-
Introduction to History of Art
Answers Given
Answers Favorited
-
My education included almost no art whatsoever.
Can you recommend a good (short, simple, readable, accurate) book to get me started exploring this area?
Thank you!
0 -
One of the absolute best introductions to art is not a book but rather a documentary series called Simon Schama's The Power of Art. The show goes above and beyond a simple linear historical narrative. It was produced by the BBC and deconstructs eight works of art and their accompanying historical context. There is an accompanying book of the same name that I haven't read, but I have heard is a useful addition. The Power of Art is NOT a generalist introduction to the subject, but one that is selective in its focus to argue for the importance of art through history. When I took a lot of art history in college (6 or 7 classes that covered 5,000 years of the stuff, with my favorite covering 18th and 19th century American Art ) the classes that were most successful were ones that sought to describe why art was meaningful, why it could be seen as a reflection of the culture of its creation. Part of this was driven by my desire as an artist to figure out why art mattered. This meant fewer facts, and a greater appreciation for historical and cultural context. |
Janson's History of Art has long been the standard issue Art History 101 textbook, with good reason; it's thorough, accessible and nicely, voluminously illustrated. |
A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted.
Tell us what you love.CATEGORIES
- Announcements
- Aural
- Autonomous Motion
- Backpacking
- Big Systems
- Clothing
- Communications
- Community
- Computers
- Consumptivity
- Craft
- Culture
- Dead Tools
- Deals
- Design
- Destinations
- Dwelling
- Edibles
- Every Day Carry
- Family
- Gardens
- Gareth's Tips
- General Purpose Tools
- Health
- Homestead
- Inner Space
- Just 1 Question
- Kitchen
- Learning
- Life on Earth
- Livelihood
- Living on the Road
- Maker Tools
- Maker Update
- Materials
- Media Tools
- No Stream
- Nomadico
- Paper World
- Photography
- Play
- Podcast
- Prove Us Wrong
- Readers' Gifts
- Recomendo
- Related Stuff
- Science Method
- Somatics
- Source Wanted
- Tips
- Tool Chest
- Tools for Possibilities
- Uncategorized
- Vehicles
- Videos
- Visual Media
- What's in My Bag
- Workplace
- Workshop
![](/cooltools/files/2014/03/wink-160.jpg)
![](/cooltools/files/2013/12/Cool-Tools-Badge.png)