"For years, Samuel Emmer has monitored bacteria levels in drinking water for the small city of Guelph. He is content to focus on dangerous life-threatening single-celled organisms as his grasp on his own life recedes, and with it his with family and friends. No one is more surprised than Samuel when he is appointed to the city's Zoo Feasibility Committee. His assignment: travel to zoos around the world and gather information on the behavior of animals in their enclosures. The city of Guelph aspiring commendably, if naively, is trying to create cruelty-free habitats for its animals. It is in Tallinn, Estonia, that the dreams start for Samuel. He is in a vast wooded landscape; there is a fire burning in the distance; and it is coming his way... Weak in Comparison to Dreams, by historian and art critic James Elkins, is like no other novel you have ever read, even as its inspirations, from W.G. Sebald to Teju Cole, are clear to see. With an astounding breadth of knowledge and playful courage, Weak in Comparison to Dreams reignites our love for the ambitious novel; with experimentation that never lacks intention, and whose empathetic scope explores the deepest aspects of our individual humanity"--
James Elkins Orden de los libros
James Elkins es un historiador y crítico de arte cuyo trabajo profundiza en el arte contemporáneo y sus fundamentos teóricos. Se dedica a explorar la intrincada relación entre el arte, su historia y los marcos críticos utilizados para su interpretación. La erudición de Elkins busca desentrañar las complejas formas en que el arte moldea nuestra percepción del mundo. Su enfoque es analítico, con el objetivo de iluminar los significados más profundos incrustados en las creaciones artísticas.







- 2024
- 2020
The End of Diversity in Art Historical Writing
North Atlantic Art History and its Alternatives
The End of Diversity in Art Historical Writing is the most globally informed book on world art history, drawing on research in 76 countries. In addition some chapters have been crowd sourced: posted on the internet for comments, which have been incorporated into the text. It covers the principal accounts of Eurocentrism, center and margins, circulations and atlases of art, decolonial theory, incommensurate cultures, the origins and dissemination of the "October" model, problems of access to resources, models of multiple modernisms, and the emergence of English as the de facto lingua franca of art writing.
- 2017
What is Interesting Writing in Art History?
- 164 páginas
- 6 horas de lectura
Focusing on the evolution of art history writing, this book provides in-depth analyses of significant texts by influential figures such as Rosalind Krauss and T.J. Clark. It explores what constitutes "interesting" or "experimental" writing in the field, examining rival essay concepts and highlighting the lack of literary criticism within art history and related disciplines. Additionally, it discusses institutions dedicated to teaching innovative approaches to art writing, making it a critical resource for understanding the interplay between art and literature.
- 2017
What Heaven Looks Like
- 128 páginas
- 5 horas de lectura
A masterpiece of visionary art rediscovered--Jacket.
- 2015
The World Atlas of Tattoo
- 400 páginas
- 14 horas de lectura
Lively and informative, The World Atlas of Tattoo is a superbly illustrated and compelling reference book that, through examining the meeting point between tattoo artists and their personal understanding of their environment, presents a well-informed and nuanced account of what has become a widespread art practice. Organized geographically, each section is introduced by a short historical overview of the types of tattooing traditionally practised in that area of the world, enabling the reader to trace historical threads in the careers of some of the profiled tattooers, as well as marvel at how other artists have managed to create novel forms of tattooing that transcend any previous context. The book also tracks the movement of styles from their indigenous settings to diasporic communities, where they have often been transformed into creative, multicultural, hybrid designs. Written by an international team of scholars, historians and journalists, this comprehensive atlas will enlighten and excite anyone who is passionate about tattoo art in its many forms worldwide.
- 2014
Art Critiques: A Guide. Third Definitive Edition Revised and Expanded
- 254 páginas
- 9 horas de lectura
Targeted at college-level art students, this guidebook offers a vibrant and engaging approach to critique, setting it apart from more traditional, formal texts. It aims to enhance the learning experience by providing a colorful and accessible resource for students pursuing various degrees in the arts.
- 2011
What Photography Is
- 240 páginas
- 9 horas de lectura
Exploring the profound impact of photography, Elkins delves into its paradoxical nature, highlighting its capacity to present images that evoke both desire and discomfort. He argues that photography transcends mere representation, engaging with the complexities of perception and emotion. Through a diverse array of illustrations, the book illustrates how photography captures the multifaceted challenges of seeing, making it a powerful medium that resonates deeply with viewers.
- 2008
How to Use Your Eyes
- 272 páginas
- 10 horas de lectura
Through the lens of everyday objects, the book encourages readers to engage deeply with their surroundings, revealing the extraordinary in the ordinary. Elkins examines familiar items like grass, clouds, and bridges, illustrating how they hold intricate meanings and connections to our lives. By blending artistic insight with investigative curiosity, he invites readers to appreciate the beauty and complexity of the world, transforming mundane perceptions into a rich tapestry of observation that enhances our understanding of nature and thought.
- 2008
"[The curators] find the common themes running through the work of 11 young artists from Chicago's SAIC and Leipzig, Germany's Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst (Academy of Visual Arts). The work is predominantly narrative, focusing on the sense of waiting between events and the spaces in which that waiting happens. The exhibition's various pieces evoke actual and constructed spaces, focusing the viewer's attention on the gap between lived experiences and fabricated ones"--Rachel Adams.
- 2007
Visual practices across the university
- 303 páginas
- 11 horas de lectura
We live in a world saturated in images, and yet a university education is still overwhelmingly linguistic and mathematical. Art history and visual studies, the two disciplines that study images, still work mainly with fine art and mass media. This book, the first of its kind, studies the production and interpretation of images in all the faculties and departments of a university. Fine art is here, and popular culture: but so is biology, speech therapy, the study of medieval inscriptions, of viruses, of whales, of the bottom of the ocean, and even of porcelain teeth and Cheddar cheese. The book contains detailed explanations of the ways images are made and interpreted: it does not popularize or bend different practices into the shape of some over-arching theory. The Introduction is an entirely new theorization of the study of images including a proposal that images can introduce students in all fields—in science and in the humanities—to the full range and unexpected coherence of the university as a whole. Without the study of images, universities are unified in name only: through images, students can find their place in the full spectrum of contemporary intellectual life.