A Distinguished and Bestselling Historian and Army Veteran Revisits the Culture War that Raged around the Selection of Maya Lin's Design for the Vietnam Memorial… A Rift in the Earth tells the remarkable story of the ferocious "art war" that raged between 1979 and 1984 over what kind of memorial should be built to honor the men and women who died in the Vietnam War. The story intertwines art, politics, historical memory, patriotism, racism, and...

Meet some of the women from the 20th century who continue the legacy of breaking down barriers surrounding women's freedom! Sandra Day O'Connor, Susan G. Komen, Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walters, Mary Kay Ash, Maya Lin, Elizabeth Dole, and Hillary Rodham Clinton are some of the inspirational women that readers will learn about in this fascinating book. Featuring easy-to-read text working in conjunction with lively images and intriguing facts, readers...

"Martin Filler's "contribution to both architecture criticism and general readers' understanding is invaluable," according to Publishers Weekly. This latest installment in his acclaimed Makers of Modern Architecture series again demonstrates his unparalleled skill in explaining the revolutionary changes that have reshaped the built environment over the past century and a half. These studies of more than two dozen master builders--women and men, celebrated...

In Women Who Changed the World, you'll meet fifty of the most influential and inspirational American women who had a lasting impact on our nation and the world. Starting with some of America's "Founding Mothers" like Pocahontas and Abigail Adams, and continuing up to the present day with game changers like Hillary Clinton, Oprah, and Misty Copeland, the book features a unique and diverse cast from all walks of life. With a mix of photographs and quirky...

There are many reasons why works of art become famous, few have anything to do with quality. Art museums are filled with masterworks that are unknown to the general public. This book raises questions about how fame is achieved, and ultimately how a work either retains that fame, or passes from the public consciousness. The works of art, which include sculptures, paintings, a photograph, and architecture, examined in individual chapters are: “The...

From celebrated art historian, curator, and teacher Sarah Lewis. It is one of the enduring enigmas of the human experience: many of our most iconic, creative endeavors-from Nobel Prize–winning discoveries to entrepreneurial inventions and works in the arts-are not achievements, but rather, corrections after failed attempts. The gift of failure is a riddle. Like the number zero, it will always be both the void and the start of infinite possibility....

With regret that he had been only vaguely aware of the events of the Civil Rights movement while they were happening and from a sense of obligation towards his sociology students for whom he needed to educate himself, the author made personal journeys over several years to the places that had been the scenes of marches, freedom rides, sit-ins, and bus boycotts: To Atlanta where he interviewed John Lewis, legendary leader of SNCC; The Auburn District,...

Professor Gates' journey continues as a weekly series that will look at an ever-widening spectrum of our nation's fascinating ethnic mixture.

Open Studio' invites you into the private studios of seventeen of the most celebrated contemporary artists as they draw, paint, sculpt, or design an original project for readers to recreate at home. Join George Condo as he creates a paint-by-numbers portrait, William Wegman as he watercolors whimsical scenes of his beloved Weimaraners, and Mickalene Thomas as she makes an artist's book out of collage. 'Open Studio' demystifies the studio practice...

Presents 37 diverse artists, taking viewers into artists' studios, homes, and communities to provide an intimate view of their lives, work, creative processes, and sources of inspiration.