Pictures of the Body: Pain & Metamorphosis
'Original and immensely suggestive, this work by one of the most challengingand energetic young art historians will have a real influence on the direction of art history. Most people in his discipline interested in 'theory' deal with visual issues in a bookish way. Elkins really is interested in visual thinking - his work is concerned, always, with close-up discussions of vision using images not only drawn from art, but also from science, everyday culture,and other sources. Great fun to read, his book is always engaging.' David Carrier, Carnegie Mellon University