Books in the Series on the History of Art series

Marie Bashkirtseff was of one of the most extraordinary women of the 19th century. Her Journal (originally comprising some 20,000 hand-written pages but pared down to a few hundred for publication) was a cause cElEbre after her death and continues to be an inspiration to the Women's Movement to this day. It also inspired such great writers as AnaIs Nin and Katherine Mansfield among many others.Born into an aristocratic family in a village in Ukraine the family soon settled in France, first in Nice and later in Paris. Taught entirely by tutors Marie spoke multiple languages, played numerous musical instruments and longed for a singing career on the stage. An illness that affected her throat made her change course and she took up painting for which she had a latent talent. As a student at the AcadEmie Julian in Paris she was soon exhibiting at the annual Paris Salon, the premier venue for artists.But it was her personality that makes Marie Bashkirtseff such an exceptional individual. At a very young age she was already exhibiting in her Journal the thoughts of a learned philosopher, wrestling with the nature of God, the position of women in society, the politics of men. Having contracted tuberculosis in early childhood she ceaselessly strove to shrug it off in her quest to achieve greatness. In the end, a great tragedy unfolds.The book is somewhat unique in format. The first part is a biographical section that describes Marie's unusual and fascinating life. Then a second section, consists of a single Journal excerpt (in English translation from the original French) on each left-hand page, juxtaposed with one of her outstanding works of art on the facing page. In this manner, we learn about her remarkable life and tribulations, enter her restive and brilliant mind via her Journal, as well as appreciate her exceptionally fine works as an artist.

"A profoundly researched, well-written and accessible study. Unlike other works of art history, it is addressed to a broader public with interests in the art market and also artists, gallerists and other 'players' in the art business." Prof. Dr. Tobias Vogt, Universitat der Kunste, College of Fine Arts, Berlin Annotation How can one become a successful artist? Where should one start a career in the art world? What are useful strategies to achieve recognition in the art system? Such questions hoard in students' minds ever since entering art school and they probably chase every kind of art professional who is at an early career stage. "The Road to Parnassus" tries to understand what makes a good start in today's art world, who are influential players in the field and which strategies might apply. The swift career ascension of Glasgow artist Douglas Gordon - one of today's leading visual artists - and of the broader YBA generation that rose into worldwide prominence in the 1990s - Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas among the best known - serves as a convenient case to analyse contemporary artist strategies. This book takes a multidisciplinary approach - spanning from traditional art history, to sociology and economics - pursuing the reconstruction of the field of forces in art as intended by French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. Compared to previous publications on art system dynamics, such as Thompson's "The $12 Million Stuffed Shark," this book offers an enhanced understanding of the factors that allow a young artist to enter the arena of contemporary art. The present research should help uncover the art system logic - which appears enigmatic to non-experts - revealing that artists are aware they need to consider global trends, beat competitors and meet the demands of dealers, collectors, curators and museums. This book furthers existing contributions on the YBAs (for example Stallabrass' "High Art Lite"), offering innovative conclusions on recent British art, such as on the duality between London and Glasgow, the gender opposition among emerging artists and the predominance of resourceful authors. Author Biography Diego Mantoan is a research associate in art history and art economics at Ca'Foscari University in Venice and holds lectures at several renowned institutes in Europe such as Freie Universitat Berlin and the University of Trento. He holds a BA and MA in Art's Management and Economics (Venice), a further MA in Art History (Trento) and a PhD in Art History (Berlin). In the period 2002 to 2008 he worked at the Venice Biennale, first being in charge of the marketing plan at the contemporary art exhibition, later as Jury Secretary. He could thus work alongside top curators such as Francesco Bonami and Hans Ulrich Obrist, as well as many other arts and culture celebrities such as film director Wim Wenders, visual artist Rirkrit Tiravanija and composer Arvo Part. In the last eight years he has been a professional archive curator for celebrated artists and museums in Germany. Amongst others, he has curated the archive of video-artist Douglas Gordon (Berlin), of the Julia Stoschek Foundation (Dusseldorf) and of painter Sigmar Polke (Cologne). He has a record of several scientific publications in the history of art and its economics, as well as of theatre plays and books, essays and reviews for newspapers and online magazines.

Marie Bashkirtseff was of one of the most extraordinary women of the 19th century. Her Journal (originally comprising some 20,000 hand-written pages but pared down to a few hundred for publication) was a cause cÉlÈbre after her death and continues to be an inspiration to the Women's Movement to this day. It also inspired such great writers as AnaÏs Nin and Katherine Mansfield among many others.Born into an aristocratic family in a village in Ukraine the family soon settled in France, first in Nice and later in Paris. Taught entirely by tutors Marie spoke multiple languages, played numerous musical instruments and longed for a singing career on the stage. An illness that affected her throat made her change course and she took up painting for which she had a latent talent. As a student at the AcadÉmie Julian in Paris she was soon exhibiting at the annual Paris Salon, the premier venue for artists.But it was her personality that makes Marie Bashkirtseff such an exceptional individual. At a very young age she was already exhibiting in her Journal the thoughts of a learned philosopher, wrestling with the nature of God, the position of women in society, the politics of men. Having contracted tuberculosis in early childhood she ceaselessly strove to shrug it off in her quest to achieve greatness. In the end, a great tragedy unfolds.The book is somewhat unique in format. The first part is a biographical section that describes Marie's unusual and fascinating life. Then a second section, consists of a single Journal excerpt (in English translation from the original French) on each left-hand page, juxtaposed with one of her outstanding works of art on the facing page. In this manner, we learn about her remarkable life and tribulations, enter her restive and brilliant mind via her Journal, as well as appreciate her exceptionally fine works as an artist.

The Centre as Margin. Eccentric Perspectives on Art is a multi-authored volume of collected essays that answer the challenge of thinking Art History, and the Arts in a broader sense, from a liminal point of view. Its main goal is thus to discuss the margin from the centre - drawing on its concomitance within study themes and subjects, ontological and epistemological positions, or research methodologies themselves. Marginality, eccentricity, liminality, and superfluity are all part of a dynamic relationship between centre and margin(s) that will be approached and discussed, from the point of view of disciplines as different and as close as art history, philosophy, literature and design, from medieval to contemporary art. Resulting from recent research developed from the privileged viewpoint offered by the margin, this volume brings together the contributions of young researchers along with the work of career scholars. Likewise, it does not obey a traditional or a rigid diachronic structure, being rather organized in three major parts that organically articulate the different essays. Within each of these parts in which the book is divided, papers are sometimes organized according to their timeframes, providing the reader with an encompassing (though not encyclopedic) overview of the common ground over which the various artistic disciplines build their methodological, theoretical, and thematic centers and margins. The intended eccentricity of this volume - and the original essays herein presented - should provide researchers, scholars, students, artists, curators, and the general reader interested in art with a refreshing approach to its various scientific strands.