MARJORIE TRUSTED

This is an accessible historical and technical guide to the materials and techniques of European sculpture, based on the collections at the V&A. Casting, carving, and modeling practices are explored from medieval times onwards. Each chapter concentrates on a specific material or category. Beautiful color photography highlights the works and illustrates contemporary workshop practices.

This catalogue also acts as a wide-ranging introduction to Spanish sculpture. The collection contains pieces from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. Materials included painted and gilded wood, terracotta, alabaster, marble, lead and jet.

The collection of Spanish sculpture at Bishop Auckland, both chronologically and in terms of subject matter, presents the reader with a virtually encyclopaedic view of Spanish art from medieval times through to the nineteenth century. Many of the pieces whether devotional for private observance, to be displayed in a church or as forming part of an architectural gateway were originally polychromed and gilded, and virtually all depict religious subjects. The present catalogue is the first scholarly study of these intriguing and sometimes enigmatic works of art. The artists who created them, as well as the iconography and style of the sculptures, are discussed in the wider context of Spanish art.