The Gallery Companion : Understanding Western Art

by Marcus Lodwick

The Gallery Companion unravels the legends behind many of the most popular and frequently painted figures and explains their symbolism, which is all too often overlooked or misunderstood. What is the judgment of Paris? Why does St Catherine have a wheel by her side, and St Jerome a lion? Who was crucified upside down? Written in a lively and engaging style, The Gallery Companion divides into two a Classical section, detailing the characters from the myths and histories of ancient Greece and Rome, and a Biblical and Religious section describing the figures from the Old and New Testaments as well as later saints. The text supplies the relevant background to the character, and give a list of the most famous paintings that depict him or her, and details the events shown in the accompanying illustration. Other facts about the character and painting, such as why that particular subject was in vogue, are also included, as well as variations and discrepancies between treatments of the same subject matter. Drawing upon the art of the last 600 years, with descriptions of over 150 characters commonly represented in murals and on canvas, The Gallery Companion will be indispensable to all those seeking to enhance their understanding and enjoyment of Western art.

Genres: Art, Reference, Nonfiction, History, Mythology

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Marcus Lodwick has a doctorate in ancient Greek architecture from the University of Oxford. He is currently engaged on further Classical research, and frequently leads archaeological tours to the ancient sites of the Greek and Roman world.

Reviews

[Jimmie Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read! A must have when you visit the museums while on vacation or in your home town.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very handy art guide to bring with you to the museum. It's useful for looking up subjects and symbols in Greek and biblical paintings. I recommend this book for artists and classical art lovers!

[Roman Stadtler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice compact guide to 150 of the classic paintings from the Western Art canon (no, not cowboy art! Though there's a fine tradition; I was impressed with the The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, OK). Major themes, contextualization with previous & following works, and artist are explored, briefly. There are good, albeit small, color pictures of the paintings.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not really a guide to Western Art. It's less about the art than a guide to Greek Myths & Biblical stories - the barebones of the dramatic myths & stories - with the drama of a good story sucked out. Makes you want to read more or revisit those stories though.

[Jacob]

awesome book for snippets about mythological, biblical and allegorical subjects in art (i keep it in the bathroom for convenient studying)

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and sometimes amusing.

[Alatea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jag lärde mig mycket nytt ^^

[Janine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helped a lot to pass the exam for icons