Understanding Paintings: Themes in Art Explored and Explained

by Alexander Sturgis, Hollis Clayson

The first and only book to discuss the entire history of painting by genre, rather than by chronology, this fresh approach gives readers a new and enlightened way to view and understand the language of art through the ages. What was the artist trying to convey? Who are those figures supposed to be? Why do images and symbols recur? This book clearly answers these and other questions that viewers often ponder as they tour museums. Every category of subject matter is religious art, myth and allegories, the nude, history painting, still life, portraiture, landscape, genre, and abstraction. Each chapter has an introduction and illustrated overview of the information to be covered, followed by spreads that trace the development of the featured art. The reader is shown, for instance, how self-portraits were conceived at various times and how techniques evolved; which aspects of still life drew on recurrent traditions and which others altered over time. A prized possession to be acquired by art appreciators for their own personal use or as a thoughtful gift, this volume promises to broaden readers' understanding of all the art movements and major artists' work that form the body of Western art.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Laura Irrgang · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is without a doubt my favorite book on art history. The things that appeals to me about is how the paintings are arranged by genre, rather than chronological date. It really helped me understand themes, painting references to previous artists, and paintings as a group. I used to check it out of the library so many times it got ridiculous and I finally bought it.

[Quiver · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is mostly structured around art genres (e.g. portraits, landscapes, etc), as opposed to art movements or chronological happenings. As such it gives an unusual, in incomplete overview of paintings. It's a hefty book, useful for browsing and for reading. Definitely an introduction to paintings, but an interesting and fun one.

[Cat. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of beautiful reproductions of paintings of all kinds. Not exactly what I was expecting, but interesting as far as it goes. I didn't finish it, though: had been hoping to find something more along the lines of explanation of symbology, i.e. "this means that."

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book delivers exactly what it promises: the paintings grouped (and explained) under the next main themes:
1) Religious Painting
2) Myth and Allegory
3) The Nude
4) History Painting
5) Portraiture
6) Landscape
7) Genre
8) Still Life
9) Abstract Painting
10) Materials and technique
Each theme has several sub-groups like, for example, for the theme 'Still Life':
Introduction / The independent still life / Creating an illusion / Flower painting / Reminders of death / Symbolism and allegory / A feast for the eyes / A new perspective
The book would be even better with more paintings (yes, I know, I'm greedy), and it's pity that there are no paintings from the Middle and Far East (the book is purely concentrated on the Western painting).
However, knowing how difficult is to edit such a kind of book, I think that it still deserves 5 stars.