Erich Neumann was a renowned psychologist, philosopher, and writer. Born in Berlin in 1904 to a Jewish family, Neumann spent his formative years and education in Germany. He received a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg in 1927 and a medical doctorate from the University of Berlin in 1933. Fearing the turn the German government was taking, Neumann and his wife Julie moved to Tel Aviv in 1934, where he practiced analytical psychology until his death in 1960. Neumann ascribed to the Jungian school of thought and was a frequent lecturer at the C.G. Jung Institute in Switzerland. Other works by Neumann include The Origins and History of Consciousness (1949), The Great Mother (1955), and Depth Psychology and a New Ethic (1949).
The work listed here, Art and the Creative Unconscious, consists of four essays on the psychological aspects of art. A study of Leonardo da Vinci examines the expression of the Mother Archetype in his work and the way in which art was an instrument for expressing his internal life rather than an end goal in and of itself. Two other essays, “Art and Time” and “Creative Man and Transformation,” explore the often fractious relationships the artist and their art can have with the time in which they create/are created. The fourth essay is a study of the artist Marc Chagall and his relation to some of the problems discussed in the other studies.
- Title: Art and the Creative Unconscious: Four Essays
- Author: Erich Neumann
- Translator: Ralph Manheim
- Publisher: Princeton University Press
- Place: Princeton, NJ
- Year: 1969
- Edition: Bollingen Series (volume 61)
- Printing: Second printing with biographical revisions
- Length: 232pp
- LCCN: 588984
- Dimensions: 25” x 8.25”
- Condition: The dustjacket is in very good condition and is protected by a clear mylar sleeve. The red and black cloth covered boards are in good condition though lightly soiled. The binding is tight. Pages are crisp and clean—no folds, tears, or extraneous marks.