The World of Giotto: 1267-1337

Time-Life Library of Art

by Sarel Eimerl

Book by Eimerl, Sarel

Genres: Art, Art History, Nonfiction, Biography

199 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1966

Reviews

[kristopher]

A lovely portrait of a lesser-known artist and his Florentine world on the precipice of the Black Death. The series is itself a great and concise way to learn about some of the prominent figures of art history. It can of course be meandering at times, but that's only due to its non-fiction nature; much of the information is given in a very engaging, interesting way that ought to appeal to those outside of the discipline. I'll be adding the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua to my to-visit list because of this book.

[Sean]

I really enjoyed this book. The set has been in my life for decades, and although I have looked at the pictures, I have never read any of the words. So it's time to learn something. I started with Giotto at random, and I am glad I did. Eimerl gave me exactly what I wanted, a nice overview of the historical context in which Giotto flourished. An attempt at a detailed biography of the man would have been too specialized (and probably impossible), so the balance was struck quite well.

[Laurann Cowan]

This is the second volume in a long series by Time-Life. Truly educational and covers several artists in the time period as well as Giotto. The illustrations are wonderful. My personal preference over the two authors featured so far is Bruegel, but he came along quite awhile after Giotto. This book makes a good introduction to Italian art.

[Joel Ackerman]

Great mix of history and anecdotes with great visuals, including before and after Giotto. To read about the plague and the Catholic church was especially fascinating context.

[Crisis]

Any Peanuts scene when Lucy is threatening to clobber Linus? Cribbed from Giotto’s cleansing of the temple.

[Alana White]

Focuses on the life and world of Italian Renaissance painter known as Giotto (c. 1267-1337).

[Alger Smythe-Hopkins]

It is so old, and so much has changed since this book was published (including some attributions), but the reproductions are wonderful and the text is colorful and informative.