
Visual Time
The Image in History
Keith Moxey(Author)
Duke University Press
Published on 17. June 2013
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-0-8223-5369-0 (ISBN)
Description
Visual Time offers a rare consideration of the idea of time in art history. Non-Western art histories currently have an unprecedented prominence in the discipline. To what extent are their artistic narratives commensurate with those told about Western art? Does time run at the same speed in all places? Keith Moxey argues that the discipline of art history has been too attached to interpreting works of art based on a teleological categorization-demonstrating how each work influences the next as part of a linear sequence-which he sees as tied to Western notions of modernity. In contrast, he emphasizes how the experience of viewing art creates its own aesthetic time, where the viewer is entranced by the work itself rather than what it represents about the historical moment when it was created. Moxey discusses the art, and writing about the art, of modern and contemporary artists, such as Gerard Sekoto, Thomas Demand, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and Cindy Sherman, as well as the sixteenth-century figures Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Albrecht DUErer, Matthias GrUEnewald, and Hans Holbein. In the process, he addresses the phenomenological turn in the study of the image, its application to the understanding of particular artists, the ways verisimilitude eludes time in both the past and the present, and the role of time in nationalist accounts of the past.
Reviews / Votes
"Every page is graced with an erudite yet refreshingly accessible writing style-a rare feat these days-which makes the reader feel excessively smart. . . . If you are not afraid to come away with more questions than you started with, this book definitely belongs within easy reach on your shelf. It is a book to anyone interested in the philosophy of time, the nature of art, and the ever-growing contemporary discourses of history and art history." - SeungJung Kim (Art in America) "Though it is a far-reaching critique of the kind of historicism that contents itself with studying the past without regard for the present, Keith Moxey's Visual Time: The Image in History is not an attempt to liberate us from history. On the contrary, it is a critique of historicism in the name of history, and it never loses sight of the urgent issues that have fueled historicism, especially in the last century." - Amy Knight Powell (CAA Reviews) "Due to the breadth and variety of content and theory, the book should have wide-ranging application for art historians working in a number of geographic regions and time periods, and it should benefit those working in theory as well as object-based scholarship. . . . Moxey's work is another valuable foray into a rich field, and it has the potential to reshape art historical discourse." - James Fishburne (Comitatus) "This book, with its sophisticated language and discussion of methodological and historiographical insights, will be key reading for graduate students and scholars across art history and related fields. While the case studies pertain largely to sixteenth-century northern European works, Moxey's thoughtful and provocative consideration of issues related to time, history, periodization, style, aesthetics, and presence in the interpretation of objects from the past will appeal to all who are grappling with these theoretical issues." - Joyce de Vries (Sixteenth Century Journal) "Affect and historicism-dueling presences within any art experience-animate Keith Moxey's superb new collection of essays on Northern Renaissance painting." - Christopher P. Heuer (Renaissance Quarterly)More details
Language
English
Place of publication
North Carolina
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
29 illustrations, incl. 8 in color
Dimensions
Height: 233 mm
Width: 149 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
422 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8223-5369-0 (9780822353690)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
06/2013
1st Edition
De Gruyter
€198.99
Available for download
Person
Keith Moxey is Barbara Novak Professor of Art History at Barnard College and Columbia University. He is the author of many books, including The Practice of Persuasion: Paradox and Power in Art History; The Practice of Theory: Poststructuralism, Cultural Politics, and Art History; and Peasants, Warriors, and Wives: Popular Imagery in the Reformation.
Content
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
Part I. Time 9
1. Is Modernity Multiple? 11
2. Do We Still Need a Renaissance? 23
3. Contemporaneity's Heterochronicity 37
Part II. History 51
4. Visual Studies and the Iconic Turn 53
5. Bruegel's Crows 77
6. Mimesis and Iconoclasm 107
7. Impossible Distance 139
Conclusion 173
Bibliography 177
Index 199
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
Part I. Time 9
1. Is Modernity Multiple? 11
2. Do We Still Need a Renaissance? 23
3. Contemporaneity's Heterochronicity 37
Part II. History 51
4. Visual Studies and the Iconic Turn 53
5. Bruegel's Crows 77
6. Mimesis and Iconoclasm 107
7. Impossible Distance 139
Conclusion 173
Bibliography 177
Index 199