SALTZMAN/OLD MASTERS; NEW WORLD

This comprehensive survey lays out in chronological progression the lives and works of the artists whose masterpieces make up the history of European painting, from the late Gothic masters of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries to the Cubists and Surrealists of the early twentieth century, to the postmodernists of our own day. In the work of these artists we can observe the great movements of art history - the dawn of the Renaissance, the birth of Realism, and the rise of abstraction. The artists are represented by full-color illustrations of their most important and characteristic paintings, accompanied by concise, authoritative discussions of their life and work.

Berlin's Gemäldegalerie is known for its outstanding collection of European paintings from the thirteenth to eighteenth century. Each chapter in this book is dedicated to one painting from the collection. In the breadth of this idiosyncratic selection, painting, as it discovers itself becomes a medium for the formulation of modern subjectivity. Each painting in focus unfolds its own making and its artistic concerns as they reflect contemporary issues, today. What are the paradoxes within which art is made by women? How does the primordial drive to destroy works of art affect today's art discourse? Where did the modern struggle of painting against the picture begin? Why does the Wild Man from early German Renaissance still haunt us? And why doesn't it matter whether Jan Vermeer used an optical device for his paintings? Twelve Paintings highlights the currentness of the Old Masters.

Explore Europe's top 100 works of art with America's most trusted travel authority, Rick Steves. Travel through time and discover Europe's most iconic paintings, sculptures, and historic buildings. From Venus to Versailles, Apollo to David, and Mona Lisa to The Thinker, Rick and co-author Gene Openshaw will have you marveling, learning, and laughing, one masterpiece at a time. Whether you're traveling to Europe or just dreaming about it, this book both stokes your wanderlust and kindles a greater appreciation of art, with historical context and information on where to see it for yourself. With Rick's trusted insight and gorgeous, full-color photos throughout, Europe's Top 100 Masterpieces celebrates nearly 20,000 years of unforgettable art.

In the sixteenth century, the humanist values and admiration for classical antiquity that marked the early Renaissance spread from Italy throughout the rest of the continent. Part of the "Art through the Centuries" series, this volume is divided into three sections that discuss the important people, concepts, and artistic centres of this period.

This volume presents the most noteworthy concepts, artists, and cultural centers of the seventeenth century through a close examination of many of its greatest paintings, sculptures, and buildings. The Baroque, rooted in classicism but with a new emphasis on emotionalism and naturalism, was the leading style of the seventeenth century. The movement exhibited both stylistic complexity and great diversity in its subject matter, from large religious works and history paintings to portraits, landscapes, and scenes of everyday life. Masters of the era included Caravaggio, whose innovations in the dramatic uses of light and shadow influenced many of the century's artists, notably Rembrandt; the sculptor, painter, and architect Bernini, with his combination of technical brilliance and expressiveness; and other familiar names such as Rubens, Poussin, Velázquez, and Vermeer. This was the era of absolute monarchs, including Spain's Habsburgs and Louis XIII and XIV of France, whose artistic patronage helped furnish their opulent palaces. But a new era of commercialism, in which artists increasingly catered to affluent collectors of the professional and merchant classes, also flourished.