Illustrations: 46 b/w figures Description: This is the first-ever exclusive study of the composite images of Indian iconography. Of the five chapters of the book, the one on Supreme Form can legitimately claim to be the first-ever comprehensive treatment of the theme concerned. The emphasis has been on the study of the socio-historical perspective of the images. The critical apparatus used consists of original source-materials, both published and unpublished. Copious textual citations and visual documentation in the form of more than forty illustrations of images lend authenticity to the volume which doubtless is a significant scholarly contribution to the iconological study of Indian art.
About the Book : The articles collected in this volume, which were originally presented in the panels on art and epigraphy at the 12th World Sanskrit Conference in Helsinki, Finland, illustrate the depth, diversity and sophistication of recent studies in
This overview of the "sister arts" of the nineteenth century by younger scholars in art history, literature, and American studies presents a startling array of perspectives on the fundamental role played by images in culture and society. Drawing on the latest thinking about vision and visuality as well as on recent developments in literary theory and cultural studies, the contributors situate paintings, sculpture, monument art, and literary images within a variety of cultural contexts. The volume offers fresh and sometimes extended discussions of single works as well as reevaluations of artistic and literary conventions and analyses of the economic, social, and technological forces that gave them shape and were influenced by them in turn. A wide range of figures are significantly reassessed, including the painters Charles Willson Peale, Washington Allston, Thomas Cole, George Caleb Bingham, Fitz Hugh Lane, and Mary Cassatt, and such writers as James Fenimore Cooper, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and William Dean Howells. One overarching theme to emerge is the development of an American national subjectivity as it interacted with the transformation of a culture dominated by religious values to one increasingly influenced by commercial imperatives. The essays probe the ways in which artists and writers responded to the changing conditions of the cultural milieu as it was mediated by such factors as class and gender, modes of perception and representation, and conflicting ideals and realities.
Almost thirty years ago, W.J.T. Mitchell's 'Iconology' helped launch the interdisciplinary study of visual media, now a central feature of the humanities. Mitchell's now-classic work introduced such ideas as the pictorial turn, the image/picture distinction, the metapicture, and the biopicture. These key concepts imply an approach to images as true objects of investigation-an 'image science.' Continuing with this influential line of thought, 'Image Science' gathers Mitchell's most recent essays on media aesthetics, visual culture, and artistic symbolism. The chapters delve into such topics as the physics and biology of images, digital photography and realism, architecture and new media, and the occupation of space in contemporary popular uprisings.
Vaisnavism Played A Very Significant Role In Socio-Religious And Artistic Expressions Of Kashmir In Ancient And Medieval Periods. Vaisnavism Carved Its Due Place In The Minds Of The People In The Valley With Equal Amount, If Not More Than That Of Buddhism And 'Saivism. In General, The Religion Of Vishnu In The Kashmir Valley Shared The Pan-Indian Notion, Yet In Certain Aspects, It Maintained Its Individualistic Approach. Such Differences Are Noted In The Texts As Well As In The Artistic Expressions Of The Valley. The Present Book Deals With The Various Facets Of Vaisnavism In Kashmir With Particular Reference To The Vaisnava Icons And Art. The Book Deals With Para, Vyuha And Vibhava Aspects Of Vishnu As Well As With Composite And Syncretic Aspects Of The God. Attention Has Also Been Paid To The Minor Vaisnavite Deities Including The Personification Of Vishnu'S Attributes. There Has Been A Dearth Of A Comprehensive Study On Vaisnava Art And Iconography Of Kashmir And This Book Is Likely To Fill The Gap
Indian art, increasingly popular in the west, cannot be fully appreciated without some knowledge of the religious and philosophical background. This book, first published in 1985, covers all aspects of Hindu iconography, and explains that its roots lie far back in the style of prehistoric art. The dictionary demonstrates the rich profusion of cults, divinities, symbols, sects and philosophical views encompassed by the Hindu religious tradition.
This book addresses the function and status of the visual and verbal image as it relates to social, political, and ideological issues. The authors first articulate some of the lost connections between image and ideology, then locate their argument within the modernist/postmodernist debates. The book addresses the multiple, trans-disciplinary problems arising from the ways cultures, authors, and texts mobilize particular images in order to confront, conceal, work through, or resolve contradictory ideological conditions.
The Present Volume Is Published By The Oriental Institute, M.S. University Of Baroda In Sacred Memory Of Late Dr. U.P. Shah, Ex-Deputy Director And General Editor, Ramayana Deptt. Of The Institute. It Contains Research Articles Specially Written By Scholar-Friends Of Dr. Shah From The World Over, Ranging From Jaina Philosophy, Jaina Iconography, Art-History To Indian Literature In General, As His Interest Too Ranged To All The Afore-Mentioned Subjects. As Will Be Evident From The Life-Sketch And The Bibliography Of His Works, Dr. Shah Made An Impact In The Field Of Jaina Iconography And Art-History, Though He Handled, With Equal Felicity, Subjects Related To Oriental Studies. Some Of The Articles Appearing In This Volume Break New Ice Regarding Certain Knotty Points Of Jaina Philosophical Thought And Religious Practices. It Would Be Helpful To View The Contents Of This Volume From The Standpoint Of Long, Mutual Affinity And Correlatedness Of The Ancient Vedic And Jaina Traditions That Flourished Coevally Over A Great Stretch Of Time In This Country Of Uncommon Tolerance And Understanding Of Opposing Ideas And Ideals, Evincing Brilliant Insights Into The Problems Of Being And Consciousness Ever Probed By Human Mind. The Methodology Of Symbolical Representation Of Transcendental Principles And Perceptions Evolved In Both Jaina And Brahmanical Traditions Of Thought Is Well-Documented In This Volume, Which Will Prove To Be A Treasure For The Students Of Oriental Studies In General And Indology In Particular
One of the first things that strike the Western viewer of Indian art is the multiplicity of heads, arms and eyes. This convention grows out of imagery conceived by Vedic sages to explain creation. This book for the first time investigates into the meaning of this convention. The author concentrates on its origins in Hindu art and on preceding textual references to the phenomenon of multiplicity. The first part establishes a general definition for the convention. Examination of all Brahmanical literature up to, and sometimes beyond, the 1st - 3rd century A.D., adds more information to this basic definition. The second part applies this literary information mainly to icons of the Yaksa, Śiva, Vāsudeva-Kṛsṇa and the Goddess, and indicates how Brahmanical cultural norms, exemplified in Mathurā, can transmit textual symbols. Both Part I and Part II provide iconic modules and a methodology to generate interpretations for icons with this remarkable feature through the Gupta age.
