Eyal Peretz is Professor of Comparative Literature at Indiana University Bloomington.

• Introduction At the Threshold of Appearance: Painting beyond the Sacred1. The Annunciation of Painting: Falling into the Landscape (The Annunciation; Virgin of the Rocks)2. The Death of God and the Coming Community (The Last Supper)3. Out of the Blue: The Play of the World and the Overcoming of Sacrifice (The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne)4. The (Self-)Portrait of Modernity (Mona Lisa)ConclusionNotesWorks CitedIndex

"For readers working in phenomenology, philosophical aesthetics, or the philosophy of art, this study offers a rigorous and challenging contribution. It invites engagement, disagreement, and extension, not by closing the question of what images are, but by returning it to the experience of appearance itself." — Phenomenological Reviews"Written with sincerity and passion, the book is an intriguing philosophical rumination … The writing is poetic and intellectually nuanced, with asides to pop culture and film…" — CHOICE"Messengers of Infinity is a transformative rereading of a well-known figure that cuts through scholasticism and allows you to see an aspect of a work that scholarship obscured. The prose is lucid and inviting, with no shred of jargon and few technical terms, making this work equally appealing to both phenomenologists and fans of Leonardo."—Paul North, author of Bizarre-Privileged Items in the Universe: The Logic of Likeness"Rigorously argued and deeply felt, this is a fresh and welcome addition to Leonardo studies." — Amy Knight Powell, author of Depositions: Scenes from the Late Medieval Church and the Modern Museum

Eyal Peretz is Professor of Comparative Literature at Indiana University Bloomington.

• Introduction At the Threshold of Appearance: Painting beyond the Sacred1. The Annunciation of Painting: Falling into the Landscape (The Annunciation; Virgin of the Rocks)2. The Death of God and the Coming Community (The Last Supper)3. Out of the Blue: The Play of the World and the Overcoming of Sacrifice (The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne)4. The (Self-)Portrait of Modernity (Mona Lisa)ConclusionNotesWorks CitedIndex

"For readers working in phenomenology, philosophical aesthetics, or the philosophy of art, this study offers a rigorous and challenging contribution. It invites engagement, disagreement, and extension, not by closing the question of what images are, but by returning it to the experience of appearance itself." — Phenomenological Reviews"Written with sincerity and passion, the book is an intriguing philosophical rumination … The writing is poetic and intellectually nuanced, with asides to pop culture and film…" — CHOICE"Messengers of Infinity is a transformative rereading of a well-known figure that cuts through scholasticism and allows you to see an aspect of a work that scholarship obscured. The prose is lucid and inviting, with no shred of jargon and few technical terms, making this work equally appealing to both phenomenologists and fans of Leonardo."—Paul North, author of Bizarre-Privileged Items in the Universe: The Logic of Likeness"Rigorously argued and deeply felt, this is a fresh and welcome addition to Leonardo studies." — Amy Knight Powell, author of Depositions: Scenes from the Late Medieval Church and the Modern Museum

Eyal Peretz is Professor of Comparative Literature at Indiana University Bloomington.

• Introduction At the Threshold of Appearance: Painting beyond the Sacred1. The Annunciation of Painting: Falling into the Landscape (The Annunciation; Virgin of the Rocks)2. The Death of God and the Coming Community (The Last Supper)3. Out of the Blue: The Play of the World and the Overcoming of Sacrifice (The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne)4. The (Self-)Portrait of Modernity (Mona Lisa)ConclusionNotesWorks CitedIndex

"For readers working in phenomenology, philosophical aesthetics, or the philosophy of art, this study offers a rigorous and challenging contribution. It invites engagement, disagreement, and extension, not by closing the question of what images are, but by returning it to the experience of appearance itself." — Phenomenological Reviews"Written with sincerity and passion, the book is an intriguing philosophical rumination … The writing is poetic and intellectually nuanced, with asides to pop culture and film…" — CHOICE"Messengers of Infinity is a transformative rereading of a well-known figure that cuts through scholasticism and allows you to see an aspect of a work that scholarship obscured. The prose is lucid and inviting, with no shred of jargon and few technical terms, making this work equally appealing to both phenomenologists and fans of Leonardo."—Paul North, author of Bizarre-Privileged Items in the Universe: The Logic of Likeness"Rigorously argued and deeply felt, this is a fresh and welcome addition to Leonardo studies." — Amy Knight Powell, author of Depositions: Scenes from the Late Medieval Church and the Modern Museum