Lives of Images (Reaktion Books - Picturing History)

In The Lives of Images, Peter Mason examines the history of European representations of non-European peoples, using four striking case-studies and a wide range of source material, including paintings, medals, murals, frescoes, monuments, engravings and contemporary photographs. Mason focuses on early photographs of native Teira del Fuego; 18th-century portraits of Formosan islanders; images from Mexican religious manuscripts; and possibly the earliest visual representation of a Native American in European art. In The Lives Of Images, Peter Mason Examines The Production, Transmission And Occasional Misunderstanding Of Visual Images Representing Non-european Peoples And Their Cultures From The Last Five Centuries. Mason's Analyses Address Such Topics As What Has Been Taken To Be The Earliest Three-dimensional European Representation Of Native Americans; The Migrations Of Images From Sixteenth-century Mesoamerican Codices Via Europe And Back To The Murals Painted In Mexico City By Diego Rivera Four Centuries Later; And The Relationship Between Eighteenth-century Drawings And Engravings Of Natives Of Formosa Produced By The Man Who Called Himself George Psalmanaazaar. The Travels Not Only Of Images But Also Of Their Human Subjects Lie At The Heart Of Mason's Discussion Of Representations Of The Native Peoples Of Tierra Del Fuego, From Their First Encounters With Europeans In The Sixteenth Century To The Present, Paying Particular Attention To The Visual Traces Of Them Left In The Work Of Such Famous Artists As Odilon Redon. The Lives Of Images Engages In An Ongoing Dialogue With The Seminal Work Of Rudolf Wittkower And Aby Warburg, Sharing As It Does Their Preoccupation With Art And Anthropology, As Well As Their Opposition To The Borders That Tend To Separate Intellectual Disciplines. In Taking Pains To Illuminate Single Obscurities, Mason's Study Teases Out Some Of The Implications Of Particular Cases To Arrive At A Concept Of The Image That Can Truly Be Said To Have A Life Of Its Own.--book Jacket. The Lives (and Deaths) Of Fuegians And Their Images -- Being There -- From America To Oxfordshire? -- The Purloined Codex -- Images And Objects. Peter Mason. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 149-170) And Index. "In The Lives of Images, Peter Mason examines the production, transmission and occasional misunderstanding of visual images representing non-European peoples and their cultures from the last five centuries. Mason's analyses address such topics as what has been taken to be the earliest three-dimensional European representation of Native Americans; the migrations of images from sixteenth-century Mesoamerican codices via Europe and back to the murals painted in Mexico City by Diego Rivera four centuries later; and the relationship between eighteenth-century drawings and engravings of natives of Formosa produced by the man who called himself George Psalmanaazaar. The travels not only of images but also of their human subjects lie at the heart of Mason's discussion of representations of the native peoples of Tierra del Fuego, from their first encounters with Europeans in the sixteenth century to the present, paying particular attention to the visual traces of them left in the work of such famous artists as Odilon Redon. The Lives of Images engages in an ongoing dialogue with the seminal work of Rudolf Wittkower and Aby Warburg, sharing as it does their preoccupation with art and anthropology, as well as their opposition to the borders that tend to separate intellectual disciplines. In taking pains to illuminate single obscurities, Mason's study teases out some of the implications of particular cases to arrive at a concept of the image that can truly be said to have a life of its own."-- Dust jacket In the Lives of Images , Peter Mason examines four striking case studies involving the production and transmission of visual images of non-European peoples. Beginning with what has been taken to be the earliest three-dimensional European representation of Native Americans, he then focuses on the migration of such images via 16th century Meso-American codices to the murals painted by Diego Rivera four centuries later. Mason also looks at the relationship between drawing and engraving of natives of Formosa by Georges Psalmanaazaar, who never traveled to that country. Finally, he examines representations of the native peoples of Tierra del Fuego, from their first encounters with Europeans in the late 16th century to the present, paying particular attention to their visual traces in the work of such well-known artists as Odilon Redon. Mason's fascinating study teases out some of the implications of these particular cases to discover a concept of the image that is both primary and can truly be said to have a life of its own. Lives of Images Cover......Page 1 Imprint......Page 6 Contents......Page 7 1 The Lives (and Deaths) of Fuegians and Their Images......Page 21 2 Being There......Page 57 3 From America to Oxfordshire?......Page 82 4 The Putloined Codex......Page 103 5 Images and Objects......Page 133 References......Page 151 Photographic Acknowledgements......Page 173 Index......Page 174 In this work, the author examines the history of European representations of non-European peoples, using as his base four case studies and a wide range of source material, including paintings, medals, murals, frescoes, monuments, engravings and contemporary photographs.