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Book ID: CBB718507317

Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation (2014)

Sven Dupre (Editor)
Dedo von Kerssenbrock-Krosigk (Editor)
Beat Wismer (Editor)

Hirmer Verlag
Publication date: 2014
Language: English

ISBN: 9783777422077

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The idea of transforming stones into silver, common copper into gold, has captured the popular imagination for centuries. At its peak in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, alchemy, the "royal art,” served as both a catalyst for developments in the nascent chemistry of the day and a framework for making sense of this rapidly changing science. Throughout history, alchemists have also been seen as practitioners of an arcane spiritual act symbolizing the cleansing of the human soul. These shifting interpretations that straddle science and art have made alchemy a particularly fruitful subject for artists, from the renowned painters of the High Renaissance to contemporary artists like Sigmar Polke and Anish Kapoor. Lavishly illustrated, Art and Alchemy accompanies an exhibition of the same name at the Museum Kunstpalast in Düsseldorf that brings together historical texts and a selection of artworks that take alchemy as their inspiration. Among the works discussed are Melancholy by Lucas Cranach the Elder, an oil painting that plays on the classical alchemical element; Jan Brueghel the Elder’s The Allegory of Fire; and a variety of works by Dutch painter, draftsman, and printmaker Hendrick Goltzius. Alchemy also continues to play an important role in the works of contemporary artists like Yves Klein, Jörg Lenzlinger, Gerda Steiner, and Anselm Kiefer, and their works are included, as are contributions from contemporary scientists who offer the results of their recent research. In addition to providing an apt theme for artistic interpretation, alchemical practices were often used to produce art, as with the preparation of the old-world pigments leadwhite and vermillion, demonstrating the manifold connections between the two disciplines. A fascinating collection that explores the disciplines’ many intersections and common concerns, Art and Alchemy also sheds light on how our understanding of the world and our position in it has changed over time.

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Reviewed By

Review Gabriele Ferrario (2016) Review of "Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation". Ambix: Journal of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry (pp. 71-72). unapi

Includes Chapters

Chapter Lawrence M. Principe (2014) A Practical Science: The History of Alchemy. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Sven Dupré (2014) Making Materials: The Arts of Fire. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter William R. Newman (2014) God’s Crafts: Imitating and Recreating Nature. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Lawrence M. Principe (2014) Spaces of Wonder and Ruin: Alchemical Laboratories in Early Modern Painting. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Jennifer M. Rampling (2014) A Secret Language: The Ripley Scrolls. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Christine Göttler (2014) Allegories of Fire and of the Arts. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Ulli Seegers (2014) Metabolic Processes: On Great Works and Invisible Values in Contemporary Art. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter Tina L. Meganck (2014) The “Reddener”: Peter Paul Rubens and Alchemy. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

Chapter M. E. Warlick (2014) Surrealism and Alchemy. In: Art and Alchemy: Mystery of Transformation. unapi

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