Beauty: Botticelli in Florence

by Julian Spalding

Overview

Art for Baby is India’s first medically vetted art book designed to stimulate cognitive development in newborns (0-3 months) while introducing them to contemporary art. Since babies at this age can only see black, white, and shades of grey, this high-contrast picture book—featuring works by leading Indian artists—enhances their early visual recognition and engagement.

Created by Rudritara Shroff, Art for Baby includes contributions from Dhruvi Acharya, Jyoti Bhatt, Jyotsna Bhatt, Jogen Chowdhury, Atul Dodiya, Anju Dodiya, Shilpa Gupta, N.S. Harsha, Bijoy Jain, Reena Saini Kallat, Shakuntala Kulkarni, Manish Nai, Amol K. Patil, Gigi Scaria, and Sudarshan Shetty. The accompanying flashcards offer insights into each artist’s work, fostering caregiver-baby bonding.

Proceeds from the book support children’s projects through UNICEF India and Outset UK. Original artworks featured in the book were exhibited at Christie’s in Mumbai and New York, raising $57,582 for these initiatives.

Praise for Art for Baby:
“This book is a testimony to Rudritara Shroff’s commitment to catalyzing healthy brain development and engaging young minds in creative pursuits.” – Vikram Patel, PhD, MBBS, Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School

“This book balances traditional infant learning therapies with a groundbreaking visual approach, enhancing artistic tendencies among newborns.” – Dr. Amin Jaffer, Museum Director and Art Historian,Curator of the Al Thani Collection, Paris

“The process of creating this book was exciting and enriching. It is remarkable that such a young person has taken this on!” – Shilpa Gupta, Indian Contemporary Artist, Mumbai

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781843682608
Publisher:	Pallas Athene (UK)
Publication date:	09/22/2026
Pages:	448
Product dimensions:	5.43(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

A novel based on the few facts known about Botticelli, informed by his paintings, Beauty: Botticelli in Florence imagines his thoughts and feelings as he painted them

‘Beauty is the beacon of God,’ said Botticelli. ‘No, it’s not. Love is,’ snapped his sister. Beauty: Botticelli in Florence imagines what Botticelli was feeling and thinking as he painted. The people he loved and despised, his private struggle between spirituality and sensuality, the tempestuous times he lived through – all come to life in his images… The novel is a speculation based on the few facts known about Botticelli, informed by his paintings. There are many surprises. The Birth of Venus was a tapestry design. And his famed self-portrait didn’t depict him (as widely believed) but Pierfrancesco de Medici, who sued his powerful cousin Lorenzo for robbing him, abolished Florence’s homophobic witch-hunts, funded Vespucci’s journey to the New World and commissioned Botticelli’s most famous works. There was boiling tension between him and Botticelli. This is the first in a sequence of illustrated ‘painting novels’ that make sights as telling as words.