Hidden Symbols in Art: The Illustrated Decoder of Symbols and Figures in Western Painting - Hardcover

Carr-Gomm, Sarah

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0847824020 ISBN 13: 9780847824021

Publisher: Rizzoli, 2001

Synopsis

Hidden Symbols in Art:

-Is an authorative, informative, and easy-to-guide to the mythological, religious, historic, literary, and symbolic traditions which have inspired artists from all ages, and continue to inspire today.

-Provides detailed commentaries on 75 great paintings-as well as illuminating analyses of more than 500 individual figures, symbols, and allegories from 700 years of artistic creation.

-Gives essential information on the characters, both real and imagined, whose lives and stories inspired centuries of artists-from Apollo, Zeus, and their fellow Olympian gods and goddesses to Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, the apostles, and the saints.

-Includes fascinating feature panels, illustrated with details from great works of art, explaining how to interpret a wide range of artistic themes, from the nine Muses to the Seven Deadly Sins.

-Concludes with a reference list of specific paintings cited or illustrated in the book, with details of the museum or gallery in which they may be seen.

Hidden Symbols in Art:

-Is an authorative, informative, and easy-to-guide to the mythological, religious, historic, literary, and symbolic traditions which have inspired artists from all ages, and continue to inspire today.

-Provides detailed commentaries on 75 great paintings-as well as illuminating analyses of more than 500 individual figures, symbols, and allegories from 700 years of artistic creation.

-Gives essential information on the characters, both real and imagined, whose lives and stories inspired centuries of artists-from Apollo, Zeus, and their fellow Olympian gods and goddesses to Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, the apostles, and the saints.

-Includes fascinating feature panels, illustrated with details from great works of art, explaining how to interpret a wide range of artistic themes, from the nine Muses to the Seven Deadly Sins.

-Concludes with a reference list of specific paintings cited or illustrated in the book, with details of the museum or gallery in which they may be seen.

About this title

About the Author

For 11 years Sarah Carr-Gomm was head of art history at Mander Portmen Woodward College, one of London's leading tutorial colleges. In 1983 she founded Art History Abroad, a company which organizes educational courses in Europe. She has written books in Manet, Seurat and Goya, as well as an artistic guide to Rome.

Reviews

This rudimentary, nonacademic guide by Carr-Gomm (founder of Art History Abroad, which organizes educational courses in Europe) identifies an amalgamation of symbols and attributes in 75 "key paintings." These well-known paintings date from the Renaissance to the early 20th century and are organized into five thematic chapters. Each receives a standard two-page treatment a large reproduction (often poorly contrasted), a large-type introductory paragraph on the subject and artist, a cursory explanation of the "key element" (saint, animal, object), and See Also references to other paintings. The boxy page layouts owe much to web-page design, including featured panels and colored icons that one is tempted to try to click. Although the work is designed for browsing, the indexes of subject keywords and artists are useful. The heavily Christian iconography presented is straightforward and simplistic (anything but "hidden") and deserving of Sister Wendy's seal of approval on the cover. Academic libraries are better served by the more serious and comprehensive iconographic literature such as Helene E. Roberts's Encyclopedia of Comparative Iconography (Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998) and James Hall's Illustrated Dictionary of Symbols in Eastern and Western Art (IconEditions, 1995), while lay readers should turn to works on specific artists. Suitable as a browsing reference in public settings. Russell T. Clement, Northwestern Univ. Lib., Evanston, IL
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Rizzoli
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0847824020
• ISBN 13: 9780847824021
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256