Have you read any good art history books lately?
Among the more interesting things that I have been reading outside of my field proper is Jenny Graham’s Inventing Van Eyck: The Remaking of an Artist for the Modern Age. My reading of this has coincided with the birth of a new class, ARTHC 300: The Historiography and Theory of Art History, and with my becoming reacquainted with old friends like Panofsky and Gombrich–you know, those ones who didn’t really care for modern art:) The book takes the artist and sign “Van Eyck” and considers how this has developed in tandem with the story of modern art. This kind of historiography is just the sort of thing that we ask students to do as their final project for our undergraduate and graduate seminars. That said, it isn’t boring and dry, but is, as Keith Moxey puts it, “a remarkably imaginative book.” For more information on the book, check out the publisher’s website [and no, this is not a paid endorsement!]
Conversation topic: Have you read any good art history books lately?
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Now, I’ll admit I am very partial to Wren and I am a bit of an Anglophile, but, I loved Glorney Bolton’s “Sir Christopher Wren.” You can read my review of it here: http://mgabasahon.blogspot.com/2009/08/one-with-sir-christopher-wren.html
I recently read “The Changing Status of the Artist” and “The Challenge of the Avant-Garde.” Both of these books are part of the “Art and its Histories” series (Yale University Press, 1999), and I’ll be using them to teach an introductory art history class next quarter. These books are interesting because they introduce art history through case studies (as opposed to a survey text like Gardner). Although I see lots of value in the survey course, I’m eager to try this new approach and see how it goes.
Anyhow, these books are well-written and quite fascinating. They seamlessly introduce basic theory and promote analytical thinking. I really liked how the introduction to Renaissance art (in “The Changing Status of the Artist”) immediately emphasizes that the “artist as genius” ideology is a construct. My only issues with the books are that 1) they try too hard to highlight marginalized artists and 2) there is not enough discussion of artistic style. Other than that, these books are quite fun. I highly recommend them. They are appealing to students who are new to art history, as well as seasoned art historians.
Not strictly an art history book, but I have really enjoyed Color by Victoria Finlay. She is a journalist and amateur historian who travels the world discovering how traditional pigments were made and telling interesting tales about their production. Helps you appreciate the process as well as the product. My favorite is the story of how woods harvested for the black ink which could be made from them were dragged through swamps where haulers worked for months in water up to their knees and got infestations of insects in their feet from ingesting eggs/larvae from the fetid waters. Yeah, kinda gross, but maybe a good way to interest young boys in art history.
Yes! I recently read James Elkins’ Pictures and Tears: A History of People Who Have Cried in Front of Paintings, portions of which, I suppose, are not strictly “academic” (which is one issue the book takes up – the value of such an approach). Elkins’ thoughts gave me pause to consider the way in which I view paintings, including the degree to which my art historical education has corrupted my mind/spirit and prevents me from any pure encounter with paintings!
Also, Kamal Boullata, Belonging and Globalisation: Critical Essays in Contemporary Art & Culture. Includes some interesting essays on nomadism and statelessness and the representation of those conditions. Ignited my interest in all things Edward Said.
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