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Art Explained (Annotated Guides) | 
| Author: Robert Cumming
Publisher: DK ADULT
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy New: $10.20
You Save: $4.80 (32%)
Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 327356
Media: Hardcover
Edition: Revised
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 104
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 11.1 x 8.2 x 0.6
ISBN: 0756628695
Dewey Decimal Number: 750.11
EAN: 9780756628697
Publication Date: July 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
Taking an original photographic approach to look in detail at certain topics, these four fascinating books provide deeper understanding and richer enjoyment of the worlds of architecture, art, famous artists, and myths and legends. AUTHOR BIO: Robert Cumming has been the chairman of Christie's Education, London, studied art history at Cambridge University, and his books have won several international awards and include Just Look, Just Imagine, and Looking into Paintings.
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| Customer Reviews:
 The Invisible Cat and Other Finds September 3, 2006
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
"There is something in painting which cannot be explained, and that something is essential. You come to nature with your theories, and nature knocks them all flat." ~Pierre-Auguste Renoir
If I had not been reading this book, I may have never seen the little black cat standing at the end of the bed on the pictures of Olympia by Edouard Manet. The cat is almost invisible, blending in with the background and only visible when you realize those are two little eyes peering out at you.
Each chapter of this compact book on art is color-coded. The chapters include:
Materials and Means
Early Art (2000 BCE-1300 CE)
Gothic and Early Renaissance (1300-1500)
High Renaissance & Mannerism (1500-1600)
The Baroque Era (1600-1700)
From Rococo to Neoclassicism (1700-1800)
Romantic and Academic Art (1800-1900)
Modernism (1900-1970)
Contemporary Art (1970-Present)
Key symbols are used throughout to indicate birth and death dates, nationality, countries were the artist was active, principal media in which the artist worked, where to see main collections of an artist's work and record prices achieved at auctions.
Some of the beautiful pages in this book include Claude Monet's Waterlily Pond. Short descriptions of each artist is given and then you can do more research if an artist captures your attention. Perhaps you've always been intrigued by the convex mirror at the back of the Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck. Here we find Latin text on the wall, a bride in green and a stunningly detailed chandelier, shimmering with metallic luster. Isabella and the Pot of Basil by William Holman Hunt is equally magnificent and the painting is filled with symbols that are fun to unveil.
The "Forked Forest Path," a form of installation art has beautiful lighting effects glowing through a forest of natural wood. The interior of Abbey Church in Ottobeuren, Bavaria is stunning!
While looking at The Birth of Venus by William-Adophe Bouguereau, I noticed the same pose had been used in a painting for a book cover of romantic poetry I'd just reviewed. This book will not only inspire you to visit art museums more frequently, it teaches you about how to look at paintings in a deeper way. You may also feel inspired to go find a museum-quality reproduction, like The Kiss by Auguste Rodin.
The marble statues really caught my attention and if you have any interest in mythology, you may find yourself reading this book and then looking online for more information. I would have loved to have found more information on Cupid and Psyche, or even the mention of butterflies and the soul. Five pages could just have been dedicated to Antonio Canova alone, but we must then go buy another book to do more research and truly, I'm not complaining. ;)
"Art is the path to knowledge." ~Leonardo da Vinci
~The Rebecca Review
 Good introduction to fine art May 23, 2008
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
This is another fine entry in the "Eyewitness Companions" series. A lot of material is packed into each of the volumes. These publications cover the waterfront, such that the tradeoff is breadth of coverage at the cost of depth. But, whether the subject is beer, cheese, wine, cheese, opera--or art, the end result is a nice reference work.
Here, the focus is art. The author, Robert Cumming, begins by noting the four questions that he is so often asked about are (page10): ""What should I look for. . . . What is going on? What is the story?. . .What is its value?. . .Is it any good?" He goes on to note that (page 11) "I have tried to capture that kind of involvement [that his readers enjoy with art] and to address the four basic questions. . . ." The book begins, appropriately enough, with a discussion of what art is, and other interesting facets of the subject (record prices for artists' work, best art museums, etc.). Then, media and materials of art. This is followed by an historical organization of the history of art, from early art (3,000 BCE to 1300 CE) to contemporary art (1970-present).
Many have seen the art work associated with Tutankhamen's burial; this is one example from the era of early art. Within that larger category are displays of art work from ancient Egypt, the early Aegean world, classical Greece, and so on. Other eras of interest: Gothic and early Renaissance, Baroque era, romantic art, modernism, and contemporary art. Within each of these eras a selected group of artists is singled out, information about them presented, and examples of their work displayed.
Some of my favorite artists are included in this encyclopedia coverage, such as van Eyck and da Vinci (I still remember the thrill I got when I entered the gallery at the Louvre and saw for the first time his Mona Lisa). One of the nice features of this book is represented by the discussion of da Vinci, where Cumming speaks in an understandable way of the artist's life, his techniques, what to look for in his works, and so on. Many other artists are represented, from Brueghel to Rubens to Rembrandt to Delacroix to Courbet to Monet to Rodin to Chagall to Pollock to Kiefer to Lichtenstein to. . . .
All in all, a nice little book to curl up with when you want to just enjoy the fruits of the human artistic imagination.
 basic November 4, 2006
3 out of 11 found this review helpful
Very basic book to reference painters. I bought it for use while traveling in Rome and Florence but when it came to packing--this little book is far too heavy. Too heavy to bring out for a day of sightseeing in another country when there is so much else to carry.
If you're into art history, it's good for a quick reference.
INFORMATIVE AND ENJOYABLE. I'M RICHER FOR HAVING READ IT. March 29, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Like all books of this nature, this work is not the beginning nor the end all of all art books. It is though an absolute delight. I paint, granted, I do not paint well, but that is not really all that important. For me the study of art and the participation in art is a way of making my life richer and it causes me to become much more aware of all that is around me; shapes, colors, shades, details and the ability to observe all these things. This work helps greatly in these areas...it simply has made me more aware of just what is in any given painting and given me more of an appreciation for what I am looking at.
Robert Cumming has given us an insightful look at some of the greatest of our paintings and works of art and some of our greatest artist throughout history. Bruegel, El Greco, Caravaggio, Rubens, Rembrandt, Poussin, Steenwyck, Claude, Vermeer, Monet, Hunt, Picasso, Degas and quite a number of other. An example of each artist's work is shown and a detailed description is given along with a short history. Inset notes are abundant and point to items and parts of the painting that the normal observer might well overlook. I know I have been guilty of that time and time again. Techniques such as under painting, symbolism, composition, background details, the angle of a hand, the set of the eyes, color combinations and contrast, imagery, all are addressed and much more.
Now this book is not an advanced text suitable for the advanced student of art or even art history. It is not a guide book to be lugged around to help identify different paintings. It is not all conclusive as there are hundreds of artists, both male and female, who are not addressed. Good grief, that would take several thousand books and a life time of reading and study. What the book is, is a very good overview. It is something to stimulate, to cause you to look at art a bit differently, to be more observant, to motivate you to further study. Only 45 paintings or studies are given here, but I did like the selections the author choose. All of the paintings are in color and as true to the originals as it is possible to get with mere photography.
For an enjoyable and informative read, I cannot see how you can go wrong with this one. Just remember to place the book in its proper prospective, and do not expect to become an instant art expert after reading it. Do expect to learn and do expect to enjoy. I highly recommend this one.
 Where are the female artists? March 26, 2007
2 out of 29 found this review helpful
Leaves out Rosa Bonheur, Judith Leyster, Helen Frankenthaler completely, only a small space for Cassatt and Morisot.
As Frankenthaler is the creator of Stain painting, and Rosa Bonheur's "The Horse Fair" is in EVERY art history book, it is hard to believe this is an oversight.
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