Nabokov and the Art of Painting

'Sounds have colors and colors have smells.' This sentence in __Ada__ is only one of the many moments in Nabokov's work where he sought to merge the visual into his rich and sensual writing. This lavishly illustrated study is the first to examine the role of the visual arts in Nabokov's oeuvre and to explore how art deepens the potency of the prominent themes threaded throughout his work.The authors trace the role of art in Nabokov's life, from his alphabetic chromesthesia - a psychological condition in which letters evoke specific colors - to his training under Marc Chagall's painting instructor to his deep admiration for Leonardo da Vinci and Hieronymus Bosch. They then examine over 150 references to specific works of art in such novels as __Laughter in the Dark__, __The Real Life of Sebastian Knight__, __Pnin__, __Lolita__, __Ada__, and __Pale Fire__ and consider how such references reveal new emotional aspects of Nabokov's fiction.A fascinating and wholly original study, __Nabokov and the Art of Painting__ will be invaluable reading for scholars and enthusiasts of Nabokov alike.