Tapestries––the art form of kings––were a principal tool used by powerful Renaissance rulers to convey their wealth and might. From 1460 to 1560, courts and churches lavished vast sums on costly weavings in silk and gold thread from designs by leading artists. In this lavishly illustrated book, the first major survey of tapestry production of this period, contributors analyze some of these beautiful tapestries, examine the stylistic and technical development of tapestry production in the Low Countries, France, and Italy during the Renaissance, and discuss the contribution that the medium made to art, liturgy, and propaganda of the day.

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence (Metropolitan Museum of Art Series)

Campbell, Thomas P.

Arts & Photography

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Luxurious, beautiful, and portable, tapestry was the pre-eminent art form of the Tudor court. Henry VIII amassed an unrivaled collection over the course of his reign, and the author weaves the history of this magnificent collection into the life of its owner with an engaging narrative style. Now largely dispersed or destroyed, Henry’s extensive inventory is here reassembled and reveals how, through tapestry, Henry identified himself with historic, religious, and mythological figures, putting England in dialogue―and competition―with the leading courts of Early Modern Europe while promoting his own religious and political agendas at home. Campbell’s original account sheds new light on Tudor political and artistic culture and the court’s response to Renaissance aesthetic ideals. Sumptuously illustrated with newly commissioned photographs, this stunning re-creation of Europe’s greatest tapestry collection challenges the predominantly text-driven histories of the period andoffers a fascinating new perspective on the life of Henry VIII.

Henry VIII and the Art of Majesty: Tapestries at the Tudor Court

History & Criticism

Paul Mellon Centre

This completely reconceived and rewritten guide to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's encyclopedic holdings—the first new edition of the guidebook in nearly thirty years—provides the ideal introduction to almost 600 essential masterpieces from one of the world's most popular and beloved art collections. It features a compelling and accessible design, beautiful color reproductions, and up-to-date descriptions written by the Museum's own experts.
More than a simple souvenir book, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide provides a comprehensive view of art history spanning five millennia and the entire globe, beginning with the Ancient World and ending in contemporary times. It includes media as varied as painting, photography, costume, sculpture, decorative arts, musical instruments, arms and armor, works on paper, and many more. Presenting works ranging from the ancient Egyptian Temple of Dendur to Canova's Perseus with the Head of Medusa to Sargent's Madame X, this is an indispensable volume for lovers of art and art history, and for anyone who has ever dreamed of lingering over the most iconic works in the Metropolitan's unparalleled collection.
Now available as an eBook!
The guide is now available to read on your tablet, mobile phone or personal computer. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide eBook provides the same features as the printed version along with digital enhancements such as a linked table of contents for easy navigation, a double-click to zoom on works of art, and additional views of artworks. Like the print version, this eBook features a compelling and accessible design, beautiful photography, and up-to-date descriptions written by the Museum's own experts.
The eBook is now available on Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks and Google Play.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide

Collections, Catalogs & Exhibitions

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence

Tapestries were a principal aspect of the ostentatious "magnificence" used during the Renaissance by powerful religious and secular rulers to broadcast their wealth and their might. This sumptuously illustrated book presents the first major survey of tapestry production between 1460 and 1560, and it catalogues the first monographic loan exhibition of tapestries in the United States in twenty-five years. It highlights the finest tapestry cycles of the age as one of the greatest achievements of Renaissance art. Examples from many of the most important surviving set―which still dazzle today as they did five hundred years ago in the palaces and cathedrals of Europe―illustrate the contribution that the medium made to the art, liturgy, and propaganda of the time. This study focuses on the stylistic evolution of tapestry design in the Netherlands beginning with the development by Netherlandish designers in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries of an aesthetic that emphasized narrative and decorative qualities. During the 1510s, 1520s, and 1530s, commissions by Pope Leo X and other Italian patrons resulted in the dispatch of tapestry cartoons by Italian artists―notably Raphael and his assistants―to Brussels, the main center of high-quality production, thus introducing Roman High Renaissance aesthetics to Northern tapestry design. Thereafter, Netherlandish artists like Bernaert van Orley and his followers melded this Italian influence with their local traditions of tapestry design to produce a rich aesthetic that was ideally suited to the medium. Smaller centers of tapestry production are also examined―particularly those set up under princely patronage in France (Fontainebleau) and Italy (Ferrara, Mantua, and Florence). Unrestrained by established practices of Netherlandish production, such artists as Tura, Mantegna, Bramantino, Bronzino, and Salviati invariably created tapestry designs that were much closer to the spirit of the Italian Renaissance than to those of their Northern counterparts. The strengths and distinctions of those contemporaneous developments and the cross-fertilization of ideas between northern Europe and Italy are fully explored in detailed essays and catalogue entries. The secondary theme of this study is the important role that tapestry played in ceremonial and daily life and the extent to which the medium reflected the personal tastes and aspirations of its patrons. This book explores the circumstances in which these enormous works of art were conceived and the complex relationships that existed between contemporary patrons, the rich merchants who bankrolled the industry, and the artists and craftsmen who designed and wove the tapestries. Many of the great tapestry cycles of the period are widely dispersed and challenging to photograph and thus little known outside a small scholarly community. In this book, the technical and artistic brilliance of these beautiful tapestries is illustrated in specially commissioned color photographs and detailed shots that reproduce them with a new vividness and immediacy. [This book was originally published in 2002 and has gone out of print. This edition is a print-on-demand version of the original book.] 

Growing out of a symposium on the Fleury Playbook at the International Congress on Medieval Studies, this book includes essays from the symposium, as well as additional papers written by scholars whose specialties were not represented at the conference. Each essay covers a unique topic in the study of the Playbook, utilizing a diverse set of methodological tools and interdisciplinary approaches for subjects which have not heretofore received adequate scholarly attention. The topics at hand are each of significant interest to the field at large.

The Fleury Playbook: Essays and Studies (Early Drama, Art, and Music Monograph Series, 7)

Literature & Fiction

Dramas & Plays

Medieval Institute Publications

The Fleury Playbook: Essays and Studies

Tapestries - the art form of kings - were a principal element in the ostentatious magnificence used by powerful Renaissance rulers to broadcast their wealth and might. During the period between 1460 and 1560, courts and churches lavished vast sums on costly weavings in silk and gold thread from designs by leading artists. In this illustrated volume, contributors analyze some of these tapestries; examine the stylistic and technical development of tapestry production in the Low Countries, France and Italy during the Renaissance; and discuss the contribution that the medium made to the art, liturgy and propaganda of the day. The survey presents 45 surviving tapestries along with some 20 preparatory drawings and cartoon fragments. Featured are examples designed by Italian masters Raphael, Giulio Romano and Perino del Vaga. In addition, works by Netherlandish designers such as Bernaert van Orley and his followers are included, demonstrating how elements of the northern design tradition were fused with Italianate innovations, resulting in an extraordinarily rich aesthetic, ideally suited to the medium.

<ul>
<li>Provides an accessible walking tour of highlights of the Metropolitan Museum's renowned and encyclopedic collection, selected by Thomas P. Campbell</li>
<li>The only low-priced guides available for one of the most prestigious and popular museums in the world, drawing more than 6 million visitors a year</li>
<li>Features iconic masterpieces encompassing all of art history, from one of the most significant collections in the world</li>
</ul>
 Let the Metropolitan Museum's director, Thomas P. Campbell, act as your personal guide to one of the world's most renowned and encyclopedic collections of art. Based on the museum's immensely popular audio tour, this handy book provides fascinating guided visits through the first and second floors of the museum, zeroing in on about 50 masterpieces on each tour. Also provided is a shorter itinerary of 'Visitor's Favorites'. Highlights include the Temple of Dendur, from ancient Nubia, Egypt; an exquisitely frescoed bedroom from Boscoreale, near Pompeii; majestic Assyrian reliefs; Rembrandt's Aristotle with a Bust of Homer; armor from both Europe and Asia; an exquisitely carved ivory pendant mask from Benin, Africa; Emmanuel Leutze's Washington Crossing the Delaware; Van Gogh's celebrated painting Wheat Field with Cypresses, and many other works.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Director's Tour: A Walking Guide

Scala Arts Publishers, Inc.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Campbell, Thomas P.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Campbell, Thomas P.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Campbell, Thomas P.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence (Metropolitan Museum of Art Series)

Henry VIII and the Art of Majesty: Tapestries at the Tudor Court

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence

The Fleury Playbook: Essays and Studies (Early Drama, Art, and Music Monograph Series, 7)

The Fleury Playbook: Essays and Studies

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence

Tapestry in the Renaissance: Art and Magnificence

The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Director's Tour: A Walking Guide