The history and development of painting during the 14th-16th centuries in Italy.

The Italian Renaissance is one of the most important eras in western art. Painters like Masaccio, Botticelli, Michelangelo, and Titian brought about a fundamental renewal that influenced all of Europe. More than fifty of the most important artists up to 1600 are presented in this book with more than 270 color illustrations.

This up-to-date survey of the finest moments in Western painting from Masacio through Michelangelo and Titian covers some fifty artists and their work and includes 450 color illustrations. Beck divides the period into three generations covering over one hundred years. The art is then distinguished between a more lyric or a more monumental vision, thereby giving a framework for the study and appreciation of the complex but rewarding material which has formed the basis of painting ever since. Attention is given to the lives of the artists in addition to their works set in the historical context. The book is accompanied by a bibliography and a glossary as well as an index for easy reference. -- From publisher's description.

Filled with great masterpieces, each spread uses an important painting as a way to explain a key concept, with numerous large details. There are also brief biographies of the major artists.