Scenography and Art History: Performance Design and Visual Culture

Scenography and Art History reimagines scenography as a critical concept for art history, demonstrating its importance for understanding historical and contemporary art, and its broader implications for society. It offers a comprehensive evaluation of scenography's contemporary relevance through detailed case studies, extending the literature on multisensory events and unrecognized labor.

Format: Hardback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 17 June 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Scenography and Art History is a groundbreaking work that reimagines scenography as a critical concept for art history, offering a comprehensive evaluation of its significance and applicability to art historians and scholars in related fields. This pioneering book is the first to demonstrate the importance and usefulness of scenography in understanding art and its historical contexts. Through its nuanced and detailed case studies, it explores a wide range of phenomena, including witchy designs, Early Modern festival books, live rock performances, digital fashion photography, and outdoor dance interventions. By presenting these case studies, the book contributes to ongoing debates within art history and visual studies concerning multisensory events. It extends the existing literature by demonstrating the importance of a reimagined scenography concept for comprehending historical and contemporary art histories and visual cultures more broadly.

The book argues that scenography is no longer limited to the traditional realm of the theatre but has become an essential concept for approaching art historical and contemporary objects and events. It delves into scenography as a critical approach and theoretical concept, as well as an important practice linked with unrecognized labor and broader political, social, and gendered issues in various contexts, such as festive culture, sacred settings, fashion, film, or performing arts. Designed as a key resource for students, teachers, and researchers in art history, visual studies, and related subjects, the book considers the roles of scenography and art in society implicitly and explicitly through its cross-disciplinary frame.

In conclusion, Scenography and Art History is a groundbreaking work that revolutionizes our understanding of scenography as a critical concept for art history. By presenting a wealth of case studies and exploring scenography's relevance across diverse fields, the book provides valuable insights for art historians, scholars, and anyone interested in the study of art and its historical contexts. Its innovative approach and interdisciplinary framework make it an essential resource for students, teachers, and researchers alike.

Weight: 718g
Dimension: 161 x 240 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350204447