The Secret Language of Art: The Illustrated Decoder of Symbols and Figures in Western Painting

by Sarah Carr-Gomm

A work of art can be rich in symbolism, complex in meaning. How can we fully understand what its creator wanted to say?especially when we’re so distant in time from a painter’s era? This fascinating guide helps, by looking at and decoding the key figures, themes, events, and symbols that form the subject matter of major Western paintings. Strikingly illustrated with 75 masterpieces, it’s the ideal companion for art lovers, gallery goers, and students.
Authoritative, informative, comprehensively cross-referenced, and easy to use, The Secret Language of Art covers five major Classical Myth and Legend; The Bible and the Life of Christ; Saints and their Miracles; History, Literature, and the Arts; and Symbols and Allegories. Each chapter includes a portfolio of images, followed by a thematic directory of figures and symbols. The works analyzed include Boticelli’s Venus and Mars ; Caravaggio’s The Young Bacchus ; Bruegel’s The Fall of the Rebel Angels ; da Vinci’s Virgin and Child with Saint Anne ; Rembrandt’s The Anatomy Lesson ; and Picasso’s seminal anti-war work, Guernica .

Genres: Art, Art History, Nonfiction

244 pages, Paperback

First published October 5, 2001

Reviews

[Michelle Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful color reproductions, big pictures, less writing. My kind of symbol book. Good for the seeker who wants to grasp the use of esoteric visual language in the fine arts. Paintings are decoded and the symbols are cross referenced.

[Merve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sanatı ayrı, mitolojiyi ayrı, ikisini birlikte ise apayrı seviyorum. İnsanlık tarihi boyunca mitler, mitolojiler sanatsal yaratıcılığa edebi alana, psikanalize ve birçok diğer disipline ilham kaynağı olmuşlardır. Bu kitapta da sanatsal eserlerin mitolojiye, imgelere ya da dini simgelere nasıl referans vererek oluşturulduğu ortaya koyuluyor. Sabin Kadınlarına’a tecavüz, Klimpt’in Danae’si gibi birçok güzel eser var. Roma Mitolojisi bağlamında ele alınmış ancak Yunan Mitolojisi okuyanlar da bilir ki Roma mitolojisi Yunanlıların mitolojisinden çok esinlenmişlerdir. Kuşe kağıt, resimler şahane hikayeleri de oldukla bilgilendirici.

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a useful book! It decodes the content of paintings throughout the history of art, and enriches the response to works from the middle ages onwards.

[Nisan ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

sadly, there are some factual mistakes in this book!

[Carla Barroso · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book since it was on the office in which I work. Having worked on an Art Museum and currently working in another in which Art still has some importance, I though it would be interesting to learn what is behind some of the images, figures and episodes painted on so many canvases.

The author picks some paintings and analyses them, focusing then on some key elements that tells us not only the biography of those represented, but also the importance of some themes and objects. I thought the analysing was very well done, namely in what concerned the paintings with catholic themes and figures, which I confess not to know that much about even if I was raised as a catholic. The author tells us about characters and episodes, somewhat obscure nowadays, and also explains the attributes which help us to identify the characters and the episodes represented on so many pieces of art. Also, this book is easy to consult, which makes it a very good tool when you're trying to analyse a painting. I'm not saying to take it to a museum trip, but it is, without a doubt, a nice book for those who are interested in art or have some curiosity about it.

I'm not giving it 5 stars because I read the Portuguese edition and the translator could have done a better job identifying correctly some of the saints, which are known in Portugal by other names, namely St. Blaise, who is known as São Brás, and St. Anthony which is known by Santo Antão in order to not mix it up with another St. Anthony, known in Portugal as Santo António, where he has a great number of devotees.

[Jane]

This is the book which kick-started my interest in Greek & Roman Mythology, a subject I was never taught at school. After this I quickly moved on to the reliable and very readable The Penguin Book of Classical Myths and then soon began to study further afield, moving onto other ancient civilisations, religions, artists & art movements and history in general.

Because I haven't yet read it all (e.g the religious art of the Christian variety) I'm not able to rate it fully, but this book occupies a special place on my bookshelf because it brought into effect a significant shift in my reading habits.

[Lorri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and I'm sure I will reread it many times!

[Kirsti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned a lot reading this book (some of it during commercial breaks while the World Series was on), and I enjoyed looking at the large-format reproductions and the details.