Ruins have fascinated and intrigued viewers for centuries. These include not only famous sites such as Angkor Wat and the Temple of Olympian Zeus, but the results of natural catastrophes such as the Lisbon earthquake. This book—the catalog for an exhibition of the same name held at the Getty Center—explores the allure of ruins and examines the roles that they play in modern cultural life.

The incisive introduction investigates how ruins are produced or invented, how we reconstruct and preserve ruins, and how ruins are affected and defined by issues of cultural patrimony. A separate essay examines the nature of the fragment and is followed by a discussion of the Research Institute's vast holdings of books, engravings, drawings, photographs, objects, letters, and postcards relating to ruins.

A unique section uses juxtaposed color images and quotations drawn from works by authors ranging from Lucretius to Proust to point out the longevity and prominence of the ruin as a metaphor. Irresistible Decay is a unique and stimulating investigation that will entice the general reader, as well as cultural historians, librarians, scholars, and students of antiquities, archaeology, and conservation.

Michael S. Roth is president of California College of Arts and Crafts. His recent publications include Freud: Conflict and Culture (Knopf) and Disturbing Remains, which he coedited. Claire Lyons is curator at the Getty Research Institute, and the author of Morgantina: The Archaic Cemeteries. Charles Merewether is curator of Spanish and Portuguese language cultures at the Getty Research Institute, and the author of What Remains: Ana Mendieta and Her Art.

This title is out of print. Please look for it at your local libraries and/or used bookstores.

Series: Bibliographies & Dossiers

See: Contents