History of Art - Hardcover

H. W. Janson

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0133892700 ISBN 13: 9780133892703

Publisher: Pearson Ptr, 1974

Synopsis

For thousands of art lovers both amateur and professional, aesthetic life began with Janson, as H.W. Janson's History of Art is often called. In the first edition, published in 1962, Janson spoke to that perennial reader he gently called "the troubled layman." His opening paragraph revealed his sympathy: "Why is this supposed to be art?" he quoted rhetorically. "How often have we heard this question asked--or asked it ourselves, perhaps--in front of one of the strange, disquieting works that we are likely to find nowadays in the museum or art exhibition." Keeping that curious, questioning perspective in mind, he wrote a history of art from cave painting to Picasso that was singularly welcoming, illuminating, and exciting. Sojourning through this book, a reader is offered every amenity for a comfortable trip. Because Janson never assumes knowledge on the part of the reader, a recent immigrant from Mars could comprehend Western art from this text. The only assumption the Jansons have made is that with a little guidance everyone can come to understand the artifacts that centuries of architecture, sculpture, design, and painting have deposited in our paths. Countless readers have proven the Jansons right--and found their lives enriched in the process.

About this title

From the Publisher:

The definitive survey of the Western Art tradition-the standard to which all other art history surveys are compared--this classic text uses an exceptional art program, impeccable scholarship, gorgeous color pictures, and an unmatched student-friendly pedagogy to introduce readers to the vast world of Western painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, and the minor arts.

From the Back Cover:

With an elegantly written, balanced, and interesting narrative, it presents art as a succession of styles and enlarges students' capacity to understand and appreciate individual works of art themselves, not merely to accumulate data about them. This classic book uses an exceptional art program, impeccable scholarship, sumptuous color pictures, and friendly pedagogy to introduce readers to the vast world of Western painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, and the minor arts.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pearson Ptr
• Publication date: 1974
• ISBN 10: 0133892700
• ISBN 13: 9780133892703
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 616