Vision and Art (Updated and Expanded Edition)

May 1, 2002
Harvard Medical School neurobiology professor Margaret S. Livingstone explains how great artists exploit the functions of the human eye and brain in Vision and Art: The Biology of Seeing. Livingstone, whose biological explanation of why the Mona Lisa's smile appears enigmatic stirred much interest when it appeared in the New York Times, here offers a detailed explanation of how elements like perspective, luminance, color mixing, shading and chiaroscuro produce certain effects in art works. She discusses da Vinci's use of contrast, the illusory three-dimensionality of Impressionist paintings and why Mondrian's Broadway Boogie Woogie gives the impression of motion.

July 15, 2002
This book is for anyone who has wondered why the Mona Lisa's smile is so haunting or how artists manage to give depth or motion to a two-dimensional piece of art. Not only does Livingstone (neurobiology, Harvard Medical Sch.) clearly explain these things but she also shows how vision works from eye to brain, and she provides fun experiments to illustrate her observations. The book is lavishly illustrated (150 illustrations, 100 in color), with excellent captions that can stand alone for those who prefer to browse. But it is well worth reading the whole book. The practical examples explaining how vision works greatly help the understanding of the process of vision. This unique book helps readers learn about color, luminescence, the What and Where systems, how problems with these systems affect vision, and more. Essential for academic libraries supporting art and neurobiology programs, this is also an excellent book for any library because it is so well written and illustrated. Margaret Henderson, Cold Spring Harbor Lab. Lib., NY

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2002
Is there a scientific explanation for how Leonardo da Vinci made the Mona Lisa's smile so elusive, or how impressionist painters capture the shimmering molecular aliveness of air? Of course, says Livingstone, an innovative Harvard Medical School neurobiologist devoted to the study of human vision whose enthusiasm for her subject electrifies even the most technical of her excursions into the nature of light and how exactly visual information is conveyed via color and luminance. By combining lively prose, outstanding illustrations, including works by Renoir, Degas, Seurat, and Chuck Close, and easily performed visual experiments, Livingstone explains central and peripheral vision; how three different kinds of light receptors--red, green, and blue cones--enable us to distinguish millions of colors; how our brain's response to luminance "grants us perception of depth, movement, three-dimensionality, and spatial organization"; and much more. By the time readers reach the end of this illuminating tour of the brain as it responds to everything from line drawings to digital images, they will have acquired an enhanced appreciation for the genius of artists and scientists alike.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)