The Secret Language of the Renaissance: Decoding the Hidden Symbolism of Italian Art
Language: English
Published by Watkins Publishing LTD, 2018
- Softcover
- Used

Seller: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.World of Books (was SecondSale)
AbeBooks seller since December 20, 2007
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Add to basketItem description from seller
We may never know what the Mona Lisa is really smiling about, but we do know that there's much more to the masterpieces of Renaissance art than the beauty that meets the eye. There are layers of significance hidden below the surface of the works of Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Angelico, Donatello, Michelangelo and many others. This magnificently illustrated guide by expert art historian, Richard Stemp, gives you the key to unlock those secrets for yourself. Split into three parts, Part One is a vivid immersion into the culture of this remarkable period, tracing the profusion of innovations in literature, painting, sculpture and the decorative arts that date to this time. Part Two offers a wide-ranging guide to the essential elements of symbolic language in Renaissance art, including colour, geometry, light and shade, proportion, perspective and body language. In Part Three, the heart of the book, Richard Stemp analyzes more than 40 works grouped around a dozen themes, including mythology, war and peace, and death and eternity. Each work is shown in full colour and each is then deconstructed to reveal the symbols it contains and the enigmatic meanings behind them. …
Seller Inventory # CIN1844839370G
- Title
- The Secret Language of the Renaissance: Decoding the Hidden Symbolism of Italian Art
- Author
- Richard Stemp
- Publisher
- Watkins Publishing LTD
- Publication year
- 2018
- Condition
- Good
- Binding
- Paperback
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 1844839370
- ISBN 13
- 9781844839377
We may never know what the Mona Lisa is really smiling about, but we do know that there s much more to the masterpieces of Renaissance art than the beauty that meets the eye. There are layers of significance below the surface of works by Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Angelico, Donatello, Michelangelo and many others - a store of secrets even more fascinating than fiction. This magnificently illustrated guide by an expert art historian gives you the key to unlock those secrets for yourself.
In the mind of the Renaissance artist, meaning took shape through symbols: everything from peacocks to centaurs conveyed a message. Often these meanings drew on a traditional symbolic vocabulary, a common language available to educated people of the time but largely lost to modern viewers. Occasionally a painter, sculptor or architect encoded a more specific meaning in a canvas or a text, a bust or a building - perhaps even an explosive political sentiment or an encrypted expression of heretical faith.
The Secret Language of the Renaissance peels back these layers of meaning in three distinct, detailed sections. Part One is a vivid immersion in the culture of this remarkable period, tracing the profusion of innovations in literature, painting, sculpture and the decorative arts that date to this time. Part Two offers a wide-ranging guide to the essential elements of symbolic language in Renaissance art, including colour, geometry, light and shade, proportion, perspective and body language, using examples ranging from Carlo Crivelli's Annunciation to Donatello's Mary Magdalene.
Part Three, the heart of the book, analyzes more than 40 works grouped around a dozen themes, including Mythology, War and Peace, and Death and Eternity. Each work is shown in full colour, in all its glory; then, through an ingenious technique of ''selective isolation'', each is taken apart to reveal the symbols it contains and to interpret their enigmatic meaning. And throughout the book, fascinating boxes shed light on themes and topics of the time, from guilds and confraternities to the original ''bonfire of the vanities''.
For all those who relish esoteric symbolism, cryptic codes, and the riches of Renaissance Italy itself, The Secret Language of the Renaissance will instruct and delight in equal measure.
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About the Author
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
World of Books (was SecondSale)
Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since December 20, 2007
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Founded in 2002, World of Books is a leading online destination for buying and selling both preloved and new books, committed to making sustainable reading accessible to all. With a mission to help people read more and waste less, World of Books offers a huge range of affordable, high-quality books — giving both new and preloved titles a second life. The company also operates World of Books – Sell Your Books, an easy-to-use platform that allows customers to trade in unwanted books for cash, helping to keep books in circulation while promoting sustainability. As a Certified B Corp, World of Books is driven by a vision to become the world’s largest and most sustainable dedicated online bookstore. The company measures its success through the positive environmental impact it creates, the value it provides to customers, and its ability to operate profitably while supporting its sustainable mission …
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