Imago and Contemplatio in the Visual Arts and Literature (1400–1700)
This volume contains twenty-four essays, which, in their subjects and methodology, pay tribute to the scholarship of Walter S. Melion. The contributions are grouped under three categories: “Devotion,” “Art and Image Theory,” and “Vision and Contemplation.” The Devotion section addresses votive practices, theological theory and polemic literature. The Art and Image Theory section focuses on Jesuit image theory, the reflexive dimension of works, and artists’ reflections on the function of images. Finally, the Vision and Contemplation section discusses the ‘early modern eye’ as a tool for thoughtful, prolonged looking to ascertain visual wit, deception, self-assessment and friendship, sacred and profane allegories.
Imago and Contemplatio in the Visual Arts and Literature (1400-1700)
This Festschrift contains twenty-four essays, which pay tribute to the scholarship of Walter S. Melion. The chapters are subdivided into three categories, which represent key aspects of Melion's interests: "Devotion", "Art and Image Theory", and "Vision and Contemplation".
Imago Exegetica
Exegesis, as theologians and historians of art, religion, and literature, have come increasingly to acknowledge, has traditionally utilized visual devices of all kinds. This volume examines the many ways in which images functioned as instruments of scriptural hermeneutics in early modern Europe.
The Invention of the Emblem Book and the Transmission of Knowledge, ca. 1510–1610
This study draws a new picture of the invention of the emblem book, and discusses the textual and pictorial means that were developed in order to transmit knowledge, from Alciato to Vaenius, with special emphasis on the emblem commentary and natural history.
Jesuit Art
In Jesuit Art, Mia Mochizuki considers the artistic production of the pre-suppression Society of Jesus (1540–1773) from a global perspective. Geographic and medial expansion of the standard corpus changes not only the objects under analysis, it also affects the kinds of queries that arise. Mochizuki draws upon masterpieces and material culture from around the world to assess the signature structural innovations pioneered by Jesuits in the history of the image. When the question of a ‘Jesuit style’ is rehabilitated as an inquiry into sources for a spectrum of works, the Society’s investment in the functional potential of illustrated books reveals the traits that would come to define the modern image as internally networked, technologically defined, and innately subjective.
