Analysing the decorative programmes of the most opulent European palaces of the time, Margaretha Rossholm Lagerl?f investigates how meaning was conveyed through display and visual effects. She explores the visual meaning inherent in the scheme of spatial relations; in effects of scale, perspective, lighting, figures' positions and postures; and in relations among image types. The analysis concerns the interrelations of various kinds of images in the ensembles; the relations between images and physical site; and the address to the beholder. Lagerl?f considers the visual impact of the imagery in conjunction with 'readable' or symbolically 'coded' meanings; thus, the study does not merely subject these decorations to formalist aesthetic principles. She shows the visual meaning generally to sustain the verbal or readable messages, but often in subtle ways, extending or elaborating the meaning. Occasionally, the visual meaning comes forth as an undercurrent or complication, deviating from the proclaimed and symbolic meaning. Fate, Glory, and Love in Early Modern Gallery Decoration contributes to the body of scholarship on visual rhetoric and on how images 'act' out their messages.

A young boy gets a new video game, Power and Glory, for his birthday, and he's ready to blast the bad guys--if his loving family will just leave him alone! "Observant viewers will notice some humorous similarities between the characters in the video game and the family members who interrupt the fun....The stylized artwork is remarkable for its tremendous energy, coherence of composition, and attention to detail....An unexpected pleasure."--Booklist.