Leonardo, Frida and the Others: The History of Art, 800 Years - 100 Artists

This fresh and engagingly illustrated history of art explains the basics that every art lover needs while presenting the development of different schools and styles as a continuous and amazing timeline, from Giotto to Leonardo, Frida to Banksy. When the author first became interested in painting, she used to visit museums and wonder about all the missing information.

When the author first became interested in painting, she used to visit museums and wonder about all the information she was missing: How did one style after another develop? What meanings were hidden in these works? What was the life of these artists like? How did their works survive for so many years? He longed for the kind of essential knowledge that would enable him to decipher a painting laden with references. The result of his curiosity is a highly accessible and vividly illustrated book that brings together the basics of eight centuries of art. It covers the basics on such topics as the structure of museums, how painters use proportion and perspective, and the anatomy of a painting. Jouneaux offers striking comparisons between artists such as Sandro Botticelli and Mary Cassatt, Claude Monet and Joan Mitchell, Delacroix and Rubens. Terms such as Baroque, Ukiyo-e, Graffiti, Cubism, Degenerate Art and De Stijl are explored and explained. Non-Western traditions are given much greater prominence than in other art history books; Chinese, Indian, Australian Aboriginal and African art are all included in the timeline. Numerous women artists, who were overlooked during the author's education, are restored to the canon. Accompanying the simple but authoritative texts are hundreds of illustrations, reproductions, timelines and boxes.

Publisher: Phaidon