
Kabbalah in Art and Architecture
Alexander Gorlin
(Author)21,000+ Reviews
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Description
The Kabbalistic idea of creation, as expressed through light, space, and geometry, has left its unmistakable mark on our civilization. Drawing upon a wide array of historical materials and stunning images of contemporary art, sculpture, and architecture, architect Alexander Gorlin explores the influence, whether actually acknowledged or not, of the Kabbalah on modern design in his unprecedented book Kabbalah in Art and Architecture. Gorlin brings light to the translation of the mystical philosophy into a physical form, drawing clear comparisons between philosophy and design that will excite and exalt. Comprising ten chapters that each outline key concepts of the Kabbalah and its representations, both in historic diagrams and the modern built environment, Kabbalah in Art and Architecture puts forth an unparalleled and compelling reinterpretation of art and architecture through the lens of the Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism. A chapter on the Golem, and an epilogue that discusses German artist Anselm Kiefer's powerful interpretations of the Kabbalah, complete this unique book.
Product Details
Publisher | Pointed Leaf Press |
Publish Date | August 12, 2013 |
Pages | 192 |
Language | English |
Type | |
EAN/UPC | 9781938461071 |
Dimensions | 309.4 X 236.5 X 25.4 mm | 1406.1 g |
Reviews
A serious but lively look at Jewish mysticism, supported by an archive of reference material Gorlin has been compiling for over twenty years...a visual feast, packed with large, full-bleed images that have an undeniable impact.
Locked within Kabbalah’s 3,500-year-old texts are secrets that go beyond a direct experience of the divine, Gorlin argues in his new book. Whether its influences are intentionally there or not, the author offers as evidence of the mystical tradition centuries of manuscripts, drawings, paintings, sculptures, and structures created by Jews and gentiles alike, including Frank Gehry, Yayoi Kusama, and Louis Kahn, who designed the Temple Beth El synagogue in Chappaqua, New York, in 1972. It’s the experience of art beyond the conscious reception of it that Gorlin’s after. Those who prefer their art criticism with a healthy dose of rationalism can take comfort in the Kabbalistic notion that, as he puts it, “geometry orders the universe.
Locked within Kabbalah’s 3,500-year-old texts are secrets that go beyond a direct experience of the divine, Gorlin argues in his new book. Whether its influences are intentionally there or not, the author offers as evidence of the mystical tradition centuries of manuscripts, drawings, paintings, sculptures, and structures created by Jews and gentiles alike, including Frank Gehry, Yayoi Kusama, and Louis Kahn, who designed the Temple Beth El synagogue in Chappaqua, New York, in 1972. It’s the experience of art beyond the conscious reception of it that Gorlin’s after. Those who prefer their art criticism with a healthy dose of rationalism can take comfort in the Kabbalistic notion that, as he puts it, “geometry orders the universe.
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