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The Basics

Art History: The Basics

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Art History: The Basics is a concise and accessible introduction for the general reader and the undergraduate approaching the history of art for the first time at college or university.


It will give you answers to questions like:





What is art and art history?



What are the main methodologies used to understand art?



How have ideas about form, sex and gender shaped representation?



What connects art with psychoanalysis, semiotics and Marxism?



How are globalization and postmodernism changing art and art history?



Each chapter introduces key ideas, issues and debates in art history, including information on relevant websites and image archives. Fully illustrated with an international range of artistic examples, Art History: The Basics also includes helpful subject summaries, further ideas for reading in each chapter, and a useful glossary for easy reference.

288 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

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About the author

Grant Pooke

14 books3 followers

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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Profile Image for Talie.
328 reviews49 followers
January 27, 2023
سرفصل‌های کتاب جامع بود اما خیلی خلاصه به موضوعات پرداخته بود در نتیجه به جای اینکه روشنگر باشد بیشتر سوال و ابهام بر می‌انگیخت. مثلن تنها در یک پاراگراف به هابرماس پرداخته بود. یا تنها یک صفحه درباره‌ی کریستوا و هنر ابجکت بود که یک پاراگرافش هم به زندگینامه او اختصاص داشت. من ترجمه‌ی هادی آذری نشر حرفه نویسنده را خواندم. مترجم تلاشش را کرده بود. اسامی خاص را به انگلیسی پانویس کرده بود و گاهی توضیحی تکمیلی در پانویس آورده بود.
Profile Image for Dora.
374 reviews19 followers
October 2, 2020
Finally! A book that can explain complex ideas in a clear way. And on top of that, it's extremely precise and gives plenty of additional resources on each topic it covers. What I also found valuable was the fact that the authors put in additional effort to actually explain the various concepts, movements and ideas through examples of artworks.

I would recommend this book to any slightly more experience art historian who has a general grasp on the various artists and art movements but needs a bit more information and context to fully grasp complex notions such as "Modernism", "Postmodernism", various Marxist, psychoanalytic, feminist, postcolonial theories, etc.
Profile Image for Mayra.
2 reviews2 followers
June 23, 2015
El libro perfecto para que cualquier persona de cualquier ámbito pueda entender. Es un repaso bastante general, fácil de leer y que sirve muy bien como una introducción a la historia del arte y de sus teorías.
Profile Image for Stephanie Borges Folarin.
313 reviews11 followers
September 24, 2015
You can truly teach yourself the basics about anything. This text is a great place to start with art history. I have created an Artbook filled with information and now I'm ready to apply what I've learned from this text to my studies at museums around the city!
Profile Image for Kaylee Motley.
1 review2 followers
April 27, 2015
A good basic coverage of different theories that critiques, philosophers, and artists use to contextualize art.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews

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