Synopses & Reviews
In this magnificently illustrated and comprehensive book, readers will take one of the most beautiful journeys our world has to offer: an exploration of the greatest are and architecture of Western civilization. andlt;Iandgt;Art of the Western Worldandlt;/Iandgt; -- the companion volume to the nine-part PBS television series -- traces the history of Western art from its classical roots in ancient Greece up to the present day and the international Post-Modernism of artists as diverse as Christo, Hockney, and Kiefer. Along the way experts Bruce Cole and Adelheid Gealt carefully chart the evolution of the Western tradition, from the grandeur of Roman architecture to the symbolic language of medieval art, through the unparalleled achievements of the Renaissance, the turbulent emotionalism of the Romantics like Turner and Constable, the Impressionists' search for a new reality, and the revolution of the Abstract Expressionists of the twentieth century. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;Iandgt;Art of the Western Worldandlt;/Iandgt; integrates the works of each period with the history, values, and ideals that gave birth to them: the influence of the Medicis and other great patrons of Renaissance Italy; the resurgence of the classical style, inspired by the French Revolution; the break with the past evidenced in the works of the Impressionists; and the tortured visions of the modern world devastated by wars depicted in the paintings of Picasso, Marc, Groez, and others. andlt;BRandgt; A valuable key to understanding the language of art, andlt;Iandgt;Art of the Western Worldandlt;/Iandgt; offers fresh insight into what the great works meant at the time they were created and why they maintain their special meaning to us now. It is the perfect guide to the masterpieces of Western art.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;St. Petersburg Timesandlt;/Iandgt; A manageable introduction to the fascinating history of art...with an in-depth probing not found in...Gardner and Janson...andlt;Iandgt;[Art of the Western World]andlt;/Iandgt; is a point of departure for the neophyte and a step along the way for the more knowledgeable.
Synopsis
In this magnificently illustrated and comprehensive book, readers will take one of the most beautiful journeys our world has to offer: an exploration of the greatest are and architecture of Western civilization. Art of the Western World -- the companion volume to the nine-part PBS television series -- traces the history of Western art from its classical roots in ancient Greece up to the present day and the international Post-Modernism of artists as diverse as Christo, Hockney, and Kiefer. Along the way experts Bruce Cole and Adelheid Gealt carefully chart the evolution of the Western tradition, from the grandeur of Roman architecture to the symbolic language of medieval art, through the unparalleled achievements of the Renaissance, the turbulent emotionalism of the Romantics like Turner and Constable, the Impressionists' search for a new reality, and the revolution of the Abstract Expressionists of the twentieth century.
Art of the Western World integrates the works of each period with the history, values, and ideals that gave birth to them: the influence of the Medicis and other great patrons of Renaissance Italy; the resurgence of the classical style, inspired by the French Revolution; the break with the past evidenced in the works of the Impressionists; and the tortured visions of the modern world devastated by wars depicted in the paintings of Picasso, Marc, Groez, and others.
A valuable key to understanding the language of art, Art of the Western World offers fresh insight into what the great works meant at the time they were created and why they maintain their special meaning to us now. It is the perfect guide to the masterpieces of Western art.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Bruce Coleandlt;/Bandgt; is Distinguished Professor of Fine Arts at Indiana University. A former Fellow of the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities, he is the author of many highly acclaimed books on art history, among them andlt;Iandgt;Italian Art 1250-1550: The Relation of Renaissance Art to Life and Society,andlt;/Iandgt; and andlt;Iandgt;Masaccio and the Art of Early Renaissance Florence.andlt;/Iandgt;
Table of Contents
andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;CONTENTSandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;PREFACEandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;INTRODUCTION BY MICHAEL WOODandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 1andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE ART OF GREECEandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 2andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE ROMAN WORLDandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 3andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE TRIUMPH OF FAITH: WESTERN ART TO 1100andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 4andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE AGE OF CATHEDRALSandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 5andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA: ITALIAN ART, c. 1250-1400andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 6andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE EARLY RENAISSANCE IN ITALYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 7andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE NORTH IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 8andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE AGE OF TITANS: ITALIAN ART OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 9andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;ART FOR POPES AND PRINCESandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 10andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;A GOLDEN AGE: DUTCH ART OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 11andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;FROM FANTASY TO REVOLUTION: THE ART OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 12andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;ART AS EMOTION: THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 13andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;TOWARD A NEW REALITY: 1850-1900andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 14andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;A BREAK WITH THE PAST: THE ART OF THE EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURYandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 15andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;ART BETWEEN THE WORLD WARS: 1918-1941andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 16andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;THE TRIUMPH OF MODERNISM: 1945-1970andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;CHAPTER 17andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;ART IN THE POST-MODERN ERAandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;INDEX