Symbols in art – Alexander Markov – IS – 2026 – ISBN 978-5-17-187319-6
Symbols in art
29.99 €
In stock
Symbols in art
29.99 €
For centuries, artists have spoken to viewers in a unique language of symbols. Colors, plants, animals, objects, poses, and interior details spoke of love and death, faith and power, sin and salvation—and the artist's contemporaries often read these messages unmistakably. Today, much of this visual language requires deciphering.
Why is a lily in the hands of an archangel more than just a flower? Why can a mirror simultaneously speak of truth and vanity? And why can a skull, a dog, a candle, or a seemingly random gesture change the meaning of an entire painting?
You will find answers to these and many other questions in the book "Symbols in Art." Using examples from numerous works—from the prehistoric paintings of Lascaux and medieval images to Botticelli, Bosch, van Eyck, Caravaggio, Velázquez, Munch, and Kandinsky—the author shows how familiar symbols were born, changed, and disappeared, and why the same sign could mean completely different things in different eras.
This book is about learning to not just look at paintings, but to understand them—to notice details, understand context, and see the invisible that the artist has hidden in plain sight.
Alexander Markov is a philosopher, cultural historian, visiting professor at several international universities, and a specialist in the interpretation of fine art and the analysis of classical and contemporary works.
Why is a lily in the hands of an archangel more than just a flower? Why can a mirror simultaneously speak of truth and vanity? And why can a skull, a dog, a candle, or a seemingly random gesture change the meaning of an entire painting?
You will find answers to these and many other questions in the book "Symbols in Art." Using examples from numerous works—from the prehistoric paintings of Lascaux and medieval images to Botticelli, Bosch, van Eyck, Caravaggio, Velázquez, Munch, and Kandinsky—the author shows how familiar symbols were born, changed, and disappeared, and why the same sign could mean completely different things in different eras.
This book is about learning to not just look at paintings, but to understand them—to notice details, understand context, and see the invisible that the artist has hidden in plain sight.
Alexander Markov is a philosopher, cultural historian, visiting professor at several international universities, and a specialist in the interpretation of fine art and the analysis of classical and contemporary works.
See also:
- All books by the publisher
- All books by the author
- All books in the series Art and Peace