New Releases by James Hall

Excerpts from art critic, historian, lecturer, and broadcaster James Hall''s lively and comprehensive cultural history of self-portraiture, focusing on artists including Dürer, Gentileschi, Van Gogh, and Kahlo. Art critic, historian, lecturer, and broadcaster James Hall delves into the allure of self-portraiture in an engaging and accessible short history of the subject, revealing how it became the defining visual genre of our confessional age. Across six chapters, Hall maps the genre from its medieval origins to its present-day manifestations. Along the way he investigates the importance of biography for serial self-portraitists such as van Gogh; themes of sex and genius in works by Munch and Modersohn-Becker; and the effect of globalization on the art of self-representation. From the exuberantly caricatural to the stoic and heroic, Hall covers a full range of portraits and looks deeply into the worlds and mindsets of the artists who created them.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

In "The Harpe''s Head: A Legend of Kentucky," James Hall weaves a captivating narrative that intertwines the dark undercurrents of early American frontier life with a richly detailed exploration of folklore and myth. Employing an evocative literary style that blends elements of Gothic fiction with vivid historical detail, Hall paints a haunting portrait of the notorious Harpe brothers, whose gruesome exploits challenge the boundaries of morality and law in the nascent Kentucky wilderness. As Hall adeptly navigates the thin line between historical fact and creative interpretation, he immerses readers in a landscape where horror, adventure, and the human psyche collide, all set against the backdrop of 19th-century American expansionism. James Hall, an esteemed figure in American literature and a prominent advocate for the exploration of regional narratives, draws upon his profound understanding of Kentucky''s history and culture to fuel this gripping tale. His experiences as a traveler, writer, and keen observer of human nature inspired him to delve into the chilling legends surrounding the Harpe brothers, amplifying the historical authenticity with his signature narrative style that appeals to both the emotional and intellectual sensibilities of his audience. "The Harpe''s Head" is not only a significant contribution to the genre of American Gothic literature but also an essential read for anyone seeking to grasp the complexities of early American society. Hall''s masterful storytelling and deep thematic explorations make this book a compelling choice for readers who appreciate a blend of history, horror, and rich narrative depth.

This book is an expansion on Hall Photon Theory, first presented in 1998. Recent observations by Hubble support HPT, & nothing has come about against it.

The understanding and enjoyment of a work of art depends as much on the story it depicts as on the artist''s execution of it. But what were once biblical or classical commonplaces are not so readily recognizable today. This book relates in a succinct and readable way the themes, sacred and secular, on which the repertoire of Western art is based. Combined here in a single volume are religious, classical, and historical themes, figures of moral allegory, and characters from romantic poetry that appeared throughout paintings and sculpture in Western art before and after the Renaissance. More than just a dictionary, this text places these subjects in their narrative, historical, or mythological context and uses extensive cross-referencing to enhance and clarify the meanings of these themes for the reader. The definitive work by which others are compared, this volume has become an indispensable handbook for students and general appreciators alike. This wholly redesigned second edition includes a new insert of images chosen by the author, as well as a new preface and index to highlight the ideas, beliefs, and social and religious customs that form the background of much of this subject matter.

"A Companion volume to James Hall’s perennial seller Dictionary of Subjects & Symbols in Art. which deals with the subject matter of Christian and Western art, the present volume includes the art of Egypt, the ancient Near East, Christian and classical Europe, India and the Far East. Flail explores the language of symbols in art showing how paintings, drawings and sculpture express man shades of meaning from simple, everyday hopes and fears to the profoundest philosophical and religious aspirations. The book explains and interprets symbols from many cultures, and over 600 illustrations clarify and complement the text. There are numbered references throughout the text to the sacred Iitcra-1 ture, myths and legends in which the symbols had their origins. Details of English translations of the works are in the bibliography. The book includes an appendix of the transcription of Chinese, notes and references, bibliography, chronological tables and index."

Thomas Lillibridge, the first, moved to Rhode Island in the 1690''s. All Lillibridge''s in America are thought to be descended from him. In 1715 he moved to what is now called Richmond Connecticut. The dwelling houses he lived in and his descendants after are chronicled. Thomas and other Lillibridge''s are buried in the Lillibridge Cemetery on his property. Lillibridges continued to live on this land until the death of Janetta Lillibridge Brown in 1940. Their history gives insight into americas history. The Reverend David Lillibridge, Thomas the first''s grandson, ""was almost gigantic in frame, and strong mentally and morally as well as physically."" Joel Eno. He served in the army during the French and Indian War at age 15 years. Later he moved to Willington, CT where he built a church and was its only Pastor for 55 years. His home is still standing and a National Historic site. David and his descendants history are told along with the history of the Reverend David Lillibridge house.

Sheds new light on the long history of self-portraiture with fresh interpretations of famous examples and new works, ideas, and anecdotes This broad cultural history of self-portraiture brilliantly maps the history of the genre, from the earliest myths of Narcissus and the Christian tradition of “bearing witness” to the prolific self-image-making of today’s contemporary artists. Focusing on a perennially popular subject, the book tells the vivid history of works that offer insights into artists’ personal, psychological, and creative worlds. Topics include the importance of the medieval mirror craze in early self-portraiture; the confessional self-portraits of Titian and Michelangelo; the mystique of the artist’s studio, from Vermeer to Velázquez; the role of biography and geography for serial self-portraitists such as Courbet and Van Gogh; the multiple selves of modern and contemporary artists such as Cahun and Sherman; and recent developments in the era of globalization. Comprehensive and beautifully illustrated, the book features the work of a wide range of artists including Beckmann, Caravaggio, Dürer, Gentileschi, Ghiberti, Giotto, Goya, Kahlo, Kauffman, Magritte, Mantegna, Picasso, Poussin, Raphael, Rembrandt and Van Eyck. The full range of the subject is explored, including comic and caricature self-portraits, “invented” or imaginary self-portraits, and important collections of self-portraiture such as that of the Medici.

The Sinister Side reveals a hidden symbolic language in the visual arts: that of the perceived differences between the left and right sides of the body. Long forgotten or misunderstood, it is a symbolism that has been interpreted by artists differently through the centuries, and that sheds new light on some of our greatest works of art.

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''. . . Michelangelo was constantly flaying dead bodies, in order to study the secrets of anatomy, thus beginning to give perfection to the great knowledge of design that he afterwards acquired.'' Giorgio Vasari, Life of Michelangelo, 1568.Michelangeo''s art is exhilarating, but also bewildering. What is the source of its incomparable power? In this imaginative and detailed study, the art critic James Hall explores some of the major puzzles - the unmaternal nature of Michelangelo''s Madonnas and their lack of responsiveness; his concern with colossal scale and size; the way that anatomical dissections affected his attitude to the human body; the passionate, anxious placing of solitary, heroic figures against a background of troubling crowds. In the process he arrives at a more precise appreciation of the body language of his figures, and offers new explanations of many of the most familiar sculptures, paintings and drawings, including the statue of David and the narratives of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, the complex iconography of the Medici tombs in the Sacristy of San Lorenzo and his powerful late images of the dead Christ. Hall dispels the notion of an artist-superman possessed of titanic mental and physical powers, embodying the sublime spirit of his age, and also topples the long-held view of Michelangelo as brilliant but unbalanced, obsessed with the male nude. Instead he redefines him as the first artist to put the human body centre stage, giving his study a profound relevance to our own time, in which artists, film-makers, writers and scholars are so fixated on ''the body''. If we really want to understand our own culture, Hall argues, we need to understand Michelangelo. This fine, elaborate study offers us a way to do so.

Features 29 experiments organized according to the topical presentation in the text. Annotations in the main text IAE indicate where the labs from this manual are relevant to chapter content.

Millennial Hospitality II is an etiquette book for the 21 Century. It suggests how we might interact with aliens and answers many questions the readers had after reading Millennial Hospitality.

Beneath the still blue waters off Key Largo a woman dives into a dazzling array of color. But behind the shimmering schools of fish, somewhere in the shadows of the reef, a death trap awaits. In minutes one life will be expertly, brutally taken, and another plunged into a mean season of fury, obsession, and revenge... His name is Thorn, his world is mangrove islands, open waters, and the ghosts of a too-violent past. Darcy Richards was everything to him. Now, finding her killer is. Wading into a seething mystery, Thorn is catapulted into a nightmare of violence and deception. There lurks a sensual young woman with a hard come-on, an aging former mobster, and a diabolical ex-CIA man. What they all have in common is each other''s mad ruthlessness -- and a little red fish that will make some people very rich, and others very dead...

Both authors ... saw their book as a way of preserving an accurate visual record of a rapidly disappearing culture. The text, which was written by Hall based on information supplied by McKenney, takes the form of a series of biographies of leading figures amongst the Indian nations, followed by a general history of the North American Indians. The work is now famous for its color plate portraits of the chiefs, warriors and squaws of the various tribes, faithful copies of original oils by Charles Bird King painted from life in his studio in Washington (McKenney commissioned him to record the visiting Indian delegates) or worked up by King from the watercolors of the young frontier artist, James Otto Lewis. All but four of the original paintings were destroyed in the disastrous Smithsonian fire of 1865, so their appearance in this work preserves what is probably the best likeness of many of the most prominent Indian leaders of the early 19th century. -- Reese.