James Clifton Livres

Some 75 paintings, sculptures, illuminated manuscripts, prints, and textiles are featured, including works by Sandro Botticelli, Carlo Dolci, Albrecht Durer, Bernardino Luini, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacopo Tintoretto, Paolo Veronese and Francisco de Zurbaran. The works range from intimate and private devotional pieces as small as three inches high to altarpieces and church furnishings. The Body of Christ focuses on two aspects: the meaning of the subject matter within the Christian culture of the period (specifically that of the Catholic Church), and how these symbolic images of Christ were used - or intended to be used - in religious practice, particularly from the late Middle Ages through the iconoclastic controversies of the sixteenth century. The Body of Christ is divided into four thematic sections. "The Word Made Flesh" includes images of the Madonna and Child, the Annunciation, Nativity, and Adoration. "Suffering and Triumph" illustrates the Passion and the Resurrection of Christ. "The Eucharistic Body" explores the explicit correlation between Christ's body and blood, and the bread and wine of the Mass. "The Visionary Body" presents devotional experiences and miracles, and saints, religious, and lay persons experiencing visions of the image of Christ.

This new volume opens up our understanding of the design, production and market for Biblical prints and illustrated Bible images in 16th century Flanders, and explores the central role they played in one of the most dramatic artistic and religious transformations in European history.Prints are often seen as merely following artistic developments in the more prestigious medium of painting and, in turn, the visual arts are seen as mirroring changes in society, but this groundbreaking book challenges these views. Featuring approximately 130 engravings, woodcuts, and illustrated Bibles and books by Lucas van Leyden, Maarten van Heemskerck, Philips Galle, Hendrick Goltzius, Hieronymus Wierix and others, it reveals that biblical prints were a dynamic force both in the transformation of Northern European art between Albrecht Durer and Rembrandt van Rijn, and in the intensified attention to Scripture in the religious turmoil of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation.

Unfortunately, the limited growth in human consciousness over thousands of years is reflected in the way we treat the planet and our fellow humans. Our parasitic attitude, should it continue, will destroy this beautiful Earth. Now is the time to influence governments, demanding an end to the power, greed and corruption so prevalent today.The lack of trust fuelling the rapid growth of the world’s military is just lunacy, as we have learnt nothing despite our history of continual war.We are supposedly intelligent human beings and should be so much better than we have proven to be in the past, but our arrogance, self-indulgence and uncaring attitude continues.