Synopses & Reviews
Designed to stimulate students' interests in all aspects of the visual arts, UNDERSTANDING ART has significantly impacted the way Art Appreciation courses are taught. One of the top-selling texts for the art appreciation course, UNDERSTANDING ART combines its strong coverage of art history, with comprehensive coverage and presentation of the visual elements, principles of design, and computer arts to provide a well-balanced discussion of the relevance and beauty of art and the media and methods used to produce art.
About the Author
Lois Fichner-Rathus received her M.A. from the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art and her Ph.D. in the History, Theory, and Criticism of Art from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her areas of specialization include the theory of art, feminist art history, and criticism, ancient and classical art, and modern art and architecture. She is currently Art Department Chair and a professor of art history and interdisciplinary studies at the College of New Jersey.
Table of Contents
I. INTRODUCTION. 1. What is Art? II. THE LANGUAGE OF ART. 2. The Visual Elements. 3. Principles of Design. 4. Style, Form and Content. III. TWO-DIMENSIONAL MEDIA. 5. Drawing. 6. Painting. 7. Printmaking. 8. Imaging: Photography, Film, Video, and Digital Arts. IV. THREE-DIMENSIONAL MEDIA. 9. Sculpture. 10. Architecture. 11. Craft and Design. V. ART THROUGH THE AGES. 12. The Art of the Ancients. 13. Classical Art: Greece and Rome. 14. Christian Art: From Catacombs to Cathedral. 15. The Renaissance. 16. The Age of Baroque. 17. Art Beyond the West. VI. ART IN MODERN AND POSTMODERN TIMES. 18. Modern Art. 19. The Twentieth Century: The Early Years. 20. Contemporary Art. Glossary. Index. Photo Credits.