The History of Art: A Global View: Prehistory to the Present
Jean Robertson and Deborah Hutton
Acknowledging how architecture, painting, sculpture and the decorative arts reflect the culture and society of their time, this latest addition to the Art Essentials series invites the reader to experience and appreciate the entirety of Western art from prehistory to today.
Focusing on the ‘history’ in art history, each of the twelve chapters opens with a question to ponder, followed by a summary of the major historical developments of the period, touching on social structure, political organization, migration, race, religious beliefs, scientific advances and customs. An exploration of these themes in the visual arts reveals how architecture, sculpture and painting simultaneously shape, reflect, and document the culture of the time and place they were created. A secondary focus explores the constantly evolving aesthetic preferences that swing between naturalism and abstraction, with each era and style either rebelling against the previous or seeking to improve it. Antecedents and outside influences are also discussed.
Deborah Hutton is Professor of Art History in the Department of Art and Art History at The College of New Jersey. Jean Robertson is Chancellor’s Professor of Art History Emerita at Indiana University, Herron School of Art and Design, IUPUI. Cynthia S. Colburn is Professor of Art History at Pepperdine University. Omur Harmansah is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Formerly curator of Oceanic Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and director of the American Museum of Asmat Art (AMAA) and Clinical Faculty in Art History at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, Eric Kjellgren is a leading scholar of the arts of Oceania. Rex Koontz is Professor of Art History at the University of Houston and Consulting Curator of Ancient American Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. De-nin D. Lee is Associate Professor of Art History in the department of Visual & Media Arts at Emerson College. Henry Luttikhuizen is Professor of Art History Emeritus at Calvin University. Allison Lee Palmer is Professor of Art History in the School of Visual Arts at the University of Oklahoma. Stacey Sloboda is the Paul H. Tucker Professor of Art at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Monica Blackmun Visonà is Professor of Art History and Visual Studies and affiliate faculty in African American and Africana Studies at the University of Kentucky.