Over two decades this art historical tour de force has consistently proved the classic introduction to humanity's artistic heritage. From our paleolithic past to our digitised present, every continent and culture is covered in an articulate and well-balanced discussion. In this Seventh Edition, the text has been revised to embrace developments in archaeology and art historical research, while the renowned contemporary art historian Michael Archer has greatly expanded the discussion of the past twenty years, providing a new perspective on the latest developments. The insight, elegance and fluency that the authors bring to their text are complemented by 1458 superb illustrations, half of which are now in colour. These images, together with the numerous maps and architectural plans, have been chosen to represent the most significant chronological, regional and individual styles of artistic expression.
Table of Contents
Preface; Introduction; Part I: Foundations of Art; 1. Before History; 2. The Early Civilizations; 3. Developments Across the Continents; 4. The Greeks and Their Neighbours; 5. Hellenistic and Roman Art; Part II: Art and the World Religions; 6. Buddhism, Hinduism and the Arts of South and East Asia; 7. Early Christian and Byzantine Art; 8. Early Islamic Art; Part III: Sacred and Secular Art; 9. Medieval Christendom; 10. The Fifteenth Century in Europe; 11. The Sixteenth Century in Europe; 12. The Americas, Africa and Asia; 13. The Seventeenth Century in Europe; 14. Enlightenment and Liberty; Part IV: The Making of the Modern World; 15. Romanticism to Realism; 16. Eastern Traditions; 17. Impressionism to Post-Impressionism; 18. Indigenous Arts of Africa, the Americas, Australia and Oceania; Part V: Twentieth-Century and Beyond; 19. Art from 1900 to 1919; 20. Between the Two World Wars; 21. Post-War to Post-Modern; 22. Into the Third Millennium; Glossary; For Further Reading; Index; A timechart, maps and special boxed features - Concepts, In Context, Sources and Documents, and Urban Developments - accompany each chapter.
Author Biography
Hugh Honour is one of the leading art historians of our time. With John Fleming, he edited the Pelican 'Style and Civilization' series. John Fleming, with Nikolaus Pevsner and Hugh Honour, wrote The Penguin Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. He died in 2001. Michael Archer teaches at The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, University of Oxford.
