Art Attack: A Short Cultural History of the Avant-Garde

by Marc Aronson

In the army, the advance guard is the first wave of soldiers who rush into enemy territory, risking their lives to map out the terrain. In the arts, the avant-garde consists of people who have devoted their talents, even their lives, to seeing the future and to confronting others with their visions. This intriguing introduction to modern art examines the avant-garde from its nineteenth-century origins in Paris to its meaning and influence today. It presents the visionaries who took the greatest risks, who saw the furthest, and who made the most challenging art-art that changed how we imagine our world. From cubism to pop art and beyond, this is the story not only of those risk takers, but of their creations and of the times in which they lived. Notes, bibliography, index.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art History

192 pages, Hardcover

First published April 20, 1998

About the author

Aronson has won many awards for his books for young readers and has a doctorate in American history. His lectures cover educational topics such as mysteries and controversies in American history, teenagers and their reading, the literary passions of boys, and always leave audiences asking for more.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/marcar...

Reviews

[Ellee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a lot of new information here for me, but it's an excellent introduction to the avant garde in the arts during the course of the 19th and 20th centuries. Written with teens & young adults as the target audience, it would also be appropriate for any layperson looking for a place to start on this subject. Very readable. Aronson has done well - the only way it would be better would be if the illustrations were in color.

[Donnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent, easy to read and understand history and discussion of the development of avant-garde art.

Interesting to note the description that an objective of art is absorb the observer like a religion. Similarly, that is what the art of the Star Wars films has done.

[Molly]

This text is relevant for art/art history classes or cultural history classes. It is long, but the language, visuals and text structure makes it accessible for all high school years and some middle grades. It is appropriate for excerpting with both texts and visuals, especially the avant-garde visual summary on p. 105.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually like noon- fiction books, but we had to do a book report on a non fiction book for reading. I really liked this book. I wasn't bored, it was actually pretty interesting. It wasn't just about art, but about culture, and how art and contreversey affect it.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It had fascinating details that taught me a lot about culture and society and their influence in art. I wish the paintings were printed in color, even though the author suggested using other sources.