Dancing humanoids, robotic art installations, and music generated by mathematically precise methods are no longer science fiction; in fact they are the subject of this book. This first-of-its-kind anthology assembles technical research that makes such creations possible. In order to mechanize something as enigmatic and personal as dance, researchers must delve deeply into two distinct academic disciplines: control theory and art. Broadly, this research uses techniques from the world of art to inspire methods in control, enables artistic endeavours using advanced control theory and aids in the analysis of art using metrics devised by a systems theoretic approach. To ensure that artistic influences are well represented, the individual chapters are focused so that they relate their contribution to the arts meaningfully and explicitly. Specially composed introductions set up the contributions either in terms of inspiration by artistic principles or their contribution to the arts through new analysis tools. To facilitate this, the majority of the chapters are authored jointly by experts in control theory and by artists, including dancers, choreographers, puppeteers and painters. Connections between controls and art then permeate the text so that these important relationships play a central role in the book. Controls and Art surveys current projects in this area—including a disco dancing robot, a reactive museum exhibit and otherworldly music—and illuminates open problems and topics for research in this emerging interdisciplinary field. It will draw attention both from experts in robotics and control interested in developing the artistic side of their creations and from academics studying dance, theater, music and the visual arts with an interest in avant-garde means of production.

Civil society groups can strengthen an autocratic state's coercive capacity, helping to suppress dissent and implement far-reaching policies.

"Art Under Control in North Korea is the first publication in the West to explore the role of art in one of the world's most isolated nations. This timely publication places North Korean art in its historical, political and social contexts, discusses the state system of producing, employing, promoting and honouring artists, and examines the range of art produced, from painting and calligraphy to architecture and applied art. Jane Portal also compares the control exerted over artists by North Korean leaders to that of other absolute dictatorships, and looks at the way in which archaeology has been employed for political ends to justify the present leadership and its lineage."--BOOK JACKET.

The nineteenth century witnessed a series of revolutions in the production and circulation of images. From lithographs and engraved reproductions of paintings to daguerreotypes, stereoscopic views, and mass-produced sculptures, works of visual art became available in a wider range of media than ever before. But the circulation and reproduction of artworks also raised new questions about the legal rights of painters, sculptors, engravers, photographers, architects, collectors, publishers, and subjects of representation (such as sitters in paintings or photographs). Copyright and patent laws tussled with informal cultural norms and business strategies as individuals and groups attempted to exert some degree of control over these visual creations. With contributions by art historians, legal scholars, historians of publishing, and specialists of painting, photography, sculpture, and graphic arts, this rich collection of essays explores the relationship between intellectual property laws and the cultural, economic, and technological factors that transformed the pictorial landscape during the nineteenth century. This book will be valuable reading for historians of art and visual culture; legal scholars who work on the history of copyright and patent law; and literary scholars and historians who work in the field of book history. It will also resonate with anyone interested in current debates about the circulation and control of images in our digital age.

Timely and wide-ranging, this volume explores in-depth the theme of destruction in international contemporary art. While destruction as a theme can be traced throughout art history, from the early atomic age it has remained a pervasive and compelling element of contemporary visual culture. Damage Control features the work of more than 40 international artists working in a range of media--painting, sculpture, photography, film, installation, and performance--who have used destruction as a means of responding to their historical moment and as a strategy for inciting spectacle and catharsis, as a form of rebellion and protest, or as an essential part of re-creation and restoration. Including works by such diverse artists as Jean Tinguely, Andy Warhol, Bruce Conner, Yoko Ono, Gordon Matta-Clark, Pipilotti Rist, Yoshitomo Nara, and Laurel Nakadate, the book reaches beyond art to enable a broader understanding of culture and society in the aftermath of World War II, under the looming fear of annihilation in the atomic age, and in the age of terrorism and other disasters, real and imagined.

Humans have always sought ecstatic experiences - moments where they go beyond their ordinary self and feel connected to something greater than them. Such moments are fundamental to human flourishing, but they can also be dangerous. Beginning around the Enlightenment, western intellectual culture has written off ecstasy as ignorance or delusion. But philosopher Jules Evans argues that this diminishes our reality and denies us the healing, connection and meaning that ecstasy can bring. He sets out to discover how people find ecstasy in a post-religious culture, how it can be good for us, and also harmful. Along the way, he explores the growing science of ecstasy, to help the reader - and himself - learn the art of losing control. Jules' exploration of ecstasy is an intellectual and emotional odyssey balancing personal experience, interviews and readings from ancient and modern philosophers that will change the way you think about how you feel. From Aristotle and Plato, via the Bishop of London and Sister Bliss, radical jihadis and Silicon Valley transhumanists, The Art of Losing Control is a funny and life-enhancing journey through under-explored terrain.

The Art of Control Engineering provides a refreshingly new and practical treatment of the study of control systems. The opening chapters assume no prior knowledge of the subject and are suitable for use in introductory courses. The material then progresses smoothly to more advanced topics such as nonlinear systems, Kalman filtering, robust control, multivariable systems and discrete event controllers. Taking a practical perspective, the text demonstrates how the various techniques fit into the overall picture of control and stresses the ingenuity required in choosing the best tool for each job and deciding how to apply it. The most important topics are revisited at appropriate levels throughout the book, building up progressively deeper layers of knowledge. The Art of Control Engineering is an essential core text for undergraduate degree courses in control, electrical and electronic, systems and mechanical engineering. Its broad, practical coverage will also be very useful to postgraduate students and practising engineers.

Experience SEKIRO's unique take on the blood-soaked history of Japan's Sengoku Period with over 300 pages of storyboards, character designs, and concept art!

"Hosts of all kinds, this is a must-read!" --Chris Anderson, owner and curator of TED From the host of the New York Times podcast Together Apart, an exciting new approach to how we gather that will transform the ways we spend our time together—at home, at work, in our communities, and beyond. In The Art of Gathering, Priya Parker argues that the gatherings in our lives are lackluster and unproductive--which they don't have to be. We rely too much on routine and the conventions of gatherings when we should focus on distinctiveness and the people involved. At a time when coming together is more important than ever, Parker sets forth a human-centered approach to gathering that will help everyone create meaningful, memorable experiences, large and small, for work and for play. Drawing on her expertise as a facilitator of high-powered gatherings around the world, Parker takes us inside events of all kinds to show what works, what doesn't, and why. She investigates a wide array of gatherings--conferences, meetings, a courtroom, a flash-mob party, an Arab-Israeli summer camp--and explains how simple, specific changes can invigorate any group experience. The result is a book that's both journey and guide, full of exciting ideas with real-world applications. The Art of Gathering will forever alter the way you look at your next meeting, industry conference, dinner party, and backyard barbecue--and how you host and attend them.

Here's your opportunity to begin working out with the world's fastest-growing exercise program, originated by Joseph H. Pilates (Pi-LAH-teez). Once used mainly by performing artists and athletes, this low-stress program is now available to millions of active and sedentary people to improve their physical and mental well-being. The book contains more than 70 exercises with over 300 photographs to show you how to work out at home or in the office on the various Pilates apparatus.