So rich a tapestry

This interdisciplinary collection differs from other collections of essays on literature and the visual arts in its emphasis on the image as situated in cultural, as opposed to perceptual, contexts. Broadly speaking, the writers of these sixteen essays join those who, in a variety of fields, have been taking note of the ways in which communication relies on a matrix of social or cultural norms. From this point of view, cultural setting becomes not merely interesting background but intrinsic to comprehension. The selected essays range in chronological scope from the twelfth to the twentieth centuries, organized in sections according to the nature of the "text" each had chosen to address. The essays in the first section concern themselves in some way with paintings, which serve as a means by which the authors explore other genres, such as drama, poetry, and essays. The second section has as its common elements the book as a crossroads of genres, high and low culture, thought and action, addressing questions of gender, religion, and aesthetic value. The essays of the third section collapse the inherent sister arts orientation of the first two into artifacts loosely associated with the traditional distinction between "painting" and "poetry," but more popular or less distinct than these - film, maps, bridges, furniture, architecture, computers.