Greek Art (Art World) book - Thames & Hudson

John Boardman has updated his definitive study of Greek art, the most influential and widely recognized artistic tradition of the Ancient World. Over the 20 years since the last edition, valuable evidence has emerged that significantly enhances our understanding of ancient Greek art and its influences. We now know that Greek artists actually created stone sculptures in realistic colors, as well as worked with a wealth of other materials on a large scale. We can identify the works of individual artists and schools, and gain a clearer than ever picture of how art and artistic traditions traveled throughout the Greek world and beyond.

Boardman encourages readers to consider masterpieces preserved in their original context, rather than just isolated installations in our modern galleries, weaving into a discussion on insights into art within the society that created it. The fifth edition, illustrated in full color, for the first time showcases the more vibrant than ever artistic goals and achievements of ancient Greece.

The Thames & Hudson publishing house was founded in 1949 by Walter and Eva Neurath. Their greatest passion and mission was to create a “museum without walls” and to make the world of art, as well as leading scientific research, accessible to a broad audience. To reflect international perspectives, the company’s name combined the rivers flowing through London and New York, represented in its logo by two dolphins symbolizing friendship and intelligence, one facing east, the other west, suggesting a connection between the Old World and the New.

Today, still an independent, family-owned publisher, Thames & Hudson is one of the world’s leading publishers of illustrated books, with over 2000 titles printed. It publishes high-quality collectible books across all areas of visual creativity: arts (fine arts, applied arts, decorative arts, performing arts), architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and music, as well as archaeology, history, and popular culture. The list of children’s books is also expanding. Headquartered in London with a sister company in New York and branches in Melbourne, Singapore, and Hong Kong. In Paris, another subsidiary, Interart, distributes English-language books in France.

History of the Thames & Hudson brand

Walter Neurath was born in Vienna in 1903. In 1938, he left his hometown—where he ran an art gallery and published illustrated books—for London. Initially, he worked as a production director at Adprint, a brand founded by Viennese émigré Wolfgang Foges. Neurath and Foges developed an innovative concept now known as book packaging (or co-publishing), where book ideas are developed, ordered, produced, and sold to publishers operating in different markets and languages to create large print runs and reduce unit production costs. Neurath’s concept was the first of many innovations introduced to the publishing world through Thames & Hudson.

Seeking to continue the collection of collectible books in the second edition and recognizing the need to amortize the high costs of producing illustrated books, Neurath founded his own publishing house, with offices in London and New York, in the fall of 1949. Eva Neurath, who arrived in London from Berlin in 1939, was a co-founder.

Of the ten titles published on Thames & Hudson’s first list in 1950, English Cathedrals, with photographs by Martin Hürlimann, was the first and most successful. The firm’s strong belief in the longevity of books remained evident, and it remained in print until 1971. Also in the first year, Albert Einstein’s “Out of My Later Years” was published, an early indicator of the program’s scope. As the list gradually expanded from ten titles in 1950 to 144 in 1955, the company moved its offices to High Holborn and in 1956 relocated to a Georgian townhouse at Bloomsbury Street 30, near Bedford Square, becoming the epicenter of book publishing in London. The publisher remained at this address, eventually expanding to five houses, until 1999, when it returned to High Holborn.

Other important series that added depth and prestige to the list include *Ancient People and Places*, edited by Glyn Daniel, who since the 1950s contributed to pioneering interest in archaeology, both in book form and on television. Over 34 titles have been published in the series over 34 years. The large-format *Great Civilizations* series, published in 1961, included contributions from renowned scholars such as Alan Bullock, Asa Briggs, Hugh Trevor-Roper, A. J. P. Taylor, and John Julius Norwich.
After building one of the most significant publishing houses in Europe in less than two decades, Walter Neurath died in 1967 at the age of 63. Sculptor Henry Moore wrote that “his death was a loss to our cultural life.” Sir Herbert Read noted that Neurath “more than anyone else was responsible for the revolution in art publishing” and was “one of those rare entrepreneurs who successfully combine business acumen with idealism.” Eva Neurath became chairwoman. Walter’s son, Thomas, who joined the company in 1961 along with his sister Constance, became managing director; Constance later served as artistic director for several decades. Both Thomas and Constance remain on the Thames & Hudson board, as do Thomas’s daughters, Johanna and Susanna.
From producing the first commercial edition of *The Book of Kells* to the triumphant publication of the six-volume *Vincent van Gogh - Letters*, from technical innovations like “French folds” to the controversial documentation of graffiti art in *Subway Art*, Thames and Hudson has always been at the forefront, both culturally and in production techniques.

The year 2016 marked an extraordinary new chapter for the company, announcing publishing partnerships with two of the world’s most important museums: the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The world of art and scholarship thus remains at the heart of Thames & Hudson’s publishing program, which remains true to its fundamental principle: providing a “museum without walls.”
Today, Thames & Hudson is a recognizable international brand, a symbol of British publishing. They offer thousands of interesting book titles, many of which are luxurious collector’s editions.