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Still life: A
History Sybille Ebert-Schifferer |
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The still life is the
best-loved image in the history of Western painting. The ancient Greeks and
Romans decorated their houses with still-life paintings, and these beguiling
pictures of fruit, flowers, writing tools, and other common objects have
continued to give pleasure to viewers ever since. Always tied to the idea pf
creating an illusion, of "fooling the eye", the still life has
flourished in many forms, as wall decoration, manuscript margin, treasured
object, moralizing emblem, and visual pun. Full of new information
and beautiful illustrations, this fascinating history of the European still
life from the ancient world to the twentieth century is a pleasure to read
and a joy to look at. Readers will learn about the still life's origin in
Greco-Roman images of xenia, or 'hospitality gifts", and how
these evocative pictures evolved into the superb trompe
l'oeil still-life paintings of the While the author's
sparkling text offers a new understanding of this splendid part of our common
heritage, the handsome color plates will bring the work of these great
artists to life. About the author Sybille Ebert-Schifferer studied art history, music, theater and
philosophy in |
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