In Light of Shadows is the long-awaited second volume of short fiction by the Meiji-Taishô writer Izumi Kyôka. It includes the famous novella Uta andon (A story by lantern light), the bizarre, antipsychological story "Mayu kakushi no rei" (A quiet obsession), and Kyôka’s hauntingly erotic final work, "Rukôshinsô" (The heartvine), as well as critical discussions of each of these three tales. Translator Charles Inouye places Kyôka’s "literature of shadows" (kage no bungaku) within a worldwide gothic tradition even as he refines its Japanese context. Underscoring Kyôka’s relevance for a contemporary international audience, Inouye adjusts Tanizaki Jun’ichirô’s evaluation of Kyôka as the most Japanese of authors by demonstrating how the writer’s paradigm of the suffering heroine can be linked to his exposure to Christianity, to a beautiful American woman, and to the aesthetic of blood sacrifice. In Light of Shadows masterfully conveys the magical allusiveness and elliptical style of this extraordinary writer, who Mishima Yukio called "the only genius of modern Japanese letters."

Taras Kovic, the richest man to have ever lived, has only one dream. Taras dreams of the future. When Ares Belle's husband goes missing after a night of drinking she returns home to find her house ransacked. Delinquent teen Riley Marclund, directionless and naïve, finds himself infatuated with a feisty girl who has an aversion to technology. The beautiful and dangerous Detective Carlisle enlists the help of Doctor Willem Stockhold to piece together a trail of gruesome murders. Lee Goku, a manipulative and cunning politician is fed up with the limitations of a democratic Council and has put plans in motion that will deliver power to his eager hands. And Famke Draskovic, a solitary enigma, discovers something truly disturbing lurking in the depths of space.

Strange, haunting, bizarre, cosmic, transcendent...all of these describe this collection of short stories from three-time Hugo nominee John L. Flynn, Ph.D.. Journey into his wondrous imagination...to the last great library where a robot librarian awaits the return of its human patrons...to the planet Jupiter where strange lifeforms halt the progress of a mining platform...to a ravaged wasteland where the last survivors practice a strange ritual...to a warm, tropical beach where a creature of the night stalks its prey...to the city of tomorrow where two homeless vets struggle against an evil corporate raider...to a bizarre crime scene which baffles even the world's greatest detective...and to other shadow worlds which are filled with visionary, often surreal intensity.

George and his friend Scott both enlist in the Navy, but George is selected to lead a special unit in the NSA called the Peace Task Force, while Scott is not selected as a unit member. George must team up with his new friends, James and John, to create a secret NSA unit designed to create peace by taking down Donna and her terrorist network. Due to the secrecy of his task, George begins to feel the strain on his relationship with his family and friends because he cannot tell them the true nature of his mission.

Upon arriving in the port city of Tradocco, Falco becomes apprentice to master shadow thief Maestro Astolfo, and as his education progresses, he is plunged into the company of con men, monsters, pirates, and the King of the Cats.

How to paint oil portraits like the Old Masters Mona Lisa. Girl with a Pearl Earring. Madame X. The infinite variety and beauty of humankind--like the mysteries behind sparkling eyes, a sly smile or an averted gaze--has captivated artists since the beginning of time. This expanded edition of Chris Saper's best-selling guide, Classic Portrait Painting in Oils, reveals keys for mastering how to paint beautiful portraits in oil to create soulful works of art. Through easy-to-follow lessons and expert oil painting tips and techniques, you'll find secrets for working from life, using reference photos and more to create rich, realistic portraits imbued with timeless character. • 14 step-by-step demonstrations teach how to paint 7 diverse subjects of varying skin tones from life and from photographic reference • Additional exercises reveal expert oil painting techniques for defining facial details, like eyes, mouths, wrinkles, facial hair and eyeglasses • Professional tips for working from life, including ideal session times, posing, seeing and mixing color and even how to work with children • The basics of using natural, artificial, creative and "Rembrandt" lighting to light your subject and convey a mood • Expanded key concepts of "perfect practice," the importance of regularly painting subjects in real time and an insistence on excellent photographic reference material, including a checklist for how to take--and self-edit--your own quality photos • New material on how to approach and execute paid commissions, including step-by-step demonstrations for painting both corporate and family subjects Through Saper's universal techniques, painters of all skill levels will learn to render more realistic portraits of every subject they paint, with predictable and joyful results.

This book brings together over 25 years of Arindam Chakrabarti's original research in philosophy on issues of epistemology, metaphysics, and philosophy of mind. Organized under the three basic concepts of a thing out there in the world, the self who perceives it, and other subjects or selves, his work revolves around a set of realism links. Examining connections between metaphysical stances toward the world, selves, and universals, Chakrabarti engages with classical Indian and modern Western philosophical approaches to a number of live topics including the refutation of idealism; the question of the definability of truth, and the possibility of truths existing unknown to anyone; the existence of non-conceptual perception; and our knowledge of other minds. He additionally makes forays into fundamental questions regarding death, darkness, absence, and nothingness. Along with conceptual clarification and progress towards alternative solutions to these substantial philosophical problems, Chakrabarti demonstrates the advantage of doing philosophy in a cosmopolitan fashion. Beginning with an analysis of the concept of a thing, and ending with an analysis of the concept of nothing, Realisms Interlinked offers a preview of a future metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of mind without borders.

In this revealing study, Daisuke Miyao explores "the aesthetics of shadow" in Japanese cinema in the first half of the twentieth century. This term, coined by the production designer Yoshino Nobutaka, refers to the perception that shadows add depth and mystery. Miyao analyzes how this notion became naturalized as the representation of beauty in Japanese films, situating Japanese cinema within transnational film history. He examines the significant roles lighting played in distinguishing the styles of Japanese film from American and European film and the ways that lighting facilitated the formulation of a coherent new Japanese cultural tradition. Miyao discusses the influences of Hollywood and German cinema alongside Japanese Kabuki theater lighting traditions and the emergence of neon commercial lighting during this period. He argues that lighting technology in cinema had been structured by the conflicts of modernity in Japan, including capitalist transitions in the film industry, the articulation of Japanese cultural and national identity, and increased subjectivity for individuals. By focusing on the understudied element of film lighting and treating cinematographers and lighting designers as essential collaborators in moviemaking, Miyao offers a rereading of Japanese film history.

Everything we see is lit by one source or another. The questions are: what and how? That is what this book is designed to teach you. Through Rosanne Olson’s tried-and-true course on lighting principles for photography, video, and art in general, you will discover how the angles and heights of your light sources affect your pictures. You will learn how to work with light modifiers to change the quality of your light, and how to control light to create a feeling of depth and dimension—whether you’re shooting with natural light, continuous artificial light, studio strobes, dedicated flash, or a combination of sources. Assignments are included to help you put each concept into practice as you perfect your skills and train your eyes to see the subtleties of light. You will never look at a photograph or painting in the same way after you read this book!