Bücher von Dani Cavallaro

While offering a comprehensive review of existing Klimt criticism, this book aims to shed new light on the artist's output by arguing that his works challenge a number of established boundaries, thereby performing a continual crossing of thresholds. This study explores Klimt's threshold universe by means of detailed analyses of a wide range of his works from all phases of his prolific career.

Ranging from Chretien de Troyes to Shakespeare, this study proposes that the chivalric romance is characterized by a centreless structure, a self-conscious fictionality and a sense of irony. The genre's form is tied to historical reality, yet represents the archetype of imaginative literature, creating multifold fantasy worlds which audiences inhabit in denial of their real-life social contexts.

Once a favorite of mainly art house audiences, Hayao Miyazaki's films have enjoyed increasing exposure in the West since his Spirited Away won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2003. The award signaled a turning point for Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli, bringing his films prominence in the media and driving their distribution in multiple formats. This book explores the closing decade of Miyazaki's career (2004-2013), providing a close study of six feature films to which he contributed, including three he directed (Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo and The Wind Rises). Seven short films created for exclusive screening at Tokyo's Ghibli Museum are also covered, four of which were directed by Miyazaki.

Since its debut manga RG Veda, CLAMP has steadily asserted itself as one of the most widely renowned teams of manga artists, leaving a durable imprint in every established genre while also devising novel formulas along the way. Endowed not only with stylistic distinctiveness but also comprehensive cultural structure, CLAMP's output is distinguished by unique worldbuilding ¿air and visual vitality. Exploring a selection of CLAMP manga as well as anime it inspired, this volume examines CLAMP's broader philosophical underpinnings, its dedication to the invention of elaborate narrative constructs, its legendary passion for multilayered universes, and its symbolic interpretation of human identity. Throughout, the work highlights the team's incremental creation of a graphic constellation of unparalleled appeal.

Kyoto Animation, a studio with very humble beginnings, has gained recognition the world over as a uniquely inspired and inventive enterprise. This book examines Kyoto Animation's philosophy and creative vision with close reference to its anime. It focuses on the studio's choice of genres, themes and imagery while exploring its maintenance of high production values. The analysis highlights the studio's commitment to the pursuit of both artistic excellence and technical experimentation--and its reliance on the imagination and expertise of in-house staff.

Documenting Studio Gainax's achievements, this book provides a critical overview of both the company and its prolific catalog of films. It details Gainax's rise to success, outlining the most salient aspects of the company's professional development and assessing the studio's distinctive aesthetic vision.

A critical study of Miyazaki's work, this book begins with an analysis of the visual conventions of manga, Japanese comic books, anime, an overview of Japanese animated films, and a consideration of the techniques deployed by both traditional cell and computer animation and details his foray into comic books and animation.

Drawing from categories as varied as romance, comedy, slice of life drama, science fiction, bildungsroman, and school drama, this examines anime's representation of characters pursuing diverse artistic activities and related aesthetic visions, focusing closely on the concepts of creativity, talent, expressivity and experimentation. Additionally, it engages with anime's own artistry, proposing that those characters' endeavours provide metaphors for the aims and objectives pursued by anime itself as an evolving art form.

This study addresses the relationship between Japanese aesthetics, a field steeped in philosophy and traditional knowledge, and anime, a prominent part of contemporary popular culture. There are three premises: (1) the abstract concepts promoted by Japanese aesthetics find concrete expression at the most disparate levels of everyday life; (2) the abstract and the concrete coalesce in the visual domain, attesting to the visual nature of Japanese culture at large; and (3) anime can help us appreciate many aspects of Japan’s aesthetic legacy, in terms of both its theoretical propositions and its visual, even tangible, aspects.

Visual novels are interactive fiction games in which players creatively control decisions and plot turning points. Endings alter according to the player's choices, providing a motivation to replay the game. This book describes the thematic and structural traits of a popular development within the realm of anime: series adapted from visual novels.

The topos of memory has played a significant role in anime over the course of its evolution as an art form and as a popular form of entertainment. This study provides an analysis of a range of anime titles wherein different aspects of this cultural phenomenon are articulated. It highlights the prominence of memory in anime.