beauty as only a promise of happiness is to be willing to live with ineradicable uncertainty" (pg. 130)........2007-03-07

This book mixes the philosophy of art, ethics, and language in a very creative way. Although Nehamas covers much ground, he pursues throughout a creative discovery of the meaning of Edouard Manet's "Olympia" painting. He chases the inscrutable Olympia with the same fervor that Langdon chases Leonardo in "The Da Vinci Code" and the same intensity that Paul Harris chases the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili in "The Rule of Four." Nehamas pursues Olympia as the moral virtue of happiness against a historical background where, "For Socrates, virtue was nothing but its own pursuit. And only the promise of happiness is happiness itself" (pg. 138). Beauty, for Nehamas, is the promise.

Modern art, as in modern Anglican philosophy, has placed "beauty" in a relegated, unimportant position. Instead, aesthetics, and objectivity, have become the marks of modern art criticism and modern philosophy (and science). Nehamas wants to restore beauty without giving transcendent features to it. He begins by posing 2 alternatives: Plato or Schopenhauer. Without agreeing with Plato all the way through the argument for the Forms and Pythagorean style objectivity, Nehamas does see in Plato an articulated expression of the power of beauty. In Plato's "Phaedrus" Nehamas sees the homosexual words of Plotinus as a muse on beauty. Nehamas connects the sexual nature of the philosophical ascent towards the form to arete (Greek word for moral virtue; but Nehamas sees the word fitting a context where the "older man was expected to provide him with the motivation and knowledge necessary for success and distinction in life" pg. 6). But Schopenhauer wants to "exclude passion and desire from the serious," according to Nehamas, who quotes Schopenhauer saying, "All amorousness is rooted in the sexual impulse alone" (pg. 8). Schopenhauer is following Kant's notion of the beautiful as what is known through contemplation or art that produces "a satisfaction without any interest" (pg. 3). And although the word aesthetics is from the Greek word "aesthesis," which means "perception," Kant's notion of a satisfaction without interest seems to separate the perceptual experience from aesthetics.
Nehamas sides with Plato against Kant and Schopenhauer. "Beauty...is part of the everyday world of purpose and desire, history and contingency, subjectivity and incompleteness" (pg. 35). As for progress in the arts, new art is not somehow closer to Truth than other art, according to Nehamas who almost likens period changes in art to Kuhnian science paradigm shifts: "No theoretical proof...will do: the only way to show that new and better art is possible is to create a work that some, at least, among its audience will at some time accept as new and better art" (pg. 40). Unlike Kant who denies interest as part of the mark of beauty, Nehamas invokes Plato again, "Our reaction to beautiful things is the urge to make them our own, which is why Plato called eros the desire to possess beauty" (pg. 55). "Beauty points to the future, and we pursue it without knowing what it will yield, and that makes it as difficult to say why we love someone as it is to say why someone else is our friend. My reasons for finding you beautiful include characteristics I feel you have not yet disclosed, features that may take me in directions I can't now foresee. Beauty inspires desires without letting me known what they are for, and a readiness to refashion what I already desire without telling me what will replace it.
When I say...that what I want is you, not anything from you, I am putting myself in your hands, assuring us both that I will be happy no matter what happens to me, if it is due to you. It is an overwhelming feeling, that sweeping sense that all will be well - and it is often wrong. Stendhal was right: beauty is only a promise of happiness" (pg. 63). We do not know what beauty will yield because beauty is "the emblem of what we lack" which "so frightened Schopenhauer instead of calming him" (pg. 76).
As far as agreement on art is concerned, "Aesthetic judgment must move away from a dogmatism that detects a difference in quality in ever divergence in taste without, at the same time, falling into a relativism that refuses to make any judgment at all" (pg. 84). Nehamas begins this difficult task by making distinctions between the value of morality, aesthetics, beauty, and style; "while the values of morality are the emblems of our commonalities, the values of aesthetics are the badges of our particularities" (pg. 86). "Universal aesthetic agreement would mark the end of aesthetics. Distinctions always denotes a necessity and, sometimes, a value" (Ibid). Thus good aesthetics carries varying styles along for the ride (Nietzsche says "To `give style' to one's character - a great and rare art!"). But since universality is the end of aesthetics, descriptions, and interpretations "depends in each case on how well we and our audience know a work of art and our purposes on that particular occasion" (pg. 123). Again, as far as interpretation is concerned, "there are no unexplained explainers" (pg. 124).
Nehamas has already written on Plato (in "The Art of Living") and Nietzsche (in Nietzsche: Life as Literature). Richard Rorty thinks that Nehamas is trying to bring Plato and Nietzsche's conception of beauty together in "Only a Promise of Happiness."

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The Next Best Thing to Being There
Armchair and Reality Paris
Ah Paris
It's The Pictures, After All

Living In Paris (Living In . . .)
Jose Alvarez
Manufacturer: Flammarion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 2080136216
Release Date: 1999-01-15

Book Description

The Living in... series takes you on an armchair visit of the houses, gardens, museums and palaces of the world's most beautiful countries and cities. From Norway to Istanbul, from Portugal to London, discover the neglected treasures and hidden delights of regions which still harbor secrets to enchant even the most world-weary traveler. And for those inspired to visit, each volume includes an exclusive traveler's guide.

In Living in Paris, José Alvarez provides the context-historical, literary, artistic, etc.-while Christian Sarramon and Nicolas Bruant provide 400 color photos of the buildings, the interior design, the neighborhoods, parks, gardens, shops, ateliers, museums and hangouts preferred by those who live in the city of lights. The book ends with a lengthy Visitor's Guide listing addresses, phone numbers and descriptions for hotels, shops, restaurants, stores and more for each neighborhood.

Customer Reviews:

The Next Best Thing to Being There .......2007-02-13

Beautifully illustrated, this book takes you on a well organised journey through the main districts of Paris but also informs on a differnent asthetic level such as the essential spirit of this city as seen through its architecture and its culture. The grande old history from the baroque and ancient regieme onwards is elegantly sought out with a particularly interesting chapter containing old master craftsmen at their trades and where you might find them. This is a book that you can simiply sit down with and devour in a glutonous way. I found this book, when sitting in one of those well heeled, and gracious bookshops, that sell good coffee and deadly cakes! Long story short - Amazon to the rescue and I am now enjoying the glories of it's pages right from my armchair. For anyone who plans to visit Paris (like myself)and/or anyone who loves things of days gone by, and wants to do so in thier mind.... give this a look. It's cheaper than an airfare and nearly as good.

Armchair and Reality Paris.......2006-06-07

I bought this book when it first came out, as a friend was leaving that very day to go to Paris. It kept me going until I was able to make my first visit in 2003. I have made two more visits since then.

I still go back to it and tell friends about it. It is one of the best photographed Paris books that I own. It brings you and your armchair right into the best of it...and allows you to savor the beauty. Voila!!!

Ah Paris.......2001-04-25

I'm surprised the other reviewer only gave this 3 stars. I think the photograghy is sumptuous and the text is quite lovely. These are the spots I remember and go back to in my imagination.

It's The Pictures, After All.......1999-12-16

The photographs within these covers are gorgeous - it's a perfect souvenir of Paris. In fact, if you buy this, you can think about leaving your camera at home. The text, translated from the French (original title 'Art de Vivre a Paris') is a bit gushy, and you might wonder, as I did, how much has indeed been lost in the reinterpretation. Never mind. Living In Paris has been in and out of print, so when it's available, get it! It's still cheaper than taking 5 rolls of your own shots to the Fotomat. And these are the pictures you'll wish you had taken.

The Gardens and Parks at Hampton Court Palace

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Five centuries of gardening. The gardens & parks of Hampton Court Palace
A STUNNING JOURNAL OF GARDENS AND PARKS

The Gardens and Parks at Hampton Court Palace
Todd Longstaffe-Gowan
Manufacturer: Frances Lincoln
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0711223688

Book Description

This book explores the history of the Hampton Court Palace landscape. Among the many themes it addresses are the role and impact of patrons, designers and estate workers; planting and horticultural techniques; statuary, fountains and other garden ornaments; and maintenance and conservation.

Customer Reviews:

Five centuries of gardening. The gardens & parks of Hampton Court Palace .......2006-08-28

A well organised and attractively produced book giving a scholarly account of the history of these magnificent and much loved Gardens. Hampton Court Palace is the finest of English Renaissance gardens and of great importance to any student of horticulture and garden or landscape history.
The avenues and the venerable ancient trees of the parks along with the even older pruned and pleached trees of the formal gardens are among the treasures of the gardens. Along with the newly restored privy garden, the statuary and the architecture these are well illustrated with photos and drawings ancient and modern

A STUNNING JOURNAL OF GARDENS AND PARKS.......2005-07-17

Todd Longstaffe-Gowan, Gardens Adviser to Hampton Court Palace and Vice Chairman of the London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust, and photographer Vivian Russell have combined their considerable talents to offer readers, most especially garden enthusiasts, a stunning journal of the gardens and parks at Hampton Court Palace.

Not only is Hampton Court an historic landscape covering 2,000 acres, bounded on its south and east sides by the River Thames, it is also a site of great antiquity indicating that there were settlements in the site dating back to the Bronze Age. However the estate began to form very much as it is seen today in 1086. It was in 1514 that Hampton Court was leased by Cardinal Wolsey, until he became persona non grata at court and was forced to leave by Henry VIII.

As soon as the estate was under his care Henry began a 20 year building, the like of which had not been seen. Since that time various royals have left their marks upon the estate as it has been used as a guest house. Queen Victoria declared that the palace "should be thrown open to all her subjects without restriction, and without fee or gratuity of any kind.." While this order was not deemed wise by many, the palace did become a popular vacation resort.

The gardens were neglected during World War I, but by 1919 improvements were being overseen by a committee of horticultural and landscape garden experts. Since the early 1990s major restoration work has taken place within the palace which has been coordinated with landscape improvements. Today, the estate stands as a "great emblem and monument of English history," and attracts over a million visitors every year.

Thanks to Longstaffe-Gowan and Russell for making it also available to armchair travelers.

- Gail Cooke

Splendor of Tibet: The Potala Palace, Jewel of the Himalayas

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Splendor of Tibet: The Potala Palace, Jewel of the Himalayas

Manufacturer: Homa & Sekey Books
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Lonely Planet Tibet

ASIN: 1931907021

Book Description

Tibetan history, religion, and culture come together in this beautiful photography book about the Potala Palace, the palace of the Dalai Lamas. With origins going back to the seventh century, the Potala Palace is the most spectacular art and religious treasurehouse in all of Tibet. Featured are over 150 rare and extraordinary color photographs of murals, thang-ka paintings, stupa-tombs, Buddhist statues, and scriptures. Porcelain vessels, enamel work, jade ware, official Dalai Lamas' seals, and palace exteriors represent the awe-inspiring palace in all of its glory and show a broad spectrum of Buddhist life and the unique customs of Tibet.

Bottle Houses: The Creative World of Grandma Prisbrey

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People Who Build Glass Houses...
"GRANDMA PRISBREY POWER"
A world of glass

Bottle Houses: The Creative World of Grandma Prisbrey
Melissa Eskridge Slaymaker
Manufacturer: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0805071318

Book Description

he walls of Grandma Prisbrey's houses glowed and glittered with color because she made them out of bottles. Large and small, fancy and plain, Grandma Prisbrey salvaged every bottle she could find. Soon people started calling Grandma Prisbrey an artist. 'I can't even draw a car that looks like one,' she said. 'But I guess there are different kinds of art.' Lush and lyrical, this is an evocative introduction to the world of visionary, or untrained, art.

Customer Reviews:

People Who Build Glass Houses..........2005-05-04

Bottle Houses tells the true story of Grandma Prisbey, artist, collector, and builder. Although not as famous as Simon Rhodia of Watts Tower fame, she similarly constructed edifices out of discarded glass and other objects. Her creative urge led to a whole complex of varied structures, united by the use of found objects. As Grandma Prisbey said, "What some people throw away, I believe I could wear to church." Unfortunately for her-and for us-some of the buildings were damaged by the 1994 quake in Simi Valley, California; however, much remains, and there is a "Preserve Bottle Village Committee" working to restore the Village.

Melissa Slaymaker does a superb job of drawing us into the story. Right away, she describes Prisbey's, nonconformity, and independence: "...she didn't have a house. She was too busy to have one." "Grandma Prisbrey had some land in California, but she didn't have enough money to build a house in a regular way. But Grandma Prisbey wasn't the sort of person who did things in a regular sort of way."

Prisbey went to the local dump, using "what some people throw away" including "furniture, stoves, refrigerators, dishes, clothes, batteries....even dolls. Hundreds of dolls."

The most important of these junked items were the colored bottles. Using everything but milk bottles (apparently against the law) she stacked bottles atop each other and held them in pace with cement. With these as her basic building materials, she built bottle houses for her collections of pencils and dolls, a bottle chapel, bottle birdbath, wishing well, rumpus room, and the round house ("everything in it was round. It had a round fireplace, a round bed, and a round dresser with a round mirror over it." Other creative projects include a house of shells and a "singing tree," hung with thousands of bottles that rang like chimes. She built a pyramid out to headlights and 150 gold lipstick cases, and dyed her three cats (vegetable dye is supposedly safe) pink, green, and blue! Slaymaker and Paschkis portray Grandma Prisbey as an artist without formal training or conventional drawing talent, who still created beautiful, original, works that delight the eye and express her individuality.

The bright illustrations and decorative "folkish" art designs by illustrator Julie Paschkis add greatly to Slaymaker's text. Paschkis captures the luminosity of the colored glass bottles, using shading and reflection in her gouache illustrations. Other illustrations are reminiscent of old stencil patterns and mid-20th century graphics. Paschkis scattered her drawings over the page, yet they retain a uniform style, echoing the feeling and look of Prisbey's Bottle Village. Colors have unusual and beautiful hues, and Paschkis conveys the vivid, multi-colored mosaics accurately and with flair. The back of the book shows photos of Grandma Prisbey, some of the structures and a link to the Preserve Bottle Village Committee website (http://echomatic.home.mindspring.com/by). I strongly suggest viewing the site, and I higly recommend this enjoyable, eye-pleasing book.

"GRANDMA PRISBREY POWER".......2005-03-10

Since the days when Simon Rodia built the "Watts Towers" in Los Angeles, I have wanted to visit other projects that were "flights of Imagination" ..... and this story of Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Houses naturally claims my applause. Here's to COLOR, CREATIVITY & INDEPENDENT THINKING ! What fun for the illustrator, and for us all!

In 1956 Grandma P. left her open-road life to settle in Simi Valley,California. She needed room for her souvenir pencil collection first, and a bottle house was the result of salvaged bottles, a strong arm for mixing mortar and persistence. Her sons helped with roofing & hanging doors as her little 'compound' grew.

But this was no Hyannisport! Tressa Prisbrey's unstifled creative juices led to other structures, small & tall: a house for dolls, a bottle chapel, birdbath, wishing well and a bottle Rumpus Room. There is a round House of bottles, and a Singing Tree where more than a thousand bottles hang & sing like wind chimes! She 'branched out' and used other materials, even potted cactus, and she laid pathways for the many gawking visitors & picture-takers.

A "Preserve Bottle Village Committee" works now to protect the future of this imaginative artistry; it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. REVIEWER mcHAIKU enthuses over the author & illustrator who bring us Grandma Prisbrey's colors bursting like Roman candles: a memorable legacy for all to share.

A world of glass.......2004-05-21

This beautifully illustrated children's book tells the story of charmingly quaint Grandma Prisbrey who builds herself a house made of empty bottles (and just a whee bit of mortar) -- making her feel as if she lived inside a rainbow or a diamond. A little glass shed for her pencil collection, a well (made of blue bottles, of course) and a glass chapel are added later on. The furniture -- if she does not build it herself, from bottles -- and all kinds of knick-knacks to make the houses even prettier come from the local dump.

Book Description

Today, the projected image of a city may play a greater role than its reality in shaping the views of visitors, investors, and, even, residents. High pressure marketing and sales techniques are frequently used to help troubled cities in their transition to post-industrial centers of tourism, culture and reinvestment. Yet for all the slick professionalism, none of this is new.

Selling Places details the successive waves of how places have been sold and marketed as attractive locations for resorts, residential areas, and cultural and business centers over the past 150 years. Stephen V. Ward uses original research and richly illustrated examples of promotional ads to show that the processes of promoting places started in the American West, with airy promises of fertility and prosperity, and currently continues with the staging of major spectacles including the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and Sydney in 2000.

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Alexandria: The Site and the History
Gamal Mokhtar , Mostafa El-Abbadi , and Ramadan Abdel Azim
Manufacturer: New York University Press
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Havana: Two Faces of the Antillean Metropolis

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A must-read about historical and contemporary Cuba
This is the seminal book on the history of Havana.

Havana: Two Faces of the Antillean Metropolis
Joseph L. Scarpaci , and Mario Coyula
Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
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Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0807827002
Release Date: 2001-12-09

Book Description

One of the oldest and most celebrated cities in the Western Hemisphere, Havana is a fascinating metropolis where history has left its handprint on every corner. Here, an international trio of well-known architects and planners assesses nearly five hundred years of development in the Cuban capital. They offer an insightful introduction to Havana's historic architecture and modern buildings, its social and economic fabric, its diverse people, and its contemporary challenges and opportunities.

From the colonial and early republican periods, through the 1959 revolution, and into the post-Soviet era and today, the authors trace Havana's physical evolution and place it in the context of important political, economic, and cultural developments. This new edition--which has been completely revised, redesigned, and updated since the book's original publication in 1997--also highlights recent restoration efforts in Old Havana, commercial development projects throughout the city, and the wide-ranging effects of international tourism.

Customer Reviews:

A must-read about historical and contemporary Cuba.......2003-12-05

Joseph Scarpaci is a well-known expert on Cuba, especially in affairs dealing with urban planning and related subjects. Having studied with Dr. Scarpaci on a short academic trip to Cuba, I can personally testify to his expansive knowledge base. This book, a compilation of information dealing with the history and development of Havana, is a must-have for anyone interested in learning more about Havana, and Cuba overall. Though much of the book focuses on the history of the capital, those who are interested in learning about contemporary Cuba will find a wealth of information on why Cuba has developed the way it has. The only reason I gave this four stars instead of five, is that the reader must be made aware that this is a scholarly work, so those accustomed to reading only fiction for pleasure may find the style a bit difficult. However, this is an outstanding piece of work that should be in the house of any person truly interested in discovering more about Cuba.

This is the seminal book on the history of Havana........1998-12-14

This book is a rich resource on a wide range of issues associated with the nearly 500 years of growth and transformation of Havana. It is a seminal work that belongs on any Cubanologist's bookshelf, and an essential text for anyone reading to prepare for a trip to the island. It is also an important work for those with only a passing interest in the specifics of Havana's built environment, but who are interested in urban history, architectural forms, state socialism, or Cuba's post-Soviet transition.

Hidden Tuscany: Unusual Destinations and Secret Places

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Great Treasures We Don't Know in Tuscany
Absolutely delightful.

Hidden Tuscany: Unusual Destinations and Secret Places
Cesare Cunaccia
Manufacturer: Rizzoli International Publications
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Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0847822230
Release Date: 2000-02-12

Book Description

Though most often associated with the Renaissance and with the famed Uffizi and Galleria dell'Accademia, the artistic heritage of Tuscany is actually quite diverse-with Baroque and Mannerist influences as well as Renaissance-and the artistic wonders go far beyond these two renowned institutions. Hidden Tuscany explores the varied influences and unique history of the region, revealing Tuscany's hidden gems. With glorious color photography and engaging text, Hidden Tuscany brings readers to the lesser-known sites-to the gardens, villas, museums, and churches often passed by on traditional tours or in other books on the area.

Customer Reviews:

Great Treasures We Don't Know in Tuscany.......2004-01-28

HIDDEN TUSCANY: UNUSUAL DESTINATIONS AND SECRET PLACES is a title that explains this beautiful book well. Even to the traveler who frequents Tuscany often there are little known but extraordinary treasures that author Cesare Cunaccia and photographer Massimo Listri unveil in a most conversational and sensitively visual display. Yes, it takes many visits to Florence, Sienna, Lucca, etc to see absolutely everything found in the art history books, most of which is in the confines of the Uffizi in Florence and even more of which is reflecting the rich Renaissance era of art. The lines just to see Michelangelo's David, for example, attest to their well-won popularity. But this book points out that there are great examples of the Romanesque architecture, of buildings and gardens that date back to the 1300s, that one of the best-kept secrets of Florence is its Silk Factory. For those art lovers who seek examples of the Mannerist Pontormo look no further than the lavishly illustrated section on his decor for the Santa Felicita. The magic found in the geometric designs that adorn San Miniato defies credibility. Listi is not a documentary photographer and that is a compliment: his photographs are bathed in light and shadow and are reproduced in this splendid volume with great respect for color value. For those not already addicted to the romance of Tuscany this volume will certainly weight the case for its preeminence in the traveler's world.

Absolutely delightful........2002-08-12

This large but not-too-thick book details a number of beautiful and little-known places in Tuscany, ranging over the entire region. This isn't actually a travel book per se -- it doesn't tell you contact information, for example, or even if these places are open to the general public. It does, however, tell you about places in Tuscany that tourists probably never ever get to, to wit: The Refuge of the White Monks at Monte Oliveto Maggiore, built in 1313, with its vaulted white halls filled with frescoes of cats and mounted archers; the lush, almost surreally beautiful gardens of Villa Garzoni in Lucca; the thousands of treasures of all sorts in the Museum of Silver in Palazzo Pitti; the Florentine Botanical Museum; the inlaid treasures of the Museo delle Pietre Dure, including shots of inlay artists at their craft; a silk factory; and many other things, probably 30 to 40 in all. The pictures are lavish and beautifully made, and the text is lyrical and pleasant on the eyes. I'd never even heard of ANY of these places, so reading this book was quite a delicious experience.

Book Description

The past comes to life with fine illustrations of classical sculptures, metalwork, mosaics, frecoes and portraits.

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