"Refreshing, inspiring, and especially beautiful because the young author not only takes the Virgin Mary into her own motherly heart, she brings her into our hearts as well!" ---Joyce Rupp "Only a loving mother could write so beautifully and profoundly about the intimate love of the Mother of God for her children. A must for anyone who has any doubts about the power of Mary's motherly presence." ---Virgil Elizondo "Deirdre Cornell is a gifted writer living a remarkable life. Her book is refreshing, vital, and not easy to put down." ---Jim Forest "I am thrilled with this wonderful book. It promises to stand with the very best of works on Mary." ---Sally Cunneen

In this interdisciplinary study of drama, arts, and spirituality, Gail Gibson provides a provocative reappraisal of fifteenth-century English theater through a detailed portrait of the flourishing cultures of Suffolk and Norfolk. By emphasizing the importance of the Incarnation of Christ as a model and justification for late medieval drama and art, Gibson challenges currently held views of the secularization of late medieval culture.

Jaroslav Folda traces the appropriation of the Byzantine Virgin and Child Hodegetria icon by thirteenth-century Crusader and central Italian painters and explores its transformation by the introduction of chrysography on the figure of the Virgin in the Crusader Levant and in Italy.

Lifting The Veil: Why They Hate Us brings awareness to the unconscious and underlying dynamics that are reflected in the history and present day conflicts between the Islamic and Western worlds. The devastation and shock of 9/11 reached every community in America. It raised questions never before considered. Inspired by that event, research became critical to organize our thinking and make sense out of nonsense and organization out of chaos. Political literature addressing the dynamics leading up to the catastrophe of the collapse of the Twin Towers has been prolific as the urgency to understand the Islamic world has increased. International relations theory offers a variety of concepts of why and how nations may respond to one another for expansion, defense or peace. These theories develop with objective quantifiable equations and leave no room for immeasurable, subjective variables. Perception is one of those variables that can not be left out of the equation when looking at what motivates nations and international diplomacy. As Jungian analysts, Gustafson and Kamerling analyze an underlying psychological dynamic that fuels the conflict between the west and the Islamic world. They have distilled information from a variety of readings, interviews, documentaries and personal experiences in the Islamic world.

The paradoxical logic of transparency and mediation Transparency is the metaphor of our time. Whether in government or corporate governance, finance, technology, health or the media – it is ubiquitous today, and there is hardly a current debate that does not call for more transparency. But what does this word actually stand for and what are the consequences for the life of individuals? Can knowledge from the arts, and its play of visibility and invisibility, tell us something about the paradoxical logics of transparency and mediation? This Obscure Thing Called Transparency gathers contributions by international experts who critically assess the promises and perils of transparency today.

A comprehensive survey of the work of this most influential Florentine artist and teacher Andrea del Verrocchio (c. 1435–1488) was one of the most versatile and inventive artists of the Italian Renaissance. He created art across media, from his spectacular sculptures and paintings to his work in goldsmithing, architecture, and engineering. His expressive, confident drawings provide a key point of contact between sculpture and painting. He led a vibrant workshop where he taught young artists who later became some of the greatest painters of the period, including Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, Lorenzo di Credi, and Domenico Ghirlandaio. This beautifully illustrated book presents a comprehensive survey of Verrocchio's art, spanning his entire career and featuring some fifty sculptures, paintings, and drawings, in addition to works he created with his students. Through incisive scholarly essays, in-depth catalog entries, and breathtaking illustrations, this volume draws on the latest research in art history to show why Verrocchio was one of the most innovative and influential of all Florentine artists. Published in association with the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

Analyzing the literature on art from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, The Spiritual Language of Art explores the complex relationship between visual art and spiritual experiences during the Italian Renaissance. Though scholarly research on these writings has predominantly focused on the influence of classical literature, this study reveals that Renaissance authors consistently discussed art using terms, concepts and metaphors derived from spiritual literature. By examining these texts in the light of medieval sources, greater insight is gained on the spiritual nature of the artist’s process and the reception of art. Offering a close re-readings of many important writers (Alberti, Leonardo, Vasari, etc.), this study deepens our understanding of attitudes toward art and spirituality in the Italian Renaissance.