Introduction: The Skin He Lives in

The focus of this anthology of newly commissioned essays is an effort to identify and analyze the nuanced expressions of Pedro Almodóvar's evolving authorship from a contemporary vantage point that takes into account the established language of auteurism- a recognizable visual style, thematic continuities-but also the expanded references and meanings that have emerged from the circulation of his works in recent decades into new geopolitical contexts and through redefined audiovisual media. A central concern is also the relation of art to commerce in the evolution of the Almodóvar phenomenon; though often commented on in terms of particular films, the "business" of Almodóvar's art has seldom received the critical attention it is due as the engine that has contributed to his status as a matrix figure in contemporary culture.