LIBROS DE ARTE - Página 55

Giulio Carlo Argan
Alfieri editore

Tadashi Kobayashi
Kodansha International

Who was the man behind the pseudonym "Utamaro"? We know that he was one of the greatest artists of eighteenth-century Japan, and that he was a master portraitist of women in the woodblock-print tradition known as ukiyo-e. But as for the man himself, we know almost nothing. The little there is-gleaned from contemporary books, miscellaneous writings, temple registers-is brought together in this book to present as clear a picture of Utamaro's life as modem researchers are capable of. Utamaro is placed in his cultural setting-the pleasure-loving urban culture of eighteenth-century Tokyo, the shogun's capital and the de facto center of Japan

Utamaro's world was that of teahouse girls and courtesans whose fame and popularity can only be compared, in modern terms, to those of a movie actress whose name is on every man's lips. His was a world of popular literature and art, of publishers competing for the work of the most talked-about writers and artists. This world, however, was under the constant scrutiny of the authorities, and near the end of his career, Utamaro fell afoul of the government's proscription of certain subject matter, and he was sentenced to three days in prison and fifty days in hand chains.

But Utamaro's life is only one theme of this book. The other is the development of his art, the perfection of his depictions of women that enabled him to capture subtle moods and differences of character. The prints of women produced by the ukiyo-e artists preceding Utamaro showed expressionless beauties of little individuality. It was against this that Utamaro rebelled, creating such prints as that of the kashi, one of the lowest ranking of courtesans-in fact, a mere prostitute. Recognizing within himself the power to see and depict the individual behind the outward appearance, Utamaro added to some of his prints the notation "Studies in Physiognomic Judgment of Character by Utamaro." Modem opinion tends to agree with Utamaro's assessment of himself, and his reputation as an artist of the inner woman has firmly established him in the top ranks of the ukiyo-e world.

Giovanni Caradente
RCS Rizzoli Libri

Patricia Allderidge
Bibliothèque de l'Image

Andy Warhol
Shinchosha

Hugh Honour
Edizioni di Comunità

Emilio Isgrò
Edizioni Gabriele Mazzotta

Alessandro Calligaris
Grafiche Antiga

s.a.
Grafiche Editoriali Artistiche Pordenonesi

Fabio Bisogni, Enrico Menestò
Skira

Gian Carlo Calza
24 Ore Motta Cultura

Carlo Capra, Franco Della Peruta, Fernando Mazzocca
Skira

AA.VV.
Umberto Allemandi

Luisa Bertani
s.e.

Gianni Mercurio
Skira Editore

Nicolò Rasmo
Cassa di risparmio della provincia di Bolzano

Andrea Augenti, Carlo Bertelli
Skira Editore

Il volume percorre un nuovo capitolo dell'avvincente percorso intrapreso dalla Fondazione RavennAntica e dal Comune di Ravenna per la restituzione alla fruizione pubblica del patrimonio archeologico della città e dell'antico sito di Classe. È stato realizzato in occasione della mostra dedicata a Ravenna Capitale: regina fra due sponde e due epoche. Di questa storia affascinante e di ciò che di essa è giunto fino a noi parla "Felix Ravenna", anche attraverso reperti assolutamente inediti. Sono per la prima volta in mostra testimonianze eccellenti del patrimonio archeologico ravennate rinvenute nelle recenti campagne di scavo promosse da RavennAntica, nell'antico porto di Teoderico, nell'anno 2004 e nel 2005. E accanto agli inediti di recente rinvenimento (il tesoretto di Classe, il magazzino teodericiano, la stele di Classiario in armi), appaiono per la prima volta, anch'essi restaurati per l'occasione, importanti reperti musivi (da San Severo e da San Martino prope litus maris, dalla Ca' Bianca) sottratti finalmente alla polvere e all'oblio dei depositi. Il volume è il Catalogo della mostra di Ravenna (Complesso di San Nicolò, 10 marzo - 7 ottobre 2007).

AA.VV.
Artificio Edizioni

Duccio Alessandri
Metauro Edizioni

Chiara Tartarini
Editrice CLUEB

s.a.
Franco Cosimo Panini, Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana

Claudio Spadoni, Nani Tedeschi
Edizioni Il Punto Nero

AA.VV.
s.e.