Publisher Comments

The long and prolific career of Imogen Cunningham (1883-1976) established her as a pioneering artist who had an indelible impact on the course of photography. Beginning as a student in the early twentieth century, she distinguished herself by taking an incredibly thoughtful, carefully considered approach to subjects that ranged from traditional portraits to industrial equipment to still-life abstractions, ensuring glorious results no matter the content.

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Publisher Comments

The Tale of Genji, a classic novel by Murasaki Shikibu (c. 978-1026), explores the complexities of elite society in eleventh-century Japan through the life of Prince Genji, a member of the imperial court. Among the many artistic adaptations of this work is an exquisite album held by the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford University. Created in Japan during the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century, this album is unusual in its inclusion of poems praising the Confuc... read more>>>

Publisher Comments

She is finding escape from routine in the pages of a novel. Or searching the pages of a more serious work for a way to broaden her horizons or transform her life. Or poring over a letter from a loved one. The reading woman herself is a long, complex story that has fascinated generations of artists.

A book can stop time, transcend circumstances, conjure a world in which to lose oneself. The four paintings in this notecard assortment, all from the Museum... read more>>>