Pop Art
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
Small, smart, essential - an accessible introduction to the Pop Art movement, offering a new perspective on canonical works and highlighting its international reach.
Art Essentials Series
This series delves into the fundamental principles of visual art, covering everything from color theory to composition and art history. Each volume offers an accessible introduction to the key concepts and techniques that artists and art enthusiasts need to understand and appreciate creative works. It serves as an ideal resource for beginners, as well as those looking to refresh their art knowledge. Explore the beauty and complexity of the art world through these insightful guides.
Recommended Reading Order
Key moments in art
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
This compact guide looks at the fifty biggest moments in art history and reveals the sometimes funny, surprising or shocking behind-the scenes stories. Art lovers can list history’s most important art objects, but what many don’t know are the dramatic, funny, and sometimes bizarre stories behind these most famous works. Spanning the last 500 years of art history, this book revisits fifty momentous events that changed the course of art—days when now world-famous works like Michelangelo’s David or Marcel Duchamp’s urinal were unveiled for the first time. In Key Moments in Art, chance meetings spur artists to create exciting new styles such as Impressionism or Cubism, landmark performances take place, and revolutionary exhibitions open. The book also looks at fights, lawsuits, auctions, and crime–from the theft of the Mona Lisa to the day van Gogh’s Sunflowers become the most expensive painting ever sold. Working chronologically, this addition to the Art Essentials series gives readers fifty bite-sized stories from the art world. Art historian Lee Cheshire breathes new life into favorite works of art by giving them context and sharing the gossip they created. Complete with Art Essentials’ signature sidebars, featuring key artists, collections, and events related to each moment, this book is perfect for the art devotee as well as the occasional museum visitor.
Women Artists
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
A chronological introduction to women artists throughout history, this book provides a rich understanding of key female artists from the Baroque to the present day. In 1971, in an essay that has now become one of the touchstones of feminist art history, Linda Nochlin raised the question heard round the “Why have there been no great women artists?” Since the 1970s, as a result of this kind of consciousness-raising, the feminist discourse around art has expanded, addressing forms of activism, the idea of a feminist aesthetic, the female body, sexuality, and representation more largely. The reframing of female contributions to the history of art is still ongoing, and this new addition to the Art Essentials series draws attention to some of its key dimensions. Focusing on fifty diverse women artists from Artemisia Gentileschi through Judy Chicago, Ana Mendieta, and the Guerrilla Girls to Barbara Kruger, Cindy Sherman, and Mona Hatoum, this book equips readers with an understanding of feminist art, as well as an appreciation of its most important figures. This latest addition to the Art Essentials series documents women artists in context to offer readers a rich understanding of key female artists from the Baroque to the present day. 85 color illustrations
Impressionism
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
An introduction to the impressionist movement, highlighting the great artists, their masterpieces, and impressionism’s enduring influence. It is often forgotten just how provocative and unsettling impressionist canvases seemed when they were first exhibited in 1874. Critics, professional artists, and gallery visitors alike were shocked to encounter the unorthodox paintings on display, with their seemingly unfinished surfaces and lack of any elements of traditional composition. The advocates of this new approach rejected nearly all the established principles and practices of oil painting prevalent at that time in France. Tracing the origins and history of impressionism in a concise, introductory volume, Ralph Skea highlights the major differences between the new techniques and aesthetic principles of the impressionists and the academic art they abhorred, and goes a step further in exploring the original intellectual focus of the movement. Skea explores the impressionists’ desire to investigate their own sensory perceptions when painting, which resulted in their unique “impressions.” An ideal companion for museum-goers, as well as those who are entirely new to the subject, Impressionism weaves an engaging narrative around a selection of striking illustrations, discussing the movement’s greatest artists, their works and where to find them. 85 illustrations in color
Modern art
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
A compact, introductory guide to modern art that explains styles, schools, and movements from Impressionism to the present day The first in a new series of essential introductions to art, Modern Art guides the reader through individual movements from Impressionism to Conceptual Art, situated within five broader chronological eras. Starting with Impressionism in 1860, art historian Amy Dempsey explains the essentials of Modernism, the postwar New Disorder, and beyond. Carefully arranged material explores seventy essential topics of modern art in a practical and easy-to-navigate structure. Each boldly designed topic feature includes a clear definition; a list of key artists, attributes, media, and collections; and expertly curated illustrations with explanatory captions. A reference section includes a useful glossary of modern art terms.
Surrealism
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
Small, smart, essential - an incisive overview of Surrealism, introducing the movement's key artists and capturing its essential and enduring concepts.
Street Art (Art Essentials)
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
The author shares a comprehensive history and interpretation of the street art movement, featuring all of the key practitioners in a colorful combination of sharp images and insightful commentary.