Published to celebrate the centennial of Joseph Cornell's birth in 1903, this book provides a fresh, multidimensional perspective on the pioneering modern artist. Lavishly illustrated with over seventy-five boxes and collages, as well as images of the fascinating source material that the artist collected to create his exquisitely crafted worlds, the book communicates to the reader the sense of surprise and delight that one experiences upon viewing the actual boxes with their toys, stuffed birds, maps, clay pipes, marbles, shells, and other paraphernalia of daily life.

The book's essays bring together the expertise of Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, chief curator at the Peabody Essex Museum and former director of the Joseph Cornell Study Center; the compelling commentary of Walter Hopps, art dealer, museum curator, and the artist's personal friend; the wide-ranging scholarship of Richard Vine, author and managing editor of Art in America; and the sensitivity of Robert Lehrman, a leading Cornell collector whose firsthand experience lends this publication its distinctive intimacy. Among the topics explored are the role of dualities in the artistic process, the dominant themes of Cornell's oeuvre, and the importance of his Christian Science faith.

Through its innovative technology, the book's companion DVD-ROM delivers an encyclopedic compendium of the artist's works and source materials, the insights of numerous scholars and critics, access to Cornell's experimental films, and interactive opportunities that promote an utterly unprecedented investigation of his art. 231 illustrations, 205 in color; DVD-ROM.