ebooks Character Mentor: Learn by Example to Use Expressions; Poses; and Staging to Bring Your Characters to Life by Tom Bancroft in Arts-Photography

Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Worth your while ...By GDPMost good non-fiction history books succeed on several levels; that is they communicate clearly and credibly on their subject; but also suggest or prompt questions about our contemporary world. The Thief; the Cross; and the Wheel is a good example.First; the authors treatment of his subject is impressive in scope and in depth. It is not an easy read; but perseverance is repaid.This book is a detailed; illuminating and insightful investigation of religious imagery; largely of the Crucifixion; from Medieval and Renaissance Europe. Based upon this the author makes a compelling case that such religious images reflect both the historical event and the period in which they were produced. Specifically; the wheel as a form of capital punishment is seen as being a "model" for the depiction of the suffering and death of the two thieves flanking Jesus Christ (the thieves are referred to in all four Gospels; with various detail). The resulting depictions were meant to trigger an imaginative and theologically acceptable understanding of the actual event. Like some arias and choruses of Bachs Passions; the wheel imagery placed the historical event in the present-tense for the intended observer.Second; this book ultimately poses challenges to current attitudes about capital punishment.The contrast between the tortuous medieval death upon the wheel and our contemporary forms of capital punishment (neither "cruel nor unusual") serves as a capstone to the book; as well as a commentary upon our present attitudes toward capital punishment. Capital punishment is no longer a public spectacle (reports of a botched execution by lethal injection are enough to offend our sensibilities); and the question is whether that is out of concern for the executeds dignity; our own wish to be freed from a sense of responsibility; or our denial of the inevitability of death and judgment? The phrase; "Out of sight; out of mind" seems appropriate (and perhaps damning?).Third; while it may not have been the authors intent; the book raises broader questions about changing perspectives on life itself.Contemporary life seems to have little regard for the near universal perspective of Western Civilization a half millennium ago. We no longer live in the "vale of tears" of yore; hold the "good death" as an an aspiration; or believe that there is any judgment such as that visited upon the thieves Dysmas and Gestas (central figures of Merbacks narrative). Pain and travails are sealed out of our daily existence to the extent possible. Merbacks effort can be nested quite comfortably and profitably within Charles Taylors A Secular Age.If you are willing to put forth the time and energy; this book will reward you with much information about religious images; a credible demonstration of the interplay in art between the past and the present; as well as pose serious questions about our contemporary world. It is well worth it.7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Not an easy read; erudite; but fascinatingBy A. WoodleyThis is not an easy read; but it is definitely worth the effort. It takes the development and representations of the crucifix in Medieval; early renaissance art - taking in the late 15th early 16th century and how the the public may have viewed it.Given that executions were public in this period; the language of teh pictures; the symbolism and the emotions these pictures evoked would have different to how we see it now. Death is not a public spectacle.The image of the crucifixion is also removed from our language in that we have less of an association with religion itself. It was a powerful centre society in this time.I found the language of the book to more like that of an academic treatise rather than one of the readably approachable non-fiction books which are around now. It is a fairly difficult subject; I think; in a lesser fashion. The language of religious history and art necessarily needs to be accurately described.The amazing thing about this book is that it really is a unique subject. Art history - the depiction of the crucifiction; the angesl; the symbolism; perspective and motif are examined alongside the representations of Pain itself. The function and language of religion are described along with the renderings of the understandings of society.In the conclusion the artist asked about how; in our society today; we would render our own executions in art if we were to be made public. It really struck me in this conclusion; just how powerful his language was. I would not recommend this to everyone; but it is really worth the effort if you are interested in trying something that is completely different; erudite and interesting.I was quite interested to see the author himself has written a review which is probably below this one somewhere and recommend you read that before you buy this book.7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Theology; Art; Medieval Studies Criminal Justice convergeBy Lucy BregmanThis book is learned yet readable; of interest to scholars in a range of fields and disciplines. As one whose interest is death in Christian religious reflection and devotion; I found it fascinating to learn the connections between capital punishments as people actually witnessed them ("witnessed" is the right word- these were religious events as well as legal ones!) and the way the 2 thieves were portrayed in art intended to enhance devotional practice and imagination. Where is the viewer in the scenes of Calvary? The author answers this and many other questions; relating these to penitential practice; and the way bodies in pain were compassionately experienced during the heyday of pre-Reformation Europe. I recommend this book highly to scholars; but it makes grisly reading and leads us to question our own sensibilities and tolerance for different kinds of bodily display.