Slip into the idyllic world of turn-of-the-century, rural Sweden with this monograph dedicated to Carl Larsson, the national treasure whose delicate drawings and paintings proffer a vision of his enchanting family life. Accompanying details of every work of art offer an invaluable insight into the exquisite, charming minutiae of these pictures which demand a closer look. Beloved Swedish artist Carl Larsson (1853-1919) emerged from poor beginnings to earn an esteemed place in the hearts and minds of his countrymen. Nowadays known worldwide for his delicate, luminous pictures of his family and their idyllic life in the Swedish countryside, he initially struggled as a painter for many years before finding international fame as a book illustrator. His delicate, charming portraits and major decorative projects in the Stockholm Opera House and the National Museum are deservedly much admired, despite the criticism he provoked from conservative art institutions. Yet it is undoubtedly his series of watercolors and pen-and-ink drawings showcasing the innovative interior design of the house he created together with his wife Karin which are cherished above all, for their vision of a happy, stylish, modern home which he offered to his millions of readers.

“I am not interested in myself as a subject for painting, but in others, particularly women…”Beautiful, sensuous and above all erotic, Gustav Klimt’s paintings speak of a world of opulence and leisure, which seems aeons away from the harsh, post-modern environment we live in now. The subjects he treats – allegories, portraits, landscapes and erotic figures – contain virtually no reference to external events, but strive rather to create a world where beauty, above everything else, is dominant. His use of colour and pattern was profoundly influenced by the art of Japan, ancient Egypt, and Byzantium. Ravenne, the flat, two-dimensional perspective of his paintings, and the frequently stylised quality of his images form an oeuvre imbued with a profound sensuality and one where the figure of woman, above all, reigns supreme. Klimt’s very first works brought him success at an unusually young age. Gustav, born in 1862, obtained a state grant to study at Kunstgewerbeschule (the Vienna School of Arts and Crafts) at the age of fourteen. His talents as a draughtsman and painter were quickly noticed, and in 1879 he formed the Künstlercompagnie (Artists’ Company) with his brother Ernst and another student, Franz Matsch. The latter part of the nineteenth century was a period of great architectural activity in Vienna. In 1857, the Emperor Franz Joseph had ordered the destruction of the fortifications that had surrounded the medieval city centre. The Ringstrasse was the result, a budding new district with magnificent buildings and beautiful parks, all paid for by public expenses. Therefore the young Klimt and his partners had ample opportunities to show off their talents, and they received early commissions to contribute to the decorations for the pageant organised to celebrate the silver wedding anniversary of the Emperor Franz Joseph and the Empress Elisabeth. In 1894, Matsch moved out of their communal studio, and in 1897 Klimt, together with his closest friends, resigned from the Künstlerhausgenossenschaft (the Cooperative Society of Austrian Artists) to form a new movement known as the Secession, of which he was immediately elected president. The Secession was a great success, holding both a first and second exhibition in 1898. The movement made enough money to commission its very own building, designed for it by the architect Joseph Maria Olbrich. Above the entrance was its motto: “To each age its art, to art its freedom.” From around 1897 onward, Klimt spent almost every summer on the Attersee with the Flöge family. These were periods of peace and tranquillity in which he produced the landscape paintings constituting almost a quarter of his entire oeuvre. Klimt made sketches for virtually everything he did. Sometimes there were over a hundred drawings for one painting, each showing a different detail – a piece of clothing or jewellery, or a simple gesture. Just how exceptional Gustav Klimt was is perhaps reflected in the fact that he had no predecessors and no real followers. He admired Rodin and Whistler without slavishly copying them, and was admired in turn by the younger Viennese painters Egon Schiele and Oskar Kokoschka, both of whom were greatly influenced by Klimt.

A lo largo de las aproximaciones que conforman Metamorfosis, Valeria de los Ríos proporciona valiosas claves para entrar al mundo multiforme, laberíntico y siempre cambiante –como un ser vivo– del cine de Raúl Ruiz. Entre sus análisis destacan aquellos cuyos temas la crítica ha descuidado, en particular sobre sus primeros años en Chile, el retorno a nuestro país en su última etapa, y algunos cortometrajes. «Cine de indagación» del entorno chileno, cine del exilio marcado por una expresividad neobarroca, cine chamánico que busca crear puentes entre espacios diversos pero interconectados, cine que es juego y experimentación: este libro nos acerca a la idea formulada por Ruiz del cine como «el instrumento perfecto capaz de revelarnos los múltiples mundos posibles que coexisten cerca de nosotros».

Este Manual está dirigido a todos los alumnos de música de los diversos institutos, Conservatorios y universidades que existen en Chile y en el extranjero. En la Pontificia Universidad Católica, el curso es obligatorio para todos los intérpretes o estudiantes de las carreras de composición, musicología, teoría y literatura y dirección coral. El manual está basado en los ejercicios que la autora ha ido aplicando a través de los años en clases de Piano complementario −ahora llamado Piano Funcional−, ramo que prepara para los cursos de Armonía y del cual es pre requisito. Aquí se encontrarán ejercicios pianísticos con los dedajes recomendados y ejercicios para entender la armonía y, por supuesto, la tonalidad o el sistema tonal.