Sculpture and the Decorative in Britain and Europe: Seventeenth Century to Contemporary

This volume of essays highlights the connections between sculpture and decorative arts, challenging boundaries and highlighting marginalized makers, objects, and concepts. It offers a model for more integrated art history writing.

Format: Hardback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 26 November 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

This groundbreaking volume of essays offers a transformative model for art history writing, by foregrounding the profound overlaps between sculpture and the decorative. Through a series of distinct case studies, spanning from a seventeenth-century Danish altarpiece to contemporary British ceramics, it brings to the forefront makers, objects, concepts, and spaces that have been marginalized by the strict boundaries imposed within art and design discourse. These essays boldly challenge the entrenched classed, raced, and gendered categories that have shaped the histories and languages of art and its making.

In the opening essay, "Sculpture and the Decorative in Britain and Europe," the editors provide a comprehensive overview of the historical relationship between sculpture and the decorative. They argue that these two artistic disciplines have been intertwined throughout history, with sculpture often serving as the foundation for decorative elements and vice versa. The essay highlights the ways in which sculptors have incorporated decorative motifs and techniques into their work, and how the decorative has influenced the development of sculptural styles and forms.

The subsequent essays delve into specific case studies, exploring the intersections between sculpture and the decorative in various periods and regions. For example, "The Altarpiece of the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen: A Seventeenth-Century Case Study" examines a Danish altarpiece from the seventeenth century, which combines intricate sculptural figures with lavish decorative elements. The essay explores the ways in which the altarpiece reflects the social and religious context of its time, as well as the ways in which it challenges traditional notions of sculpture and the decorative.

Another essay, "Contemporary British Ceramics: A Case Study in Interdisciplinary Collaboration," examines the work of contemporary British ceramic artists who are pushing the boundaries of sculpture and the decorative. The essay explores the ways in which these artists are using new materials and techniques to create works that are both visually stunning and conceptually rich. It also highlights the ways in which these artists are challenging traditional hierarchies within the art world and creating new spaces for dialogue and collaboration.

Throughout the volume, the essays emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in the study of sculpture and the decorative. They argue that by bringing together scholars from different fields, such as art history, art theory, and material culture, we can gain a more comprehensive understanding of these artistic disciplines and their historical significance. The essays also highlight the ways in which the study of sculpture and the decorative can contribute to broader social and cultural debates, such as issues of identity, representation, and power.

In conclusion, Sculpture and the Decorative in Britain and Europe is a groundbreaking volume that offers a transformative model for art history writing. By foregrounding the overlaps between sculpture and the decorative, it challenges the boundaries that have traditionally separated these two artistic disciplines and highlights the rich and complex relationships that have existed between them throughout history. Through a series of compelling case studies, the volume demonstrates the ways in which sculpture and the decorative can be understood as integral to the broader history of art and its making. This essential reading for anyone interested in the history and practice of sculpture and the decorative arts and the methodologies of art history.

Weight: 874g
Dimension: 159 x 237 x 28 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501341250