Martin Kemp – författare

Artist, architect, poet and philosopher, Leon Battista Alberti revolutionized the history of art with his theories of perspective in On Painting (1435). Inspired by the order and beauty inherent in nature, his groundbreaking work sets out the principles of distance, dimension and proportion; instructs the painter on how to use the rules of composition, representation, light and colour to create work that is graceful and pleasing to the eye; and stipulates the moral and artistic pre-requisites of the successful painter. On Painting had an immediate and profound influence on Italian Renaissance artists including Ghiberti, Fra Angelico and Veneziano and on later figures such as Leonardo da Vinci, and remains a compelling theory of art.

Ticket to the World is a joyous, nostalgic celebration of 80s culture from one man at the centre of it all. New Year’s Eve, 1979. My family and I stand arm in arm around our Formica kitchen table, counting down to the new decade with each televised chime of Big Ben. We have no idea what is about to hit us, no idea of the seismic waves of change approaching. The 80s transformed life as we knew it. Music, style and culture exploded in a haze of dayglo colour. There were hardships, but there were opportunities too. And I lived through – and helped to shape – Britain’s last real youth movement.Ticket to the World is my time-warp trip down memory lane, reliving that truly unforgettable decade. Join me as I recall what it was like to lead the New Romantics, stay up all night at the Blitz with Sade and Boy George, travel the world with Spandau Ballet and contribute to the era-defining Live Aid.So, grab that glass of Babycham and let’s toast the very best of the 80s: the creativity and the culture, the fashion and the FUN!

Secrets. Lies. Murder. Fame can be deadly. A British icon delivers a powerful blockbuster in an exhilarating thriller set in London’s East End. ____________________________________________________ A FALLEN ROCKSTAR. ONE LAST CHANCE FOR REDEMPTION. People used to scream Johnny Klein's name.Now he's lost the fame. The marriage. The money.When he's offered one more throw of the dice, he grabs at the chance. But instead, Johnny's dragged down into East London's dark underbelly, and forced to face the dark corners of his past. JOHNNY THOUGHT HE HAD NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE. HE WAS WRONG. ‘Masterful’ Susan Lewis ‘Feels different and fresh, Johnny Klein is a great character, love it!’ Kimberley Chambers ‘Gritty, compelling and heartbreaking … loved it’ Catherine Cooper ____________________________________________________ Readers LOVE The Game:‘I could not put it down’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘A book that stays with you after you’ve finished it … Thrilling, heartfelt and thought-provoking’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘A good gritty storyline that also pulled at the heartstrings’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘Such a fun read’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘So gripping, absorbing and interesting’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘Mr Kemp didn’t disappoint’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐‘A great storyline … I hope there’s a follow up book’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the glittering heights of ‘80s stardom to the shadowy depths of betrayal, Johnny Klein’s comeback turns deadly when a mysterious death drags him into a web of secrets. In THE FALL, Martin Kemp delivers a gripping thriller where fame’s darkest price could be fatal. Johnny Klein is back! The new thriller from the music, film and TV legend Martin Kemp. The bigger the star, the harder they fall. Johnny Klein, fallen ‘80s pop icon, thinks life is finally on the up. He’s basking in the luxury of the French Riviera – hoping his worst days are behind him.But when a man falls from a window to his death in London, Johnny is forced to confront the darkest corners of his fame.Thrust into a dangerous game of lies and betrayal, Johnny must uncover a deadly secret, before somebody else dies… Readers love The Fall! This is a sharp, twisty read full of heart ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐It’s a good read! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Excellent! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Another brilliant book! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Johnny Klein is a great character!’ Kimberley Chambers

From the glittering heights of ‘80s stardom to the shadowy depths of betrayal, Johnny Klein’s comeback turns deadly when a mysterious death drags him into a web of secrets. In THE FALL, Martin Kemp delivers a gripping thriller where fame’s darkest price could be fatal. Johnny Klein is back! The new thriller from the music, film and TV legend Martin Kemp. The bigger the star, the harder they fall. Johnny Klein, fallen ‘80s pop icon, thinks life is finally on the up. He’s basking in the luxury of the French Riviera – hoping his worst days are behind him.But when a man falls from a window to his death in London, Johnny is forced to confront the darkest corners of his fame.Thrust into a dangerous game of lies and betrayal, Johnny must uncover a deadly secret, before somebody else dies… Readers love The Fall! This is a sharp, twisty read full of heart ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐It’s a good read! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Excellent! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Another brilliant book! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Johnny Klein is a great character!’ Kimberley Chambers

From the glittering heights of ‘80s stardom to the shadowy depths of betrayal, Johnny Klein’s comeback turns deadly when a mysterious death drags him into a web of secrets. In THE FALL, Martin Kemp delivers a gripping thriller where fame’s darkest price could be fatal. Johnny Klein is back! The new thriller from the music, film and TV legend Martin Kemp. The bigger the star, the harder they fall. Johnny Klein, fallen ‘80s pop icon, thinks life is finally on the up. He’s basking in the luxury of the French Riviera – hoping his worst days are behind him.But when a man falls from a window to his death in London, Johnny is forced to confront the darkest corners of his fame.Thrust into a dangerous game of lies and betrayal, Johnny must uncover a deadly secret, before somebody else dies… Readers love The Fall! This is a sharp, twisty read full of heart ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐It’s a good read! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Excellent! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Another brilliant book! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Johnny Klein is a great character!’ Kimberley Chambers

Read this book and the world's most famous image will never look the same again. For the world's greatest cultural icon still has secrets to reveal - not the silly secrets that the 'Leonardo loonies' continue to advance, but previously unknown facts about the lives of Leonardo, his father, Lisa Gherardini, the subject of the portrait, and her husband Francesco del Giocondo. From this factual beginning we see how the painting metamorphosed into a 'universal picture' that became the prime vehicle for Leonardo's prodigious knowledge of the human and natural worlds. We learn about the new money of the ambitious merchant who married into the old gentry of Lisa's family. We discover Lisa's life as a wife and mother, her association with sexual scandals, and her later life in a convent. We meet, for the first time, previously undiscovered members of Leonardo's immediate family and discover new information about his early life. The tiny hill town of Vinci is placed before us, with its widespread poverty. We find out about the career and possessions of his father, a notable lawyer in Florence. The meaning of the portrait that resulted from these human circumstances is vividly illuminated though Renaissance love poetry and verses specifically dedicated to Leonardo. We come to understand how Leonardo's sciences of optics, psychology, anatomy and geology are embraced in his poetic science of art. Recent scientific examinations of the painting disclose how it evolved to assume its present appearance in Leonardo's experimental hands.Above all, we cut through the suppositions and the myths to show that the portrait is a product of real people in a real place at a real time. This is the book that brings back a sense of reality into the creation of the portrait of Lisa del Giocondo. And the actual Mona Lisa, it turns out, is even more astonishing and transcendent than the Mona Lisa of legend.

The Salvator Mundi is the first Leonardo painting to be discovered for over a century. Following its re-emergence, it played a leading role in the landmark Leonardo exhibition at the National Gallery in London in 2011, after which it was purchased by a Russian oligarch. In 2017 it was auctioned by Christie's in New York, fetching the world record price of $450m, and now forms part of the collection of Louvre Abu Dhabi.The Salvator Mundi may be seen as the devotional counterpart to the Mona Lisa, having an extraordinary, communicative presence. The artist has reformed the very traditional subject matter in a number of ways. The elusiveness of Christ's expression suggests his spiritual origins beyond the world of the senses. The traditional sphere of the earth has been transformed into a rock-crystal orb and signifies a crystalline sphere of the heavens. In addition to its spiritual dimension, the image exploits Leonardo's optical knowledge and his growing sense of the illusiveness of seeing. Only the blessing hand is in reasonably sharp focus, with his features softly veiled. The scintillating curls of his hair are characterised in line with his theory that the physics of the curling of hair is analogous to vortex motion in water.This book looks at evidence of Leonardo's Salvator Mundi in the collections of Charles I and Charles II. It explores the appraisal of works by Leonardo at the Stuart courts, and proposes that how works attributed to Leonardo were first encountered and understood in seventeenth-century Britain would shape the wider evolution of Leonardo as a cultural icon.This volume gives a dramatic first-hand account of the modern-day discovery of the painting, from its purchase in a minor New Orleans auction house, to the cleaning of the picture that would disclose it as Leonardo's startling original, and the research processes that would uncover illustrious and obscure former owners. The book presents the definitive study of the new masterpiece.

This new edition of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester is the most comprehensive scholarly edition of any of Leonardo's manuscripts. It contains a high-quality facsimile reproduction of the Codex, a new transcription and translation, accompanied by a paraphrase in modern language and a page-by-page commentary, and a series of interpretative essays.This important endeavour introduces important new research into the interpretation of the texts and images, on the setting of Leonardo's ideas in the context of ancient and medieval theories, and above all into the notable fortunes of the Codex within the sciences of astronomy, water, and the history of the earth, opening a new field of research into the impact of Leonardo as a scientist after his death.

Leonardo's greatest work of science beautifully reproduced for the 500th anniversary of his death.This edition offers a high-quality facsimile reproduction of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester, a collection of his scientific writings. Named after Thomas Coke (later Earl of Leicester) who purchased it in 1719, Codex Leicester holds the record as the most expensive book ever when it was bought by Bill Gates in 1994. Consisting of 72 pages, it was handwritten in Italian by Leonardo using his characteristic mirror writing, and is supported by drawings and diagrams. The Codex Leicester is an extraordinary mixture of Leonardo's observations and theories. Topics include his explanation of why fossils can be found on mountains; the flow of water in rivers; and the luminosity of the moon which Leonardo attributed to its surface being covered by water which reflects light from the sun. The facsimile reproduction is complemented by three further volumes that include a new transcription and translation, accompanied by a paraphrase in modern language, a page-by-page commentary, and a series of interpretative essays. These four volumes together introduce important new research into the interpretation of the texts and images, on the setting of Leonardo's ideas in the context of ancient and medieval theories, and above all into the notable fortunes of the Codex within the sciences of astronomy, water, and the history of the earth, opening a new field of research into the impact of Leonardo as a scientist after his death.

This new edition of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester is the most comprehensive scholarly edition of any of Leonardo's manuscripts. It contains a high-quality facsimile reproduction of the Codex, a new transcription and translation, accompanied by a paraphrase in modern language and a page-by-page commentary, and a series of interpretative essays.This important endeavour introduces important new research into the interpretation of the texts and images, on the setting of Leonardo's ideas in the context of ancient and medieval theories, and above all into the notable fortunes of the Codex within the sciences of astronomy, water, and the history of the earth, opening a new field of research into the impact of Leonardo as a scientist after his death.

This new edition of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester is the most comprehensive scholarly edition of any of Leonardo's manuscripts. It contains a high-quality facsimile reproduction of the Codex, a new transcription and translation, accompanied by a paraphrase in modern language and a page-by-page commentary, and a series of interpretative essays.This important endeavour introduces important new research into the interpretation of the texts and images, on the setting of Leonardo's ideas in the context of ancient and medieval theories, and above all into the notable fortunes of the Codex within the sciences of astronomy, water, and the history of the earth, opening a new field of research into the impact of Leonardo as a scientist after his death.

This new edition of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester is the most comprehensive scholarly edition of any of Leonardo's manuscripts. It contains a high-quality facsimile reproduction of the Codex, a new transcription and translation, accompanied by a paraphrase in modern language and a page-by-page commentary, and a series of interpretative essays.This important endeavour introduces important new research into the interpretation of the texts and images, on the setting of Leonardo's ideas in the context of ancient and medieval theories, and above all into the notable fortunes of the Codex within the sciences of astronomy, water, and the history of the earth, opening a new field of research into the impact of Leonardo as a scientist after his death.

Seen | Unseen is a deep, richly illustrated, and erudite analysis of the interconnections between science and the visual arts. Martin Kemp explores the responses of artists, scientists, and their instruments, to the world - ranging from early representations of perspective, to pinhole cameras, particle accelerators and the Hubble telescope.From Leonardo, Durer, and the inventors of photography to contemporary sculptors, and from Galileo and Darwin to Stephen J. Gould, Kemp considers the way in which scientists and artists have perceived the world and responded to its patterns, and sees common 'structural intuitions' reflected in their work.

This fascinating exploration of Leonardo da Vinci's life and work identifies what it was that made him so unique, and explains the phenomenon of the world's most celebrated artistic genius who, 500 years on, still grips and inspires us. Martin Kemp offers us exceptional insights into what it was that made this Renaissance man so special, and the 'real' meaning behind such masterpieces as the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper. Tracing Leonardo's career in all its variety, we learn of his unfulfilled dreams, relationships with powerful patrons, and the truth about his views on God, humans, and nature. The famous notebooks are the key to understanding the secret of Leonardo's success and genius, as they clearly reveal the workings of his mind and display the true innovative and investigative nature of his creative vision. Over 20,000 pages of drawings and notes detail his incredible discoveries and inventions - from the workings of the human eye to designs for flying machines and giant crossbows. Bringing the story up to the present day, Martin Kemp considers what he means to us today, investigates the 'Leonardo industry', and speculates about what he would be doing if he were alive today.This updated edition of Martin Kemp's best-seller is the first book on Leonardo to include two newly discovered works, the most important such discoveries in over a hundred years.

From the lazy, fiddling grasshopper to the sneaky Big Bad Wolf, children's stories and fables enchant us with their portrayals of animals who act like people. But the comparisons run both ways, as metaphors, stories, and images - as well as scientific theories - throughout history remind us that humans often act like animals, and that the line separating them is not as clear as we'd like to pretend. Here, Martin Kemp explores a stunning range of images and ideas to demonstrate just how deeply these underappreciated links between humans and other fauna are embedded in our culture. Tracing those interconnections among art, science, and literature, Kemp leads us on a dazzling tour of Western thought, from Aristotelian physiognomy and its influence on phrenology to the Great Chain of Being and Darwinian evolution. We learn about the racist anthropology underlying a familiar Degas sculpture, see paintings of a remarkably simian Judas, and watch Mowgli, the man-child from Kipling's "The Jungle Book", exhibit the behaviors of the beasts who raised him.Like a kaleidoscope, Kemp uses these stories to refract, reconfigure, and echo the essential truth that the way we think about animals inevitably inflects how we think about people, and vice versa. Loaded with vivid illustrations and drawing on sources from Hesiod to La Fontaine, Leonardo to P. T. Barnum, "The Human Animal in Western Art and Science" is a fascinating, eye-opening reminder of our deep affinities with our fellow members of the animal kingdom.

In this pathbreaking and richly illustrated book, Martin Kemp examines the major optically oriented examples of artistic theory and practice from Brunelleschi’s invention of perspective and its exploitation by Leonardo and Durer to the beginnings of photography. In a discussion of color theory, Kemp traces two main traditions of color science: the Aristotelian tradition of primary colors and Newton’s prismatic theory that influenced Runge, Turner, and Seurat. His monumental book not only adds to our understanding of a large group of individual works of art but also provides valuable information for all those interested in the interaction between science and art. "This beautifully made volume . . . shows us the unity of the visual study of nature—the exalted mutual task of Renaissance science and art."—Scientific American"[A] wonderful book. . . . Martin Kemp has convincingly demonstrated that even the most diverse styles of Western art from the Renaissance to modern times remained ever enthralled by scientific optics. . . . [A] handsome volume."—Samuel Y. Edgerton, American Scientist "An extraordinarily ambitious, even daring, enterprise. . . . The book leaves us in no doubt about its author’s expertise in both fields. It includes the most comprehensive account of the development of perspective theory and practice I know."—Thomas Puttfarken, Times Higher Education Supplement "Kemp has performed a valuable service. . . . His style is lucid and he emerges as an honest broker who judiciously weighs the historical evidence. He has an impressive command of the literature of both art and optical science across much of Europe and over a span of four centuries. . . . Kemp’s thesis is amply illustrated with several hundred plates, including many of his own line drawings. . . . The reader is led gently through the history of art and the details of optical science to appreciate their interrelationship."—Geoffrey Cantor, Oxford Art Journal

The Roman author Pliny tells the story—well known in the Renaissance—of the famed Grecian painter Apelles hiding behind one of his pictures to overhear the comments of spectators. Martin Kemp takes this motif as an effective point of entry into the problem of what lies behind the business of picture-making in the Renaissance, in particular the role of the artist and the functions of works of art in relation to their various kinds of audience.Kemp examines a wealth of visual and written evidence, making sense of the often contradictory implications of the contemporary sources that survive for the same artist and indeed for the same work of art. He points out that whereas artists’ contracts suggest the cobbler at work and inventories suggest that the products of painters were considerably less valued than those of bed manufacturers, the rise of written theory and the web of criticism woven by humanist authors increasingly depict the artist as an intellectual, as a philosopher-poet with respect to subject matter, and as a scientific investigator of natural appearances.Kemp provides us with an introductory text on Italian Renaissance art that brings the period alive through extensive quotations from original sources. Giving access to a range of traditional and more recent concerns in art history through the application of various approaches to specific sets of raw material, the book will be an important and illuminating contribution to current debates in cultural history.

Leonardo’s writings on painting—among the most remarkable from any era—were never edited by Leonardo himself into a single coherent book. In this anthology the authors have edited material not only from his so-called Treatise on Painting but also from his surviving manuscripts and from other primary sources, some of which were here translated for the first time. The resulting volume is an invaluable reference work for art historians as well as for anyone interested in the mind and methods of one of the world’s greatest creative geniuses.“Highly readable. . . . Also included are documentary sources and letters illuminating Leonardo’s career; the manuscript sources for all of Leonardo’s statements are fully cited in the notes. The volume is skillfully translated and is illustrated with appropriate examples of drawings and paintings by the artist.”—Choice“Certainly easier to read and . . . more convenient than previous compilations.”—Charles Hope, New York Review of Books“A chaotic assemblage of Leonardo da Vinci’s writings appeared in 1651 as Treatise on Painting. . . . [Kemp] successfully applies . . . order to the chaos.”—ArtNews

Giorgio Vasari’s Lives of the Most Famous Painters, Sculptors and Architects (1550 and 1569) is a classic of cultural history. A monumental assembly of artists’ lives from Giotto to Michelangelo, it paints a vivid picture of the progress of art in the hands of individual masters. No Life is more vivid than that of Leonardo, a near-contemporary of Vasari – not even Vasari’s account of Michelangelo, whom he knew and idolized. This beautiful edition offers a literary translation that respects the 16th-century Italian, transposing Vasari’s vocabulary into its modern equivalent. Martin Kemp is an eminent scholar, who has written on the vocabulary of Renaissance writings on art, and has co-translated Leonardo on Painting and Leonardo’s Codex Leicester. Translated in partnership with Lucy Russell, the text will be the first to cover both the 1550 edition and the expanded version of 1568, and the first to integrate the texts of the two editions on the page. Discreet endnotes will provide succinct comments in the light of modern knowledge of Leonardo’s career. Illustrated with all the works of art discussed by Vasari and a selection of Leonardo’s studies of science and technology, this will be the perfect accompaniment to Leonardo’s 500th anniversary celebrations.

All great achievements of science must start from intuitive knowledge", wrote Albert Einstein. In Structural Intuitions, a fascinating exploration of the commonalities between two seemingly disparate realms, renowned art historian Martin Kemp applies Einstein's notion both to science and to art.Kemp argues that in both fields, work begins at the intuitive level, curiosity aroused by our recognition of patterns or order. Kemp's ""structural intuitions,"" then, are the ways we engage fundamental perceptual and cognitive mechanisms to bring order to our observed world. Through stimulating juxtaposition, Kemp considers connections between naturally occurring patterns, cognitive processes, and artistic and scientific expression, drawing on an array of examples from the Renaissance through the present.Taking a broadly historical approach, Kemp examines forms and processes such as the geometry of Platonic solids, the dynamics of growth, and the patterns of fluids in motion while placing the work of contemporary artists, engineers, and scientists in dialogue with that of visionaries such as Leonardo da Vinci and D'Arcy Thompson.Richly illustrated, lucidly written, and wonderfully thought-provoking, Structural Intuitions is essential reading for anyone seeking insight into common ground in the arts and sciences.

Ideas in Profile: Small Introductions to Big Topics Art has always been part of history. But we often think of it as outside history. When we look at a painting by Raphael, Rembrandt or Rubens it speaks to us directly, but it's also an historical document, part of a living world. Renowned art historian Martin Kemp takes the reader on an extraordinary trip through art, from devotional works to the revolutionary techniques of the Renaissance, from the courtly Masters of the seventeenth century through to the daring avant-garde of the twentieth century and beyond. Along the way we encounter the great names of art history: Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo; Vermeer and Velasquez; Picasso and Pollock. We get under the skin of the many 'isms', schools, styles and epochs. We see the complex sweep of art history with its innovations, collaborations, rivalries, break-throughs and masterpieces. Above all, Kemp puts art in context; art isn't about disembodied images, art itself is history. Part of the Ideas in Profile series, uniquely enlivened with animations and illustrations from the award winning studio Cognitive Media, Art in History is an indispensable, accessible and richly detailed guide to our culture, our history, our heritage and our art.Also available in two ebook formats. Please note that ISBN 9781782831020 is for the usual ebook format and 9781781254110 is for an enhanced edition with additional video and audio which should be used only with tablet devices that are capable of playing this additional content.

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) is one of the greatest European writers, whose untrammelled imaginative capacity was matched by a remarkable knowledge of the science of his era. His poems also paint compelling visual images. In Visions of Heaven, renowned scholar Martin Kemp investigates Dante's characterisation of divine light and its implications for the visual artists who were the inheritors of Dante's vision. The whole book may be regarded as a new paragone (comparison), the debate that began in the Renaissance about which of the arts is superior. Dante’s ravishing accounts of divine light set painters the severest challenge, which it took them centuries to meet.A major theme running through Dante's Divine Comedy, particularly in its third book, the Paradiso, centres on Dante’s acts of seeing. On earth his visual perceptions are conducted according to optical rules, while in heaven the poet's human senses are overwhelmed by light of divine origin, which does not obey his rules of mathematical optics. The repeated blinding of Dante by excessive light sets the tone for artists’ striving to portray unseeable brightness. Raphael shows himself to be the greatest master of spiritual radiance, while Correggio works his radiant magic in his dome illusions in Parma Cathedral. When Gaulli evokes the glories of the name of Jesus in the huge vault of the Jesuit Church in Rome he does so with an ineffable light that explodes though encircling clusters of glowing angels, whose pink bodies are bleached by the extreme luminosity of the light source.Published to coincide with the 700th anniversary of Dante’s death, this hugely original book combines a close reading of Dante’s poetry with analysis of early optics and the art of the Renaissance and Baroque to create a fascinating, wide-ranging and visually exciting study.

'A really emotional read... it's wonderful' - Zoe Ball, BBC Radio 2'It's such a lovely book!' - Holly Willoughby, This Morning 'A lovely read... it's got everything - emotion and lots of laughs' - Alex Jones, The One Show'A gorgeous book!' - Lorraine'From Wham! to Spandau Ballet, from success to chaos in the blink of an eye - Martin and I are two ordinary people who have been on an extraordinary adventure together. Through it all, our commitment to each other and to our family is what has always mattered the most.' Shirlie KempWith a heartwarming foreword by Noel Fitzpatrick,IT'S A LOVE STORY tells the incredible story of Martin and Shirlie Kemp - from the moment they set eyes on each other, through their stellar careers, to raising a family together.For the first time, fans and readers will have an insight into their journey together, the lessons they have learned in the spotlight and behind the scenes, and their secrets to success, happiness and raising a loving family. The book will uncover the personal highs and lows of Britain's favourite couple, and the unbreakable bond that has kept them strong, no matter how hard the fight gets.'40 years together has been filled with incredible highs, when every teenage dream and every wish literally came true, to the most horrifying of lows that belonged in our nightmares. Shirlie and I are always asked, "What's the secret to a long marriage?" - well, hopefully within the pages of this book we all might find the answer to that question!' Martin Kemp

Throughout his long career, David Hockney has insistently explored diverse ways of depicting the visible world. He has scrutinised the methods of the old masters, and explored radical departures from their cherished assumptions. The exhibitions accompanied by this volume are the first to focus on this central theme in his art. 'Western art' from the Renaissance until at least the late 19th century has been dominated by the depiction of nature. Was this to be accomplished by direct looking (called “eyeballing” by Hockney) or with the assistance of optical theory and devices, such as cameras? Hockney has experimented with the full range of existing strategies, overtly using perspective in some of his classic pictures and rigorously investigating optical aids for the imitation of nature, including the camera obscura and camera lucida. Yet he has come to reject the photograph as the definitive image of what we see. Along the way, he has identified a 'camera culture' in European painting from 1400, arguing very controversially that the supreme naturalism of painters like Jan van Eyck are the product of optical devices. His book, Secret Knowledge (2001), with its majestic panorama of paintings over the course of five centuries, claims that art historians have missed the central aspect of painters’ practice. The 'Hockney thesis' has been received more favourably outside the professional world of art history than in it. His own artistic practice has been in vigorous dialogue with his radical thesis, and he has progressively demonstrated new and dynamic ways of characterising the visual world without perspective and other conventional techniques. This quest results a series of joyous challenges to our ways of seeing in the major exhibition in Cambridge at the Fitzwilliam Museum and in the Heong Gallery (Downing College). It will look at the whole span of Hockney’s varied career and at the nature of the optical devices he has tested. His vision will be explored in the setting of traditional masterpieces of naturalistic observation, and in the context of modern sciences and technologies of seeing. The first section of the book looks at his thrilling experiments in seeing and representing in broad historical and contemporary contexts. This is followed by discussions of pre-photographic devices for capturing the appearances of things by optical means. The third section includes essays on Hockney’s experiments from the perspectives of neuroscience and computer vision. In short, it reveals in a new way the working of Hockney’s unique eye.

In this compelling photographic journey Arthur Becker captures the intensity and power of the ceiling frescoes of the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Vividly presented here in all of their diversity and splendour, these illusionistic ceilings, mainly located in the churches and palaces of 16th to early 18th century Italy but also found in Austria, Germany, and Spain, are revealed as dazzling examples of Italian artistic imagination by some of the major figures of the period, including Mantegna, Melozzo da Forlì, Michelangelo, Correggio, Tintoretto, the Carracci, Caravaggio, Guercino, Guido Reni, Giovanni Battista Gaulli, Andrea Pozzo, Sebastiano Ricci, and the Tiepolo dynasty. These images, many of which represent turning-points in the history of art, are accompanied by an in-depth introductory essay placing them in context by the art and architectural historian Daniel Sherer, who teaches at the Princeton University School of Architecture, concise descriptions by Brian Kish, a well-known expert on Italian art and design, and a postface by Martin Kemp, the renowned scholar of Renaissance and Baroque art and science of Oxford University. Bringing together in one place these remarkable frescoes for the first time, this book will be indispensable for art historians, connoisseurs of photography, and all those interested in Renaissance and Baroque art.

According to Count Galeazzo Arconati, who gave other Leonardo manuscripts to the Ambrosiana Library in Milan, the drawings concerning nature, anatomy, and colour, have been “in the hands of the King of England before 1640.” The collection has been recorded as being in the possession of Queen Mary II, in 1690, a year after she and her husband, William III, ascended the throne as joint monarchs. The collection comprises all the known anatomical drawings by Leonardo. Three hundred images of the human body by the great artist, made between about 1485 and 1510–15, are showcased in this magnificent volume. Based on the artist's own anatomical dissections, they show his evolving understanding of physiology. The drawings demonstrate, as well, Leonardo's progress from technical mastery of his subject to consummate draftsmanship. The commentary on this astonishing body of work is by Professor Martin Kemp of Oxford University, a leading international authority of Leonardo da Vinci, who explains the uniqueness of the painter’s stroke and the refined figurative transposition. One of the most renowned Italian Anatomists, Professor Mario Rende of the University of Perugia, analyses the significance of these works from a medical-scientific angle, revealing the insights, the research methodology, and the experimental and analytical approach of the Genius of da Vinci. Moving between art and anatomy, between unsurpassed illustrative display and avant-garde Renaissance scientific research, the work thus provides an in-depth and comprehensive look at an indispensable aspect of the Great Master's story.Text in English and Italian.