Bücher von Benjamin Fraser

The first book dedicated to exploring the comics of Ben Katchor

Brings insights from urban theory to bear on specific comics. The works selected comprise a variety of international, alternative, and independent small-press comics artists, from engravings and early comics to single-panel work, graphic novels, manga, and trading cards.

Toward an Urban Cultural Studies is a call for a new interdisciplinary area of research and teaching. Blending Urban Studies and Cultural Studies, this book grounds readers in the extensive theory of the prolific French philosopher Henri Lefebvre.

Driven by a dual analysis, Encounters with Bergson(ism) in Spain looks at French philosopher Henri Bergson (1859-1941) in Spain--his more or less direct influence on Spanish letters--and also at Bergsonism in Spain--the more indirect resonance with his methodological posture--articulated through Spanish texts as well as theoretical approaches to film and urban space. Through this twin investigation, one part historical and the other part methodological, Benjamin Fraser seeks to broaden the scope of interest in Bergson's philosophy, to emphasize the interdisciplinary nature of Bergson's thought, and to insist upon the relevance of Bergson's methodological premise to two of the most important cultural studies disciplines today--film studies and urban geography.Following an eclectic and interdisciplinary methodology that the French philosopher himself advocated, Fraser reconciles works by some of the most notable twentieth-century authors and critics with compelling aspects of Bergsonism. From novelists Pio Baroja, Miguel de Unamuno, Juan Benet and Belen Gopegui to filmmakers Victor Erice (El sol del membrillo), Alejandro Amenabar (Abre los ojos) and Carlos Saura (Taxi), as well as urban theorists Henri Lefebvre and Manuel Delgado Ruiz, this work takes up philosopher Gilles Deleuze's call for a "return to Bergson," pushing past the established boundaries of interdisciplinary to what lies beyond.Fans of Bergson from all disciplines will also be eager to read English translations of Bergson's lectures at the Ateneo in Madrid the 2nd and 6th of May 1916, included here as an appendix.

Antonio Lopez Garca's Everyday Urban Worlds: A Philosophy of Painting is the first book to give the famed Spanish artist the critical attention he deserves. Born in Tomelloso in 1936 and still living in the Spanish capital today, Antonio Lopez has long cultivated a reputation for impressive urban scenesbut it is urban time that is his real subject.Going far beyond mere artist biography, Benjamin Fraser explores the relevance of multiple disciplines to an understanding of the painter's large-scale canvasses. Weaving selected images together with their urban referentsand without ever straying too far from discussion of the painter's oeuvre, method and reception by criticsFraser pulls from disciplines as varied as philosophy, history, Spanish literature and film, cultural studies, urban geography, architecture, and city planning in his analyses.The book begins at ground level with one of the artist's most recognizable images, the Gran Va, which captures the urban project that sought to establish Madrid as an emblem of modernity. Here, discussion of the artist's chosen painting styleone that has been referred to as a ';hyperrealism'is integrated with the central street's history, the capital's famous literary figures, and its filmic representations, setting up the philosophical perspective toward which the book gradually develops.Chapter two rises in altitude to focus on Madrid desde Torres Blancas, an urban image painted from the vantage point provided by an iconic high-rise in the north-central area of the city. Discussion of the Spanish capital's northward expansion complements a broad view of the artist's push into representations of landscape and allows for the exploration of themes such as political conflict, social inequality, and the accelerated cultural change of an increasingly mobile nation during the 1960s.Chapter three views Madrid desde la torre de bomberos de Vallecas and signals a turn toward political philosophy. Here, the size of the artist's image itself foregrounds questions of scale, which Fraser paints in broad strokes as he blends discussions of artistry with the turbulent history of one of Madrid's outlying districts and a continued focus on urban development and its literary and filmic resonance.Antonio Lopez Garca's Everyday Urban Worlds also includes an artist timeline, a concise introduction and an epilogue centering on the artist's role in the Spanish film El sol del membrillo. The book's clear style and comprehensive endnotes make it appropriate for both general readers and specialists alike.