Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan

Carved into the mountains of northern China, the Buddhist cave temples of Xiangtangshan were the crowning cultural achievement of the sixth-century Northern Qi dynasty. Once home to a magnificent array of limestone sculptures, the caves were heavily damaged during the first half of the twentieth century, and much of the... more »

Price: $45

The Tragic Muse: Art and Emotion, 1700-1900

Art is often appreciated for its ability to delight our eyes and refresh our minds. But it can also serve as a powerful vehicle for exploring darker emotions, such as fear, sadness, and grief. And while these themes have an artistic history dating back to the ancients, the ways in... more »

Price: $30

Vision and Communism

In the last thirty years of the Soviet Communist project, Viktor Koretsky’s art struggled to solve an enduring riddle: how to ensure⎯or restore⎯Communism’s moral health through the production of a distinctively Communist vision. In this sense Koretsky’s art demonstrates what an “avant-garde late Communist art” would have looked like if... more »

Price: $24.95

Feast: Radical Hospitality in Contemporary Art

The companion to the Smart Museum of Art's exhibition of the same name, this book explores the role of the meal in contemporary art.... more »

Price: $45.00

Awash in Color: French and Japanese Prints

When Japan opened to the West in 1854, the prints known as ukiyo-e, or “images of the floating world,” fascinated and delighted European audiences, especially in France, where the term japonisme was coined to describe the influence of this art form. Yet this familiar narrative emphasizes the impact of one... more »

Price: $30.00

The Sahmat Collective: Art and Activism in India since 1989

Founded in 1989, the influential Delhi-based organization Sahmat has offered a platform for artists, writers, poets, musicians, and actors to create and present works that promote artistic freedom and secular, egalitarian values. A companion to an exhibition of the same name at the Smart Museum of Art, this book explores... more »

Price: $40