Lens On American Art: The Depiction And Role Of Eyeglasses

by John Wilmerding

2021-01-08 04:02:40

A reflection of American art''s most iconic portraits that feature eyeglasses, and their significance to the artists--from Grant Wood to Alex Katz--through the lens of renowned art historian John Wilmerding.This book celebrates and interprets eyeglas... Read more
A reflection of American art''s most iconic portraits that feature eyeglasses, and their significance to the artists--from Grant Wood to Alex Katz--through the lens of renowned art historian John Wilmerding.

This book celebrates and interprets eyeglasses in American art through painting, prints, folk art, sculpture, and photography from the end of the eighteenth century to the present. Accompanying an exhibition at the Shelburne Museum in Vermont, the book includes eighty works by illustrious artists such as Mary Cassatt and Alice Neel.

Though we know eyeglasses are for looking through, we often overlook their role in portraits and figure images. This survey looks at their appearance and uses in American art, from 1784 when Benjamin Franklin invented the bifocal, to the present day. Spectacles in artwork served as emblems of literacy, fashion, and self-identity; old age and wisdom; inner or psychological vision; and sometimes just contemplation. Contemporary works include bespectacled self-portraits by Chuck Close, Andy Warhol, and Keith Haring; and eyeglasses as pure design by Alex Katz and Wayne Thiebaud. Less

Book Details

File size10.25 X 8.31 X 0.94 in
Print pages184
PublisherRizzoli
Publication date March 24, 2020
LanguageEnglish
ISBN9780847864768

Compare Prices

Store Availability Book Format Condition Price
Indigo Books & Music In Stock Paper over Board Paper over Board Buy CAD 60.81
Indigo Books & MusicIn Stock
Format
Paper over Board
Condition
Paper over Board
Buy CAD 60.81
Available Discount
No Discount available

Join us and get access to all
your favourite books

Sign up for free and start exploring thousands of eBooks today.

Sign up for free