from-victory asked:
artmastered answered:
Absolutely! Ok for a broad look at art movements, have a look at Gombrich’s ‘The Story of Art’ or Stephen Little’s ‘Isms: Understanding Art’. A really great, and quick, read I never hesitate to recommend is ‘Ways of Seeing’ by John Berger. It looks deep into different contexts of ‘seeing’ or visually ‘reading’ art; I swear you’ll think differently about about the way you look at art if you give it a try. My copy is covered in notes and highlighted sections!
But I have to admit that I haven’t read a lot of specific art history books, though I read a lot of chapters in books for essays and university work. So what I’d recommend you do is to thoroughly explore museum websites (particularly the Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, which also features academic essays, and the V&A’s ‘The Collections’ page, which gives excellent backgrounds to styles, periods and materials). I’d also recommend subscribing to a good contemporary magazine, because I often find that it helps to know what’s currently going on in the art world, even if your interests lie in older art (try ‘Aesthetica’ or ‘Modern Painters’). Finally, visit as many museums and exhibitions as your budget will allow and take notes whilst moving around the gallery space - not just about the art, but also the way its been curated; it’s good to think about art and its surrounding space. I have a specific museum notebook that lives in my handbag, just in case I make an impromptu visit to a show!
I hope that helps, even though I went massively off-topic from books! Good luck!
