Art Books

[admiralackbar74]

I took History of World Art I & II and a Modern Art Survey course while I was in college, and I continue to be extremely interested in art and art history today. (I just went to the Art Institute of Chicago a few weeks ago to check out their new modern wing. Very, very nice!)

But I still have zero art or art history books in my library. I've been thinking about where to go for recommendations and this seemed like a logical place, given the interest in art that I see throughout the various posts in this forum.

My #1 priority is that these be books that contain high quality reproductions/images of art works. These could be books of individual artists, compilations, history texts, whatever. But having a focus on art is appreciated! Images of their covers would be appreciated in the thread. That way I'll know I'm picking up the right one from Amazon!

I'm also interested in picking up a book or two on art history. We used Marilyn Stokstad's "Art History" back when I was in college. Any other suggestions?

Also, just so you all know... favorite artists include: Picasso (I'd love to have a book with high quality reproductions of "Guernica" and "Les Demoiselles" in it), Seurat, Hopper ("Nighthawks" continues to be a favorite), and O'Keefe. I thorougly enjoy art from previous centuries as well, but I'm simply less informed. (Suggestions would be appreciated!)

Throw out some ideas! I'm really looking forward to this. Thanks to all in advance!

[DavidRoss]

Howdy, Admiral--

Seurat and Hopper are two of my faves, too!  One of the best sources I've found is exhibition catalogs. 

[SonicMan46]

On the road for a few days, so cannot peruse the many 'art' books that I do own; but I had Art History, two courses, back in the 1960s - we used an early version of Janson's book for both semesters, and I've periodically updated my editions since then.

Now own the 'full' 7th edition - reproductions are done well and covers the entire history of largely western art, so you might want to look at a copy in the library because the price is somewhat steep for a new copy.  The original Janson is gone, but his son has updated the book and has also come out w/ a 'shorter' version (shown below) - I also own it (just not as comprehensive) - shown below.  So, if you want a 'general' tome on the subject, I would certainly recommend taking a look @ the Janson books.

Now I have plenty of others but will wait until I get home and will reply back - in the mean time, you might want to state if you are more interested in 'general' coverage or more specific areas, e.g. periods, artists, cultures, and methods (e.g. oil painting, printmaking, sculpture, etc.) - 

[Elgarian]

My #1 priority is that these be books that contain high quality reproductions/images of art works.

Taking this literally (and not considering quality of scholarship), here are a couple of initial ideas. My speciality is British art, so I'll focus on that:

Blake


Definitive and indispensible, and amazing value. Every one of Blake's illuminated books reproduced in colour, in high quality. One of the most irrepressibly shining beacons in the history of British art. Available here, at bargain price: http://www.amazon.com/William-Blake-Complete-Illuminated-Books/dp/0500282455/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247929830&sr=1-1#

For Turner, see Eric Shanes's Turner's England (1990), out of print but still available quite cheaply secondhand:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0304319538/ref=sr_1_olp_20?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247931082&sr=1-20
This is worth having for the overview of Turner's enormous output in watercolours, specifically made for the publication of series of engravings. One can cavill at the quality of reproduction of some, but I don't know of any alternative comprehensive collection of these hugely influential images.

[admiralackbar74]

Now I have plenty of others but will wait until I get home and will reply back - in the mean time, you might want to state if you are more interested in 'general' coverage or more specific areas, e.g. periods, artists, cultures, and methods (e.g. oil painting, printmaking, sculpture, etc.) - 

A fair point.

I guess I'm more interested in "general" coverage, but I'm also open to more specific areas. For example, I'd be thoroughly open to a book on cubism since I enjoy Picasso and Braque. And since I mentioned Picasso specifically in my post, I'd be more than open to a book on his art in particular. But with Hopper, for example, I'd probably be more interested in a book covering American art that includes "Nighthawks" and other works by Hopper along with other artists.

That probably doesn't help much. Sorry! 0:)

[Coopmv]

History of Art by Anthony F. Janson is a top-rated text/reference book.  I used a much earlier edition for a college course I took years ago and recently picked up the following edition from an Amazon MarketPlace vendor ...

[admiralackbar74]

Seurat and Hopper are two of my faves, too!  One of the best sources I've found is exhibition catalogs. 

Exhibition catalogs are a great idea. Some favorites of yours? And are they available for purchase online or would I have had to go to the exhibition?

[DavidRoss]

Exhibition catalogs are a great idea. Some favorites of yours? And are they available for purchase online or would I have had to go to the exhibition?

Sometimes available on line.  For instance, this is one of my faves, from San Francisco's terrific impressionist retrospective, available from Amazon marketplace sellers for much less than I purchased it for at the show in 1986 dollars! 

[admiralackbar74]

Anyone have some experience with the Taschen art books? They look really nice.

http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/art/all.1.htm

Just wondering if some of them would be worth picking up. It seems like the images are quite nice. Any comments on the text?

[rubio]

I understand this is a reference book to the history of art. I intend to buy this one.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Story-Art-E-H-Gombrich/dp/0714832472/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1248070708&sr=1-1



The below one I find to be an excellent introduction to artists through history. There are a lot of high-quality reproductions in the book. It's just a perfect way to get a sense of which artist to check out further.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Definitive-Visual-Andrew-Graham-Dixon/dp/1405322438/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1248070802&sr=1-1

[Lethevich]

Anyone have some experience with the Taschen art books? They look really nice.

http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/art/all.1.htm

Just wondering if some of them would be worth picking up. It seems like the images are quite nice. Any comments on the text?

They are uniformly excellent, although the cheapest ones are naturally mid-sized. They all tend to have a decent text/image ratio, but the larger ones can be great due to their niche subjects. Unlike a lot of Thames & Hudson (a similar style of publisher), the books of theirs I have seen have all been full colour as well.

[SonicMan46]

I understand this is a reference book to the history of art. I intend to buy this one.

I also own the book above which is an excellent 'general' introduction to art - like the Janson books more but check the pricing?  Below are several other books in my collection that I've enjoyed:

American Visions: The Epic History of Art in America (1997) by Robert Hughes (an Australian journalist who has lived in the USA for many years) - his perspective is obviously different and writing enjoyable.

History of Modern Art (2003), 5th edition by H.H. Arnason (Peter Kalb revising author) - I've had at least 3 editions of this book; if you like modern art (from end of the 19th century into the next), then this 800+ page tome might be of interest!

Now, I own plenty of other 'smaller' and more specialized books on art, including many on printmaking - in addition, there are plenty of audiovisual materials available, so if want some recommendations, please ask - finally, if you have the opportunity, visit museums!  Good luck - this will be a life long quest of exploring and learning (and re-learning!) - 

 

[Drasko]

They are uniformly excellent, although the cheapest ones are naturally mid-sized. They all tend to have a decent text/image ratio, but the larger ones can be great due to their niche subjects.

I'll third on Taschen. Their basic series [Softcover, flaps, 18.5 x 23 cm (7.3 x 9.1 in.), 96 pages] can serve as very good, cheap introduction to artists or styles. I have few and texts are good and informative and well balanced with pictures. Only problem is they cover mostly best known artists, if you get interested in someone slightly less important in great scheme of things you'll have to look elsewhere.   

[kishnevi]

Reviving this thread to post this book I found in Barnes and Noble before Christmas, and which I'm finding to be a worthwhile substitute for actually being there (Heaven only knows if I'll ever visit Paris)
[asin]B0064XUJ30[/asin]
although I have yet to open up the DVD or the five included "frameable prints".
(Nota bene: this is the paintings only.  No sculpture or other non-painting items).

An historic publishing event! Endorsed by the Louvre and for the first time ever, every painting from the world's most popular museum is available in one stunning book. All 3,022 paintings on display in the permanent painting collection of the Louvre are presented in full color in this striking, slipcased book.

Comes with an enclosed, supportive DVD-ROM.

The Louvre is the world's most visited art museum, with 8.5 million visitors annually, and houses the most celebrated and important paintings of all time. For the first time ever, The Louvre: All the Paintings collects all 3,022 paintings currently on display in the permanent collection in one beautifully curated volume.Organized and divided into the four main painting collections of the museum— the Italian School, the Northern School, the Spanish School, and the French School— the paintings are then presented chronologically by the artist's date of birth.Four hundred of the most iconic and significant paintings are illuminated with 300-word discussions by art historians Anja Grebe and Vincent Pomarède on the key attributes of the work, what to look for when viewing the painting, the artist's inspirations and techniques, biographical information on the artist, the artist's impact on the history of art, and more.

All 3,022 paintings are fully annotated with the name of the painting and artist, the date of the work, the birth and death dates of the artist, the medium that was used, the size of the painting, the Louvre catalog number, and the room in the Louvre in which the painting is found.

The DVD-ROM is easily browsable by artist, date, school, art historical genre, or location in the Louvre. This last feature allows readers to tour the Louvre and its contents room by room, as if they were actually walking through the building.

[XB-70 Valkyrie]

THIS is the greatest book ever. Period. If you have any interest in art, photography, history, architecture, or great writing you must buy this book. I often spend time late at night marveling over the images as well as the endlessly luminous and profound text by Szarkowski. As a lifelong photographer, I would say that one could spend a lifetime studying the examples found in here, and still continue to discover new and wondrful things. I think Atget is one of the most underappreciated artists of any kind, and it's a shame that his work is little known except to serious students of photography, art, and French history. If you pay attention, you will never see the world the same way again.



http://www.amazon.com/Atget-John-Szarkowski/dp/0870700944/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357373374&sr=8-1&keywords=atget

[Cosi bel do]

(Great topic, my post will be where it belongs here )

This won't mean anything for any non-French-speaking, or even non-French person, but I am in *heaaaveeen* because Gallimard (big French publishing house) is currently clearing all stocks of one of the most famous (and usually expensive !) series of art books : L'Univers des formes. This series was created by André Malraux (famous writer, then minister of culture) in 1960, and gathered the most renowned art critics and historians.
Of course, quality of reproduction has increased since, but at the time and for decades (and in times when the internet didn't exist, so you could not see a Perugino without going to see it where it was, or get a book with a good reproduction...) these books were among the best you could find. And the essays are still among the best.

Just think each of these books were usually sold for 120€ in their latest release from the 1980s (which represented a small fortune back then, 800 Francs, almost half the minimum wage in 1980). And they are currently 30€ each, in these original, luxury and heavy editions. This is incredible.

Just bought the two I wanted for the longer time, L'Art de l'an mil (about the Ottonian "Renaissance", mainly, 950-1050) and La Renaissance maniériste (about mannerism, maniera, bella maniera in arts during late Renaissance, considering it, also, as a bridge between purely chronological definitions between close periods as Renaissance, baroque, etc.).

I'm certainly going to buy a few more. They'll go very well with my new Seon box .

I also love their vintage design :



At this point I guess I could suggest we discuss what your favourite art books/series/authors/publishers are