In the name of the son : the life of Jesus in art, from the nativity to the passion / Vittorio Sgarbi ; translated from the Italian by Alastair McEwen.

From the late medieval period through the Renaissance and the Baroque era, the task of conferring an image onto Christ--whose physical aspect was never described in Scripture--fell to artists, who depicted him at every stage of life and in a multitude of roles. In the 350 images in this lavishly illustrated volume, Vittorio Sgarbi considers the variety and power of these portrayals: depictions of joy, suffering, anger, surprise, unmistakable judgment, mercy, weakness, gentleness, friendship, and even whimsy. The result moves beyond art to explore the fact that it was the image of the Son, and not the Father, that amplified the words of Scripture.