Astrology, Magic, and Alchemy in Art

Download or read book Astrology, Magic, and Alchemy in Art written by Matilde Battistini and published by Getty Publications. This book was released on 2007 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From antiquity to the Enlightenment, astrology, magic, and alchemy were considered important tools to unravel the mysteries of nature and human destiny. As a result of the West's exposure during the Middle Ages to the astrological beliefs of Arab philosophers and the mystical writings of late antiquity, these occult traditions became rich sources of inspiration for Western artists. In this latest volume in the popular Guide to Imagery series, the author presents a careful analysis of occult iconography in many of the great masterpieces of Western art, calling out key features in the illustrations for discussion and interpretation. Astrological symbols decorated medieval churches and illuminated manuscripts as well as fifteenth-century Italian town halls and palaces. The transformational zymology of magic and alchemy that enlivened the work of a wide range of Renaissance artists, including Bosch, Brueghel, D:urer, and Caravaggio, found renewed expression in the visionary works of nineteenth-century artists, such as Fuseli and Blake, as well as in the creative output of the twentieth century's Surrealists.