Elements of Art: Ten Ways to Decode the Masterpieces

by Susie Hodge

The Elements of Art deconstructs great works of art into manageable components so that you can better understand and appreciate them.

Knowing how to interpret art is one of the biggest issues facing casual gallery-goers . They may ask themselves questions Why is the Mona Lisa so small? Why are some frames gilded in gold while others are non-existent? What can the use of material say about a work, whether it’s an oil painting, collage or made of found objects? And does the life of the artist matter?

This book answers all of these questions and more and introduces the key elements with which you can analyze and better understand artwork. From color, medium and size to where the piece is situated, and the artist who made it, you’ll learn what’s important and what’s not so important.
The book includes two
With The Elements of Art, you’ll learn important information about technique, style, material, location and color that will shape you to read and interpret art. Whether you're a student, teacher, culture vulture or art enthusiast, this book will help you de-mystify great works of art, making for a more meaningful, fulfilling and enjoyable visit to any gallery.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

Published April 30, 2024

Reviews

[Anisha Inkspill · Rating 4 out of 5]

For this second read, I read my own eBook. The design of this, where chapters are colour coded, I think would work better as a physical book than an eBook, there’s also poor contrast with some of the coloured boxes but I like the concept of how this is trying to make the language of art accessible.

My favourite part is the second part, with images and commentary on thirty artworks. Susie Hodge also relates this part back to the first part by picking some of the elements covered.

The first part that runs through the ten elements that Susie Hodge lists to help us relate to an artwork better. This is perfect for a complete beginner who gets lost when they look at an art work, years back this would have been me, and I would have appreciated this book. For a middling beginner, it needs more detail and examples, but this can be remedied by referring to the second part of this book. For a non-beginner, it’s a quick read and a refresher, let’s face it there’s more than one way to look at art. Pick any art, even one you are familiar with, and go through the questions in part 1 (though a touch repetitive) will give you a richer experience of looking at that art.

[JoyReaderGirl1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sumptuously stunning in its presentation of magnificent, lush, full-color art masterpieces and equally rich in succulent bite-sized educational content worthy of a lifetime of art history and appreciation classes compressed into easily understandable and accessible content, Susie Hodge’s “The Elements of Art—Ten Ways to Decode the Masterpieces,” is a triumph of functionality that embraces and demystifies the variances of aesthetic forms.

Hodges broadens readers’ horizons and imaginations beyond the core artistic fundamentals of line, shape, color, value, form, texture and the spaces that creative works exhibit by forcing viewers to become emotionally invested in each work that they evaluate.

She looks at classical art masterpieces throughout the ages and dissects them according to additional elements that offer a more personal reflection of the artist’s vision for that particular work: project scale/size; palette choices/colors selected; light and darkness (chiaroscuro); movement and flow; medium (oil, acrylic, marble, bronze, wood, etc.); technique (pointillism, photorealistic, impressionistic, etc.); content (what’s included with focal subject); location (place); time; and the artist.

Via those aspects Hodges’ encourages art connoisseurs, and wanna bees, to delve deeper into each art subject by considering each of these unique characteristics.

She asks viewers to think about why the artist chose a particular medium and material to use? Why did they use a particular composition and the included elements in the work? Why was the place chosen? Is there symbolism inherent in the art piece that an untrained person may not recognize?

These are all fabulous techniques for exploring the dynamic nature of art while broadening one’s understanding, perspective, and artistic vision—all critical elements in the educational process.

I love this gorgeous book because it challenges us to explore art beyond its framework and pushes us beyond own limitless understanding—past any of our pre-conceived boundaries, so that we can become one with art in a fully immersive manner.

JoyReaderGirl1 graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Susie Hodges, and Quarto Publishing for this advanced reader’s copy (ARC) for review.

[Yves V.H. [Slow reading] · Rating 5 out of 5]

I personally think that thisnis a good book for beginner artists who wants to learn the basic elements for art but if you are like me whose degree is under Fine Arts, this book is just a good refresher for you as well. Although I like the 2nd part where it shows well-known artworks and it discusses how the elements are used in each of them which I think helps you develope your eyes and analyzing artworks in the future.

Thank you Netgalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily 💙

[E L K Y · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my second book from Susie Hodge, and yet again, it's a great read, especially for learning about many elements in art. It is great for both casual reading and preparing for entrance exams, where overall art knowledge is important.

[Tee · Rating 4 out of 5]

About 30 famous pieces of art with about 3 pages of text description and discussion per artwork., plus introductory matter. Advises looking at art through the lenses of color, scale, light, movement, medium, technique, content, location and time. The distinction between some of these is a bit artificial, but for someone new to art they're a reasonable means of analysis. I appreciated the selection of artwork with a heavier than usual emphasis on female artists without neglecting classics. The book design is friendly and engaging and it is well printed, but there were more typos than I find acceptable (repeated sentence, missing punctuation, missing birth date) and I couldn't find any attribution for the artwork on the frontispiece (maybe the library sticker covered it up?). A big problem for me was that for the first two paintings discussed only a detail of the painting was included in the book, but this fact was not noted anywhere and I had to look up the artwork online in order to make sense of the discussion. Not only did this take my rating down a star, it also sowed distrust of the author which was only gradually restored with further reading.

[Lisa Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always enjoyed art but usually can't explain why I like something beyond that it pleases me. It's frustrating because I want to be able to explain why I like some pieces more than others, and I want to be able to use my preferences to find more art that I will enjoy.
This book is amazing because it goes through the basics of what makes up art, everything from light to when the piece was created to what kinds of colors were used. Then the book looks at specific important pieces and shows you what these artists did to create these amazing works of art. It's so much fun to be able to learn about art in a way I can understand.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

[Flora · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating guide on how to look at and analyse a painting, including elements that can be used such as colour, medium, movement, technique, content, location, and the artist’s life. Thirty artworks were chosen as samples, ranging from a landscape painted in the 12th century all the way to an installation set up in the 21st century. I found the short snippets about the artist’s life particularly interesting as it can influence the way they paint or the subjects they choose.

This would be useful for artists and/or people who just like to look at paintings. They will be able to talk about them intelligently at least!

5 stars.

[Finn Lampe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Copy for review from NetGalley
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This book is amazing!! This is exactly what I had to learn for my art history study, but explained more clearly and with great examples.
I would have loved to have to read this book for my study and it would have helped me a lot. I definitely recommend it to others who want to learn how to interpret artworks!

[Janie Groth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful! I read a library copy and will add this to my "to buy" list. Systematic tips for seeing art more deeply...to analyze in a way that doesn't take the wonder out of Masterpieces.

[Tabish Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great look at how to interpret varied artworks and I also like how it gives us the usual artists such as Van Gogh and Michelangelo, but also includes more female artists and artists of colour than you'd usually find in most Western art books.

[Arlecia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. I've always wanted to learn more about masterpieces but was always intimidated by the other art appreciation books I've tried reading. Entertaining and easy to understand.
Thank you Netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group.

[PinkPanthress · Rating 4 out of 5]

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗚𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗿. 𝗜 𝗴𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄.

This is a non-fiction book about art, divided into two parts. The first part, ‘Elements’, comprises approximately 30% of the book, while the second part is titled ‘The Artworks’.

Part One delves into the technical side of Art, discussing the mediums, techniques, scale, and colours that were available or utilized.

In Part Two, we are introduced to various artists and one of their art pieces. The author goes in-depth about the elements used in each piece of art. She typically selects 3 or 4 of the elements to explain how they interact with each other and the overall effect they produce, dissecting the work of each creator.

This book was instrumental in helping me analyze and explore certain artists, and to better understand even those I initially didn’t favour.

The author has included a well-balanced mix of artists, both male and female. I was particularly pleased to see one of my favourites, Artemisia Gentileschi, featured in this book. While the book primarily focuses on paintings, it also covers other topics like photography and sculptures.

I read the eBook version, but if the printed version is as well-executed in terms of colour representation, it’s definitely worth purchasing in print.

4.3 artsy Stars for this book!

𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑨𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒓.

[Lachlan Finlayson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am grateful to NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 

‘Elements of Art’, subtitled ‘Ten Ways to Decode the Masterpieces’ is a fine book of text and images, providing a structured method to better looking at and understanding visual art. It is a great book. A useful book for anyone who enjoys art. I was pleasantly surprised at the content and quality.

The first part of the book examines various Elements that make up a piece of artwork. These Elements are applicable to not only painting, but also photography and 3D works such as sculpture, installations or kinetic art. The Elements, once explained and understood provide a basis for viewing art for either the novice or a more experienced viewer. They make engaging with art a more compelling and comprehensive experience.

Some of the Elements are to be expected such as scale, colour, light, movement and medium. The author discusses how the artist goes about using a particular Element and the effect, message or impact intended. It is a thought-provoking approach, concisely and eloquently explained with text and examples. Other Elements important to consider may be less obvious to the viewer. For example, the original location or placement of the artwork may be meaningful. Or perhaps the period in history when the artwork was created, which may reflect contemporary fashions, beliefs, politics, styles and so forth.

The Elements presented are from a wide variety of times in the past, various cultures, artistic movements and locations. New materials and technologies of course become available over time and the Elements themselves become more fluid, wide-ranging and open to interpretation.

The second part of the book examines some thirty works of art, with a discussion of the key Elements in each piece, accompanied by high quality photos and enlargements of particular details. Although this is a subjective and limited number of artworks, the author has selected an appropriate range of pieces. Some very well-know, others less so. As well as paintings, there are examples of sculpture, photography, digital-art and installations. All elegantly selected to demonstrate the Elements, with concise and eloquent text.

The book is well laid-out, easy to access, and enjoy. A good balance between text and images. The language used is simple, easy to comprehend and not overly specialised. A Timeline of art movements is included , from ancient times to modern day. Also included is a brief but useful Glossary and Index.

This is a great book for anyone, young or old, anyone developing an interest in art or already somewhat knowledgable. It would make a perfect book for an art class, allowing students to better appreciate, understand and ultimately enjoy a deeper, richer experience with art.I wish the author and publishers all the very best for this book.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Susie Hodge is author of more than 100 books on art history, artists, and art appreciation. These books range from introductions to art for all ages to stories of artists and their works. This book falls under the category of art appreciation- a term I dislike because it implies that you can’t “appreciate” art without learning something about it. But rather than talking down to the reader (as, alas, many do), Hodge speaks in a practical yet sophisticated voice that gives readers some of the tools they need to delve deeper into works of art.

The first section of the book is devoted to discussing ten elements that make up all art: scale, color, light, movement, medium, technique, content, location, time, and artist. Some of these can be studied without knowing much historical context or art techniques, but all of them can deepen understanding when you know more.

The second section of the book examines specific works of art against these ten elements. I was impressed at the diverse array of works chosen; included are female, male (and most likely non-binary) artists, works from several historical periods, and different cultures. Well known artists like Michelangelo and Andy Warhol are included, but so are Amrita Sher-Gil and Jenny Saville. She takes an exploratory approach rather than simply telling the reader what to think.

The one criticism I have of the book is that, although it states that its intention is to make “the casual gallery visitor” understand and get more out of a trip to a museum, a lot of what she shares only proves that knowing context and artistic techniques is necessary in order to fully understand art. For example, she explains Jan Van Eck’s “The Arnolfini Portrait” by informing the reader of the rich symbolism that is contained in the painting that would have been known to the people of the time. Interesting stuff for sure, but how is a “casual gallery visitor” supposed to discover these things without additional study or taking extra time to listen to audio commentary as they proceed through an exhibit?

As a professor who has taught arts “appreciation” for over 20 years, I very much appreciate this book. I’m still trying to discover, however, how we break through the barriers for preventing more people from enjoying the wonder of art.

Thanks to Quarto and NetGalley for the opportunity to examine this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

From someone I annually find responsible for one admirable art appreciation book or other, comes this fresh guide that suggests ways of how to consider paintings, sculpture and more. It tells you the seven elements of an artwork, and then a handful of the principals of art, before stating what seems more essential to consider when approaching a masterpiece. And then it shows us 25 art pieces (the Cezanne alone making me careful in how I describe some of these things), and goes into the detail the new ten things to consider will chiefly bring up.

These range from who made it, what it was made of and for, and where, as well as things like the colours, lighting and movement of the piece. Now, know some things about art and some of this is obvious – one of the Gentileschi 'Judith Slaying Holofernes' has to be thought of not as just a portrayal of an Apocryphal scene, but in light of both her admiration for Caravaggio and of her being raped and the bloke not facing his court-given punishment.

But this is two dozen lessons in how to at least start to build this as a skill, how to extrapolate all of this from these examples into our encounters with other art. And it's not exactly a quickly-put together gallery of places where it might work – the female representation is strong here, and several were the artworks I didn't know of at all. It might annoy some that the artist's biography is now inherent in what we gain from their canvas, as opposed to say the thoughts of the death of the author, but yes, knowing where van Gogh lived when he made 'Starry Night' is as important as knowing what colours he had on his palette. The artist who had a shed blown up and exhibited the shards knew not to use any one shed, but to create her vibrant mobile from a bastard made of several such units, as opposed to attack just one person through her actions.

This whole affair could be summarised as "just read that plaque next to the art – you can't take on board all of it just by looking at it", but it's a reminder that when we click on something on an online gallery we're certainly not seeing and engaging with the real deal. For that we have to see something in the flesh, and it's better if we're not doing that in ignorance. Informative, and entertaining.

[dreamyescapist · Rating 5 out of 5]

Susie Hodge's Elements of Art is an ideal choice for someone who is an enthusiastic newcomer to the world of the visual art. It is readable and concise, packed with information, yet not imcomprehensible. It gives the reader insight in the vast history of visual arts, but manages to balance on the thin line between being informative and overwhelming, always staying safely on the informative side. The reader gets to learn about the technical aspects of a painting, such as scale, color, light, movement, medium, technique, content, location, time and the artist. Each of those is given a specific color code, which is used in the second part of the book where actual paintings and artistic works are analysed, to mark down which aspects are applicable to that particular work. This largely contributes to compactness and comprehensibility and makes it much easier to navigate in the book.

I especially loved the "Consider this" box that contained various tips how to enhance one's experience and interaction with various pieces of art. It also provides a lot of side information, such as the science behind discovery of certain hues.

I very much enjoyed the author's choice of artworks to analyse. She chose the very famous ones, the less famous ones and some that were completely unknown to me, carefully selecting artists from all over the world. However, since the book does not have the ambition to become a sweeping all-encompassing Bible of the visual art, the choice is limited, as it should and must be.

All this is paired with beautiful graphics, colours and photographs, making this book a lovely potential gift for an amateur art lover. As far as I am concerned, it is a fascinating, inconspicuous book that has a great educational value.

[Ink · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Elements of Art by Susie Hodge goes beyond theseven elements of art that most art students study (colour, line, value, shape, form, texture and space) and expands upon these to Scale, colour, light, movement, medium, technique, content location, time and artist.

Hodge explains each of these concepts and how they are employed in not just examining and understanding art, but also how to enhance our own compositions. It helps the artist or viewer to become immersed in the artwork on a whole new level, a deeper level

The book is well laid out and uses well-known pieces from installations to sculptures to illustrate their point further and I really liked the "consider this" points which are helpful if you are making notes in your art journal for example

In the second half of the book, Hodge reviews famous artworks and guides the reader through using these elements to explore the artwork further. A really nice touch is the key for each artwork which clearly denotes the elements that are being used

A very useful and engrossing book and an essential for any artist, art student or art lover. Wonderful

Thank you to Netgalley, Quatro Publishing Group and Susie Hodge for this fantastic ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

[joyce w. laudon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Susie Hodge has written a number of books about museums and art. I have found all of the ones that I have read to be interesting and informative. That is again the case here with Ms. Hodge again sharing her insights and ways of looking at things.

This title is well organized. There are ten elements of art explored in these pages. These include scale, colour, light, movement, medium, technique, content, location, time and, the artist. After explaining each of these in a clear way, Hodge moves on to explore a number of paintings. Just some of these works are The Arnolfini Portrait (van Eyck), The Serenade (Judith Lester), The Monk by the Sea (Caspar David Fridrich), Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Katushika Hokusai), The Starry Night (Vincent Van Gogh), and Guernica (Pablo Picasso). There are too many to list but all are engaging and worth a look.

There are works here that readers will recognize and look at anew and those that will be getting a first glance. In each case, it is terrific to read what Hodge has to say.

Highly recommended to art lover experienced and un. Note the many gorgeous reproductions as the pages turn.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

[Lili · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a beginner to appreciating art in a manner further than just looking at a piece and going 'ooh pretty' then this is a perfect book for you. After the introduction that explains the various elements of art (I appreciated the brief segment on pigments, as a painter, paint maker, and collector of pigment information, the history of certain pigments being mentioned is always important.) it presents various pieces of art and demonstrates how to appreciate them using the elements discussed early on. I am a dabbler of art history and have read quite a few books on how to look at pieces of art, but they are universally advanced, I really appreciated how this is for the casual art fan who might go on to become a hardcore art historian nut. It makes art approachable! I also really liked how the art displayed is varied, it isn't just the European classics, you have some pieces from antiquity, modern pieces, photography, sculptures, performance art, and art instillations. I do wish there was a little more focus on art from outside of Europe and the Americas, but I am glad that there was some, a lot of books just completely overlook other cultures, so I was glad to see at least one piece each from China and Japan.

[Alex Hirchert · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, a big thank you to NetGalley, Quarto Publishing Group – White Lion, and Susie Hodge for giving me the chance to review this book prior to its publication. As always, my reviews are honest and the only incentive I receive is I get to read books early.

WHERE WAS THIS BOOK in all my years of art and art history classes I took. I loved the breakdown of the Elements of Art. This is written in a way that is easy to digest. It’s also colorful, which compared to most art texts, is a blessing. I enjoyed the art selected to be referenced in this book as well. It was well thought out and had unique pieces that not everyone would be familiar with.

Overall, I enjoyed this read - 5 out of 5 stars from me. And if you are someone who wants to get into art / wants to know more about some classic and newer art forms; well this book is definitely for you. Actually let’s be real, anyone could pick up this book and understand its content and that a major success. Bravo Susie for writing a stellar text!

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are many books about "how to read" a painting. This book is way more than that. Susie Hodge starts by discussing ten elements that many paintings share ~ things like colour, texture, technique, content ~ then by using this framework, she examines ‘famous’ paintings allowing us to see similarities and, more importantly, differences.

My favourite element was ‘light’ because although I’d heard of chiaroscuro, I hadn’t really understood it and I’d never heard of tenebrism and I shall enjoy looking at paintings to see if they are using this form of dramatic illumination.

Many of the paintings are familiar but the instruction brings new things to enjoy. It is also significant that Ms Hodge includes many women artists. This includes Lee Miller who I’ve often admired. It was good to understand her work a bit better.

This would be an excellent gift for an art lover of any age or just a book to leave on the coffee table to browse through. It’s the sort of book which is educational without being ‘teachy’.

I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley

[Randal White · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having been happily married to the Permanent Roommate (a university trained artist who has made her career in art) for 39 years, I have always been rather puzzled as to what she's talking about. In all fairness, I bet she's a bit lost when my buddies and I talk about fly fishing). I've absorbed quite a bit over the years, but this book really helped to bring things into perspective.
I honestly had no idea that art had different elements! At least not until I read this book. It was like someone pulling back the curtain on what my wife talks about. Now I know just enough to MAYBE chime in with an opinion or observation once in awhile. Kind of like George Costanza at an art gallery exhibition, haha.
This would be a great book for any youngster interested in the arts, or any other person who just wishes to appear a bit more knowledgeable. It's an easy to read, easy to understand, and easy to digest book.
I just wish I would have found it 40 years ago!

[Jessica Samuelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book enjoyable and informative. I appreciated the images of various artworks. Having that visual aid helped me understand the characteristics being described. I personally don’t have much formal art training (though I do enjoy several creative pursuits at an amateur level). Even without a background knowledge in art, I still thought the book was easy to understand and fun to read. I think traditionally-educated artists might also enjoy this because it talks about art characteristics that aren’t always considered.

A few artworks that stood out for me were The Monk by the Sea by Caspar David Friedrich, The Death of Cleopatra by Edmonia Lewis, The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh, Composition with Figures by Lyubov Popova, From the Top of the Great Pyramid by Lee Miller, and Cold Dark Matter: An Exploded View by Cornelia Parker.

Thank you to NetGalley and Frances Lincoln Publishing for an Advanced Reader Copy eBook. ⁠

[Ag · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are anything like me, then you too most likely have struggled when someone asks you what you think of a certain artwork, or what your impressions of a certain art gallery visit are. Usually, I feel like whatever I might say will sound weird. Like, what is the point of saying “I liked it” if I have nothing to base it upon? How do I explain my opinion of something as subjective, so personal, as art? And then, enter this book. I’m a frequent art gallery visitor and therefore I’m often asked about those. Now I have some references to come up with my own way to describe what a certain artwork is to me.
Also, my tween often accompanies me and this book gives me new ways to talk to her about what we have seen and experienced.
I know that this most likely was not the intended use for this book, but this is what it is for me.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an Art History minor, I thoroughly enjoy all things art- different styles, artists, periods. "The Elements of Art: Ten Ways to Decode the Masterpieces" offered a wonderful survey of the elements that make up art and features brief studies of some of the most famous works of art. I enjoyed the brief overviews of "medium," "movement," "light," and "color," to name a few, leading into a brief study of how those elements make up some of the most famous works of art, such as "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt and "Guernica" by Pablo Picasso (two of my favorites).

This book is concise but very informative and is a great introduction to the world of art or a good touch up on concepts you may be familiar with but have not explored in some time.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Lori S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of us aren't born as artists and thus, we may only have a slight acquaintance with art. If that's the case, this book is an excellent introduction. The book covers most or all of the basic aspects of art for a beginner without being text-heavy or technical. It also includes examples of a number of famous works to examine and hopefully understand a bit better. This could work for older children and teens in school as a basic text too.

Overall, a lovely work. Thank you to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing for giving me an advanced reader copy. I have written this review voluntarily.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first part of this book was a summary of different things to look for in art (color, materials, scale, etc). This was ok, but the reason i really enjoyed the book was the second, longer part, which consisted of a couple of pages analyzing each of several works of art. Some were familiar to me, but many were new. The analysis really opened my eyes to ways the artist was conveying their message. I love this kind of thing because I'm interested in art, but know very little about it. I also appreciated how many of the pieces were by women.

[SketchyNewEngland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned so much from this book. It’s really one that you could take your time and digest. I especially enjoyed the example artwork toward then end with the biography about the artists. It’s so interesting to learn where these amazing pieces of art came from. This is a great introduction to artistic elements and will definitely be a great reference to anybody getting started in this field.
Thank you for the eARC! I learned so much!

[Kristin C · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun and educational read for aspiring art aficionados and curious life long learners alike. The first half of the book outlines ten key elements of composition -- scale, light, movement, medium, etc. The second half allows the readers to become observers and practice what they've learned in a mindful guided exploration of some of the greatest works of all time from Van Eyck to Picasso.

A great gift for any art lover in your life!

[M G · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beginner-friendly introductory piece to understanding artworks.
The book first introduces the 10 elements, before it showcases how they can be applied to better appreciate influential artworks. I appreciate the large images of the artworks included in the book. They helped me to identify the defining features of the works, without having to search it up online.
This is recommended for anyone who desires to better appreciate all works of Art — regardless of Art educational background.