236 Pages
by
Routledge
236 Pages
by
Routledge
Alchemy in Contemporary Art analyzes the manner in which twentieth-century artists, beginning with French Surrealists of the 1920s, have appropriated concepts and imagery from the western alchemical tradition. This study examines artistic production from c. 1920 to the present, with an emphasis on the 1970s to 2000, discussing familiar names such as Andre Breton, Salvador Dali, Yves Klein,... Read more
Contents: Introduction; The alchemical legacy; The French Surrealists and alchemy; The theatre of alchemy: Artaud, Duchamp, Klein; Alchemy in American art?; Redemption; Black alchemy: the photographic library; Gender and abjection; Women's alchemy; Australian art and the esoteric tradition; Earth magic; Alchemy and art in the Czech State and Poland; Afterthought: politics or poetry?; Bibliography; Index.
Biography
Urszula Szulakowska is a Lecturer in the School of Fine Art, History of Art & Cultural Studies at the University of Leeds, UK. She has written extensively on the history of alchemical illustration from the Renaissance period to the present day.
'Urszula Szulakowska has established herself as an indispensable authority on the artistic as well as ideological aspects of early modern alchemy. This time she ventures into the modern period and opens up hitherto unexplored territories.' Gyorgy E. Szonyi, University of Szeged, Hungary
