Images of Rule: Art and Politics in the English Renaissance, 1485-1649

Cover Art for 9780520209923, Images of Rule: Art and Politics in the English Renaissance, 1485-1649 by David Howarth
ISBN: 9780520209923
Publisher: University of California Press
Published: 30 May, 1997
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Links Australian Libraries (Trove)
Editions:
2 other editions of this product

This is a fascinating and highly readable account of the vital role the visual arts played in Great Britain during the Tudor and early Stuart monarchies. David Howarth examines the intersection of art and political power between the accession of the Tudors and the outbreak of civil war and draws on images of the Royal court to fashion his innovative cultural and political history. Howarth concentrates on the public uses and political exploitation of Renaissance art, rather than its quality or the creative process behind it. He argues that the English ruling class used and manipulated portraiture, architecture, the decorative arts, and spectacle in order to reinforce its own power and preserve England's political status quo. Howarth carefully studies the royal palaces, commissioned portraits, tombs, and period monuments to show how each work influenced--and was influenced by--politics. Even England's highly political battle between Catholicism and Protestantism found expression in religious architecture and painting. Contesting the orthodox view that no important works of art were produced in Britain from 1485 to 1649, Howarth finds proof to the contrary in the work of Sir AnthonyVan Dyck, Christopher Wren, Hans Holbein, and Inigo Jones, among others. Finally, Howarth addresses the political implications of the decisions made by art patrons, collectors, and critics. Of great interest are the critical reactions to art and architecture recorded by contemporary writers such as th

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