The Informed Eye: Understanding Masterpieces of Western Art - Hardcover

Exemplary...a judicious, beautifully wrought overview of the Western tradition in art.--Paul Barolsky "University Of Virginia " Superior and triumphant..."The Informed Eye" should be persuasively employed as a manual for the importance of the visual arts in the Western tradition.--Douglas Lewis A gem...the most useful book of its kind!--Andrew Ladis, Franklin Professor of Art History, University of Georgia Superior and triumphant...The Informed Eye should be persuasively employed as a manual for the importance of the visual arts in the Western tradition.--Douglas Lewis, Curator of Sculpture, National Gallery of Art

This is an introduction to the properties, concepts, and meanings of Western art through a series of concise, specific explorations of 32 works of art or groups of related works paintings, sculptures, and buildings from widely varying cultures and times. Mr Cole explains how art is made, how it functions in society, and how it embodies the ideas and ideals of the cultures in which it was produced. It comes with 128 illustrations, 58 in full color. "A judicious, beautifully wrought overview ...Cole's brief, incisive, richly informed, jargon-free essays are exemplary." - Paul Barolsky, Commonwealth Professor of Art History, University of Virginia.