Kristina Lowis Books

Now available in an updated edition, this generously illustrated book is a tour of the most important Western paintings since the Renaissance. Spanning seven centuries, this selection of 50 iconic paintings offers readers a crash course in art history while presenting gorgeous color reproductions that are a pleasure to contemplate. Starting with Giotto’s Arena Chapel frescoes and continuing through Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring as well as works by Monet, van Gogh, Cassatt, Cézanne, Dalí, Kahlo, Hopper, Pollock, Rothko, and O’Keeffe, nearly every important painter is represented in this book.

Starting with the Renaissance, this introduction to fifty visionary architects traces the major aesthetic movements over the past six centuries and offers concise portraits of the geniuses behind them. This accessible and lively survey takes readers around the world and through history, from Filippo Brunelleschi to Antoni Gaudi to Frank Gehry. Doublepage spreads feature full-color illustrations, informative sidebars, and a timeline that extends throughout the book. A concise and accessible architectural history, this book is a fascinating look at the enormous variety of ways architects have helped define their eras.