Abstract

Explaining the complex history of art to an individual or group can be extremely difficult. Explaining how to approach works of art from the vast history of the subject can be nearly impossible. An entire industry of books aimed at surveying art from a Western or global view is employed each semester at colleges and universities. Straightforward and condensed survey books such as Gardner's Art Through the Ages or museum guidebooks such as The Art Institute of Chicago: The Essential Guide1 are directed at providing at least a workable knowledge of art in general or the art to be encountered in a museum's collection. However, it is rare to find a book that attempts to explain how to approach works of art in any ..