I recently discovered the work of Francesca Pellegrino "distant worlds and imaginary" published in the Collection Guide Des Arts, in April 2007 by Editions Hazan.
(Copyright Editions Hazan)
Here is the presentation of the work by the editor himself, I think, makes you want to discover very quickly that publication:
"Studying the geographic themes of European art involves reflection on the definition of space: it exudes an inherent Eurocentrism in the history of Western culture. The very concept of the West, geographically only in appearance, is closely linked to the notion cultural hegemony. How many questions, nightmares and dreams we have projected onto the unknown, creating myths, monsters or artificial paradise! By providing concrete visions, the images offer the viewer the opportunity to identify solutions devised by Western man to represent the "different": the sky above us, distant lands, people who live and landscapes we always return to our own image. The character of these representations evolve along with the adventure unfolds human-like discoveries of Marco Polo or colonization - and constantly renews the vision of the world. The first part of this Guide Arts strives to represent the earth and the celestial sphere. The Creation Bible is the origin of rich iconography: this is what justifies the existence of the "world" and which therefore provides the meanings associated with it. The scientific approach, which cartographers and geographers contribute, propose to turn the images, not without symbols. The second part is devoted to land "humanized", from the allegorical personifications of the continents to key people present in the collective imagination between the Middle Ages and the early twentieth century, Europe, Asia, the oldest and the most extraordinary array of civilization, ending with the New Continent. People are studied in the same way, with the prejudices and idealizations that have sometimes accompanied. The third section sets out an inventory of bizarre creatures that inhabit the land: it is to consider cases where the dispute is classified as unusual. Thus, exotic animals were regarded as monsters, until habit makes them familiar: the evolution of the hybrid, the result of operations to get closer to a satisfying realism, is literally amazing. The fourth part, centered on the deep symbolism of the theme, deals the trip, considering how the various modes of travel and the distinguished guests from the political, religious, literary or mythology. The fifth and final section examines the crucial topos in the Western imagination: places of great symbolic importance, mythical figures related to the overcoming of borders, abstract creations of reason, places or characters real but transfigured by physical distance, which plus the temporal distance. The dream, which closes the book, is the ultimate place of exploration, one through which it may be possible to trace the awe and curiosity Virgin, which in the past were directed towards objects and places now considered obvious. "
Note that the covers of the Italian edition and the German edition of this book, using extracts from two famous paintings of Johannes Wermer "The Geographer" and "The Astronomer" which I mentioned here .
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