Scientist And The Forger The Second Edition Probing A Turbulent Art World

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Scientist And The Forger, The (Second Edition): Probing A Turbulent Art World

Author : Jehane Ragai
Publisher : World Scientific
ISBN 13 : 178634422X
Total Pages : 274 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (863 download)

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Book Synopsis Scientist And The Forger, The (Second Edition): Probing A Turbulent Art World by : Jehane Ragai

Download or read book Scientist And The Forger, The (Second Edition): Probing A Turbulent Art World written by Jehane Ragai and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2018-01-31 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Scientist and the Forger: Probing a Turbulent Art World the author draws upon an enthralling range of case studies, from Botticelli to Leonardo, Campendonk to Pollock and Chagall to Freud, equipping the reader with a holistic understanding of an art world shaped by fast-moving trends, and increasingly permeated by science. We are taken on a gripping journey, becoming witness to the attempts currently being made to safeguard a partly complicit art market virtually under siege.How can we determine whether it was Leonardo's hand that created Salvator Mundi? How can we prove that a suspected Pollock is a forgery? And how can Man in a Black Cravat be seemingly incontrovertibly attributed to Lucian Freud, despite this artist's adamant refusal to recognize it as one of his own? This book reveals how art historians and scientists collaborate conclusively to authenticate paintings or demonstrate that they are forgeries, and as the enigma of La Bella Principessa continues to baffle, the question remains: do we have enough reason to hope that we shall one day know her true story? Building on the first edition, a more in depth look is taken at some of the greatest scandals to date — with an interpretation of the psychological behavior of Ann Freedman the former president and director of the Knoedler Gallery.

The Scientist and the Forger

Author : Jehane Ragai
Publisher : World Scientific Publishing Europe Limited
ISBN 13 : 9781786345943
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (459 download)

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Book Synopsis The Scientist and the Forger by : Jehane Ragai

Download or read book The Scientist and the Forger written by Jehane Ragai and published by World Scientific Publishing Europe Limited. This book was released on 2018-03-31 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Scientist and the Forger: Probing a Turbulent Art World the author draws upon an enthralling range of case studies, from Botticelli to Leonardo, Campendonk to Pollock and Chagall to Freud, equipping the reader with a holistic understanding of an art world shaped by fast-moving trends, and increasingly permeated by science. We are taken on a gripping journey, becoming witness to the attempts currently being made to safeguard a partly complicit art market virtually under siege.How can we determine whether it was Leonardo's hand that created Salvator Mundi? How can we prove that a suspected Pollock is a forgery? And how can Man in a Black Cravat be seemingly incontrovertibly attributed to Lucian Freud, despite this artist's adamant refusal to recognize it as one of his own? This book reveals how art historians and scientists collaborate conclusively to authenticate paintings or demonstrate that they are forgeries, and as the enigma of La Bella Principessa continues to baffle, the question remains: do we have enough reason to hope that we shall one day know her true story? Building on the first edition, a more in depth look is taken at some of the greatest scandals to date -- with an interpretation of the psychological behavior of Ann Freedman the former president and director of the Knoedler Gallery.

Females in the Frame

Author : Penelope Jackson
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3030207668
Total Pages : 227 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (32 download)

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Book Synopsis Females in the Frame by : Penelope Jackson

Download or read book Females in the Frame written by Penelope Jackson and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-07-29 with total page 227 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the untold history of women, art, and crime. It has long been widely accepted that women have not played an active role in the art crime world, or if they have, it has been the part of the victim or peacemaker. Women, Art, and Crime overturns this understanding, as it investigates the female criminals who have destroyed, vandalised, stolen, and forged art, as well as those who have conned clients and committed white-collar crimes in their professional occupations in museums, libraries, and galleries. Whether prompted by a desire for revenge, for money, the instinct to protect a loved one, or simply as an act of quality control, this book delves into the various motivations and circumstances of women art criminals from a wide range of countries, including the UK, the USA, New Zealand, Romania, Germany, and France. Through a consideration of how we have come to perceive art crime and the gendered language associated with its documentation, this pioneering study questions why women have been left out of the discourse to date and how, by looking specifically at women, we can gain a more complete picture of art crime history.

When Art Isn’t Real

Author : Andrew Shortland
Publisher : Leuven University Press
ISBN 13 : 9462703124
Total Pages : 204 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (627 download)

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Book Synopsis When Art Isn’t Real by : Andrew Shortland

Download or read book When Art Isn’t Real written by Andrew Shortland and published by Leuven University Press. This book was released on 2022-04-15 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How an initially valueless object becomes worth hundreds of millions. And vice versa. The art world is a multi-billion-dollar industry which captures world headlines on a regular basis, for both good and bad reasons. This book deals with one of the most-discussed areas of controversy: high-profile objects that have experts arguing about their veracity. Some may have been looted, others may be fakes, some may be heavily restored or misattributed. Often, in these cases, analytical science is called on to settle a dispute. The authors of this book have decades of experience in this field, working on a range of objects dating from prehistory to the twentieth century. They present seven of the most famous cases from the Getty Kouros to the Turin Shroud – some of which are still contested, and examine how a few words from a connoisseur or scientist can make a virtually valueless object worth hundreds of millions. And vice versa.

Technical Art History: A Journey Through Active Learning

Author : Jehane Ragai
Publisher : World Scientific
ISBN 13 : 1786349418
Total Pages : 233 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (863 download)

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Book Synopsis Technical Art History: A Journey Through Active Learning by : Jehane Ragai

Download or read book Technical Art History: A Journey Through Active Learning written by Jehane Ragai and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2021-06-03 with total page 233 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'This book is a gem! Truly 'A Journey Through Active Learning'.Dudley HerschbachNobel Laureate in Chemistry'Incredible! Because it's credible. What is absolutely remarkable about Jehane Ragai and Tamer Shoeib's book is that a textbook (!) draws us in so. It accomplishes this by imagined tales of artistic authentication that are exciting both as human stories and as detailed, documented accounts of scientific detection that teach! The theatrical staging of the scientific detective work, and the factual credibility (and limits) of the scientific techniques applied — remarkably clearly laid out in a voluminous endnotes section — intertwine in this book in a unique way. And sometimes, just as in the real world, the evidence and the experts disagree — the decision is left in your hands. I think that many young people reading this adventurous book will be drawn to become art analysts.'Roald HoffmannNobel Laureate in Chemistry (1981) and writerIn the last few years, the problems of authenticity in paintings have reached untenable proportions in tandem with a lack of understanding from connoisseurs and collectors of the insights that modern scientific investigation can offer. In some cases, because of this lack of knowledge, the results of scientific analysis are treated with suspicion.The art world has gradually come to realize the need to develop educational programs that aim at improving the technical know-how of collectors, connoisseurs, and young students who seek work as art scientists. As an introductory textbook, Technical Art History is an essential contributor to addressing this need.Traditional and innovative scientific techniques are introduced and explained through separate case studies, using the analysis of paintings and their authentication as a vehicle. This book will equip the reader with the ability to discern the most appropriate techniques in an authenticity endeavor and to have an increased appreciation of the value of an integrated approach in the evaluation of an artwork.This is the first undergraduate textbook in the new field of Technical Art History, a teaching guide with all the answers is available for all teachers.

The Scientist and the Forger

Author : Jehane Ragai
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781786344212
Total Pages : 247 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (442 download)

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Book Synopsis The Scientist and the Forger by : Jehane Ragai

Download or read book The Scientist and the Forger written by Jehane Ragai and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Over the last few decades there has been a disconcerting increase in the number of forged paintings. In retaliation, there has been a rise in the use, efficiency and ability of scientific techniques to detect these forgeries. The scientist has waged war on the forger. The Scientist and the Forger describes the cutting-edge and traditional weapons in this battle, showing how they have been applied to the most notorious cases. The book also provides fresh insights into the psychology of both the viewer and the forger, shedding light on why the discovery that a work of art is a forgery makes us view it so differently and providing a gripping analysis of the myriad motivations behind the most egregious incursions into deception. The book concludes by discussing the pressing problems faced by the art world today, stressing the importance of using appropriate tools for a valid verdict on authenticity. Written in an approachable and amenable style, the book will make fascinating reading for non-specialists, art historians, curators and scientists alike."--

Solar Dance

Author : Modris Eksteins
Publisher : Harvard University Press
ISBN 13 : 0674064941
Total Pages : 366 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (74 download)

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Book Synopsis Solar Dance by : Modris Eksteins

Download or read book Solar Dance written by Modris Eksteins and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2012-05 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Main description: In Modris Eksteins's hands, the interlocking stories of Vincent van Gogh and art dealer Otto Wacker reveal the origins of the fundamental uncertainty that is the hallmark of the modern era. Through the lens of Wacker's sensational 1932 trial in Berlin for selling fake Van Goghs, Eksteins offers a unique narrative of Weimar Germany, the rise of Hitler, and the replacement of nineteenth-century certitude with twentieth-century doubt. Berlin after the Great War was a magnet for art and transgression. Among those it attracted was Otto Wacker, a young gay dancer turned art impresario. His sale of thirty-three forged Van Goghs and the ensuing scandal gave Van Gogh's work unprecedented commercial value. It also called into question a world of defined values and standards that had already begun to erode during the war. Van Gogh emerged posthumously as a hero who rejected organized religion and other suspect sources of authority in favor of art. Self-pitying Germans saw in his biography a series of triumphs-over defeat, poverty, and meaninglessness-that spoke to them directly. Eksteins shows how the collapsing Weimar Republic that made Van Gogh famous and gave Wacker an opportunity for reinvention propelled a third misfit into the spotlight. Taking advantage of the void left by a gutted belief system, Hitler gained power by fashioning myths of mastery. Filled with characters who delight and frighten, Solar Dance merges cultural and political history to show how upheavals of the early twentieth century gave rise to a search for authenticity and purpose.

The Optical Unconscious

Author : Rosalind E. Krauss
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 9780262611053
Total Pages : 374 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (11 download)

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Book Synopsis The Optical Unconscious by : Rosalind E. Krauss

Download or read book The Optical Unconscious written by Rosalind E. Krauss and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 1994-07-25 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Optical Unconscious is a pointed protest against the official story of modernism and against the critical tradition that attempted to define modern art according to certain sacred commandments and self-fulfilling truths. The account of modernism presented here challenges the vaunted principle of "vision itself." And it is a very different story than we have ever read, not only because its insurgent plot and characters rise from below the calm surface of the known and law-like field of modernist painting, but because the voice is unlike anything we have heard before. Just as the artists of the optical unconscious assaulted the idea of autonomy and visual mastery, Rosalind Krauss abandons the historian's voice of objective detachment and forges a new style of writing in this book: art history that insinuates diary and art theory, and that has the gait and tone of fiction. The Optical Unconscious will be deeply vexing to modernism's standard-bearers, and to readers who have accepted the foundational principles on which their aesthetic is based. Krauss also gives us the story that Alfred Barr, Meyer Shapiro, and Clement Greenberg repressed, the story of a small, disparate group of artists who defied modernism's most cherished self-descriptions, giving rise to an unruly, disruptive force that persistently haunted the field of modernism from the 1920s to the 1950s and continues to disrupt it today. In order to understand why modernism had to repress the optical unconscious, Krauss eavesdrops on Roger Fry in the salons of Bloomsbury, and spies on the toddler John Ruskin as he amuses himself with the patterns of a rug; we find her in the living room of Clement Greenberg as he complains about "smart Jewish girls with their typewriters" in the 1960s, and in colloquy with Michael Fried about Frank Stella's love of baseball. Along the way, there are also narrative encounters with Freud, Jacques Lacan, Georges Bataille, Roger Caillois, Gilles Deleuze, and Jean-François Lyotard. To embody this optical unconscious, Krauss turns to the pages of Max Ernst's collage novels, to Marcel Duchamp's hypnotic Rotoreliefs, to Eva Hesse's luminous sculptures, and to Cy Twombly's, Andy Warhol's, and Robert Morris's scandalous decoding of Jackson Pollock's drip pictures as "Anti-Form." These artists introduced a new set of values into the field of twentieth-century art, offering ready-made images of obsessional fantasy in place of modernism's intentionality and unexamined compulsions.

The Emperor of All Maladies

Author : Siddhartha Mukherjee
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1439170916
Total Pages : 624 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (391 download)

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Book Synopsis The Emperor of All Maladies by : Siddhartha Mukherjee

Download or read book The Emperor of All Maladies written by Siddhartha Mukherjee and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2011-08-09 with total page 624 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a documentary from Ken Burns on PBS, this New York Times bestseller is “an extraordinary achievement” (The New Yorker)—a magnificent, profoundly humane “biography” of cancer—from its first documented appearances thousands of years ago through the epic battles in the twentieth century to cure, control, and conquer it to a radical new understanding of its essence. Physician, researcher, and award-winning science writer, Siddhartha Mukherjee examines cancer with a cellular biologist’s precision, a historian’s perspective, and a biographer’s passion. The result is an astonishingly lucid and eloquent chronicle of a disease humans have lived with—and perished from—for more than five thousand years. The story of cancer is a story of human ingenuity, resilience, and perseverance, but also of hubris, paternalism, and misperception. Mukherjee recounts centuries of discoveries, setbacks, victories, and deaths, told through the eyes of his predecessors and peers, training their wits against an infinitely resourceful adversary that, just three decades ago, was thought to be easily vanquished in an all-out “war against cancer.” The book reads like a literary thriller with cancer as the protagonist. Riveting, urgent, and surprising, The Emperor of All Maladies provides a fascinating glimpse into the future of cancer treatments. It is an illuminating book that provides hope and clarity to those seeking to demystify cancer.

The Annotated Mona Lisa

Author : Carol Strickland
Publisher : Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN 13 : 9780740768729
Total Pages : 220 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (687 download)

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Book Synopsis The Annotated Mona Lisa by : Carol Strickland

Download or read book The Annotated Mona Lisa written by Carol Strickland and published by Andrews McMeel Publishing. This book was released on 2007-10 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like music, art is a universal language. Although looking at works of art is a pleasurable enough experience, to appreciate them fully requires certain skills and knowledge." --Carol Strickland, from the introduction to The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern * This heavily illustrated crash course in art history is revised and updated. This second edition of Carol Strickland's The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern offers an illustrated tutorial of prehistoric to post-modern art from cave paintings to video art installations to digital and Internet media. * Featuring succinct page-length essays, instructive sidebars, and more than 300 photographs, The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern takes art history out of the realm of dreary textbooks, demystifies jargon and theory, and makes art accessible-even at a cursory reading. * From Stonehenge to the Guggenheim and from Holbein to Warhol, more than 25,000 years of art is distilled into five sections covering a little more than 200 pages.

Proverbial Philosophy

Author : Martin Farquhar Tupper
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 444 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (89 download)

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Book Synopsis Proverbial Philosophy by : Martin Farquhar Tupper

Download or read book Proverbial Philosophy written by Martin Farquhar Tupper and published by . This book was released on 1853 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Wooden Eyes

Author : Carlo Ginzburg
Publisher : Columbia University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780231119603
Total Pages : 310 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (196 download)

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Book Synopsis Wooden Eyes by : Carlo Ginzburg

Download or read book Wooden Eyes written by Carlo Ginzburg and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ginzburg, "the preeminent Italian historian of his generation [who] helped create the genre of microhistory" ("New York Times"), ruminates on how perspective affects what we see and understand. 26 illustrations.

Scientist And The Forger, The: Insights Into The Scientific Detection Of Forgery In Paintings

Author : Jehane Ragai
Publisher : World Scientific
ISBN 13 : 1783267429
Total Pages : 285 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (832 download)

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Book Synopsis Scientist And The Forger, The: Insights Into The Scientific Detection Of Forgery In Paintings by : Jehane Ragai

Download or read book Scientist And The Forger, The: Insights Into The Scientific Detection Of Forgery In Paintings written by Jehane Ragai and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2015-07-22 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'The scientific techniques described encompass relevant examples of forgery detection and of authentication. The book deals, to name a few, with the Chagall, the Jackson Pollock and the Beltracchi affairs and discusses the Isleworth Mona Lisa as well as La Bella Principessa both thought to be a Leonardo creation. The authentication, amongst others, of two van Gogh paintings, of Vermeer's St Praxedis, of Leonardo's Lady with an Ermine and of Rembrandt's Old Man with a Beard are also described.'Over the last few decades there has been a disconcerting increase in the number of forged paintings. In retaliation, there has been a rise in the use, efficiency and ability of scientific techniques to detect these forgeries. The scientist has waged war on the forger.The Scientist and the Forger describes the cutting-edge and traditional weapons in this battle, showing how they have been applied to the most notorious cases. The book also provides fresh insights into the psychology of both the viewer and the forger, shedding light on why the discovery that a work of art is a forgery makes us view it so differently and providing a gripping analysis of the myriad motivations behind the most egregious incursions into deception.The book concludes by discussing the pressing problems faced by the art world today, stressing the importance of using appropriate tools for a valid verdict on authenticity. Written in an approachable and amenable style, the book will make fascinating reading for non-specialists, art historians, curators and scientists alike.

In Search of Utopia

Author : Jan van der Stock
Publisher : Amsterdam University Press
ISBN 13 : 9789462984073
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (84 download)

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Book Synopsis In Search of Utopia by : Jan van der Stock

Download or read book In Search of Utopia written by Jan van der Stock and published by Amsterdam University Press. This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2016 marks exactly 500 years since the English humanist and statesman Thomas More published in the city Leuven his world-famous book Utopia. Leuven is celebrating this milestone with a major city festival featuring exhibitions, street art, film, music, theatre, dance, literature, lectures and city walks. The cornerstone is the international, art historical exhibition 'In Search of Utopia' at M - Museum Leuven. The festival will officially start on Monday, 26 September 2016 after a festive opening weekend on 24 and 25 September and will end on 17 January 2017. In the book 'In Search of Utopia' the reader is introduced to the world of More and his friends, with the ideals and dreams of the times. The desire of far-away horizons and the cobweb of new sciences that patiently layed upon the reality. Magnificent works of the 15th- and 16th Century artists: Quinten Metsijs, Hans Holbein, Jan Gossaert en Albrecht Dürer are being brought together in this exciting and intriguing story. It shows in an unexceeded way the imagination of an ideal world.

Small Bronze Sculpture from the Ancient World

Author :
Publisher : Getty Publications
ISBN 13 : 089236176X
Total Pages : 284 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (923 download)

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Book Synopsis Small Bronze Sculpture from the Ancient World by :

Download or read book Small Bronze Sculpture from the Ancient World written by and published by Getty Publications. This book was released on 1990 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Historical and technical considerations in provenancing and collecting Greek, Etruscan, and Roman bronzes.

Jungle Peace

Author : William Beebe
Publisher : DigiCat
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 171 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (596 download)

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Book Synopsis Jungle Peace by : William Beebe

Download or read book Jungle Peace written by William Beebe and published by DigiCat. This book was released on 2022-08-01 with total page 171 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 'Jungle Peace,' William Beebe invites readers into the verdant embrace of the tropics, capturing the multiplicity of life within its dense canopy with an ecologist's keen eye and a poet's linguistically rich palette. Beebe's narrative traverses both the experiential and the theoretical, oscillating between vivid descriptions of his encounters with the jungle's inhabitants and reflective musings on the ecological interconnectivity of such a complex biome. The book's enduring relevance in the canon of naturalist literature is marked by its detailed observational methodology and its precursor role to modern ecological writing, showcasing a pioneering voice in biodiversity's impact narrative. Beebe's style, both accessible and empirically thorough, situates 'Jungle Peace' within a pivotal literary context, resonating with scholars and lay readers alike who seek a deep and nuanced understanding of the natural world. William Beebe was not only an accomplished author but also a revered naturalist and ornithologist, whose passion for nature was paralleled by an extensive background in scientific exploration. This profound connection to the wilderness informed his writing, allowing him to elucidate the intricacies of jungle ecosystems with authenticity and expertise. The genesis of 'Jungle Peace' can be attributed to Beebe's expeditions and direct observations, making his work an invaluable resource and an intimate record of the ecological conditions of his time. His literary contributions thus reflect a life dedicated to examination, conservation, and the celebration of nature's unparalleled beauty. Revealing the enchanting complexity of the jungle with scientific fervor and literary grace, 'Jungle Peace' beckons the discerning reader. It is recommended not only to those enchanted by natural history and environmental science but also to readers who appreciate the profound symbiosis between literary art and empirical observations. Engaging and enlightening, Beebe's work offers a time-capsule into early 20th-century ecological thought, and his perspective is as impactful now as it was upon the book's initial publication. 'Jungle Peace' is a tribute to the natural world, an invitation to explore and preserve the myriad voices within it.

The Abu Ghraib Effect

Author : Stephen F. Eisenman
Publisher : Reaktion Books
ISBN 13 : 1861895550
Total Pages : 158 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (618 download)

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Book Synopsis The Abu Ghraib Effect by : Stephen F. Eisenman

Download or read book The Abu Ghraib Effect written by Stephen F. Eisenman and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2007-04-25 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The line between punishment and torture can be razor-thin—yet the entire world agreed that it was definitively crossed at Abu Ghraib. Or perhaps not. George W. Bush won a second term in office only months after the Abu Ghraib scandal was uncovered, and only the lowest-ranking U.S. soldiers involved in the scandal have been prosecuted. Where was the public outcry? Stephen Eisenman offers here an unsettling explanation that exposes our darkest inclinations in the face of all-too-human brutality. Eisenman characterizes Americans’ willful dismissal of the images as “the Abu Ghraib effect,” rooted in the ways that the images of tortured Abu Ghraib prisoners tapped into a reactionary sentiment of imperialist self-justification and power. The complex elements in the images fit the “pathos formula,” he argues, an enduring artistic motif in which victims are depicted as taking pleasure in their own extreme pain. Meanwhile, the explicitly sexual nature of the Abu Ghraib tortures allowed Americans to rationalize the deeds away as voluntary pleasure acts by the prisoners—a delusional reaction, but, The Abu Ghraib Effect reveals, one with historical precedence. From Greek sculptures to Goya paintings, Eisenman deftly connects such works and their disturbing pathos motif to the Abu Ghraib images. Skillfully weaving together visual theory, history, philosophy, and current events, Eisenman peels back the political obfuscation to probe the Abu Ghraib images themselves, contending that Americans can only begin to grapple with the ramifications of torture when the moral detachment of the “Abu Ghraib effect” breaks down and the familiar is revealed to be horribly unfamiliar.