From Ancient Egyptian frescoes to the Renaissance masters, from French Impressionists to American Abstract Expressionists, this highly browsable guide embraces all cultures and every style of painting from 4,000 BC to the present. A visually arresting reference for art lovers and students, it provides a truly comprehensive worldwide gazeteer of paintings organized chronologically by date of completion. Each entry includes the history of the painting, information about the artist or artistic movement, the current location of the painting (all are on view to the public), as well as other details. The works are also indexed by artist and by title, making for easy cross-referencing. Included are popular paintings, key works that are the most breathtaking for their extraordinary power and beauty, paintings that were turning points in the history of art, and rediscovered masterpieces, making 1001 Paintings You Must See Before You Die an art museum in its own right.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
For insatiable art lovers, this book brings together longstanding calassics and contemporary masterpieces from some of the world's most famous galleries and museums. From Italian frescoes to the Renaissance masters, and French Impressionists to American Abstract Expressionists, 1001 Paintings in public domain.
Organized chronologically and accompanied by beautiful reproductions, 1001 Paintings traverses centuries and genres- Giotto, Jasper Johns, El Greco, da Vinci and Degas- no master is left behind. The artworks featured in the book are the most compelling controversial, important, widely loved and, sometimes, despised paintings that alter the trajectory of painting's evolution as well as make us reconsider its past. Whether for discovery or rediscovery, 1001 Paintings is an accessible and addictive chronicle of the world's most essential painting. -- SFDC News 2007.02 Summer Fall
Sophisticated art lovers will get a kick out of the critics' choices. Amateurs will get savvy guidance in an easy to understand format." -- 04/24 MIAMI HERALD
"A painting or two per page, plus insightful commentary, 1001 Paintings adds up to a rich browsable read or an ambitious vacation guide." -- Jun HOUSE BEAUTIFUL
"comprehensive, yet compact and concise volume" -- May NEW YORK LIVING
"you actually come away from it with an expanded curiosity for that which you don't know"..."a stunning overview" -- 5/21 BLOG ON BOOKS
1001 series review "to-do, until Death" -- Jul NEW YORK POST
About the Author
Stephen Farthing is a graduate of the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art at Oxford and a professional fellow at St. Edmund Hall, Oxford. He was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1998 and executive director of the New York Academy of Art in 2000. He has been teaching fine art since 1977, and he is a painter.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
57 of 58 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The very title of this book will probably offend serious art lovers as well as the cover art that strains to imitate Magritte. But don't be fooled by the packaging in this case. This is a fine little volume that covers an enormous variety of paintings through time and is designed in a format that places one painting per page (though the page are not large) with an accompanying commentary on the painting, the artist, the historical content and some astute remarks by a staff of well informed writers.
Ancient paintings as well as contemporary paintings are in this collection of 'must sees' and actually each of the selections could well qualify for the designation of the title. What the book does not do is provide a travelogue to guide the reader to the locations of each of the works, but it does present a survey of great art, succinctly distilled in well chosen word descriptions, that proves t be a valuable introduction to the works considered by many to be the great moments in art history. This would be a fine book for young or new art lovers, a volume that would interest those who fear the magnitude of the realm of art history here made accessible - like cliff notes! A great idea for a gift - for other and for your own library. Grady Harp, September 07
Ancient paintings as well as contemporary paintings are in this collection of 'must sees' and actually each of the selections could well qualify for the designation of the title. What the book does not do is provide a travelogue to guide the reader to the locations of each of the works, but it does present a survey of great art, succinctly distilled in well chosen word descriptions, that proves t be a valuable introduction to the works considered by many to be the great moments in art history. This would be a fine book for young or new art lovers, a volume that would interest those who fear the magnitude of the realm of art history here made accessible - like cliff notes! A great idea for a gift - for other and for your own library. Grady Harp, September 07
41 of 42 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The concept behind this book is an intriguing one: If you had seen most of the best paintings in the world, which 1001 would you recommend that others see if at all possible? My initial reaction was that there probably aren't 1001 paintings that I would recommend to everyone else.
With that perspective in mind, I first read through the book to identify which paintings would be on my list. I came up with 72. Almost all of those were on my mental list when I started reading the book. I was also missing about 100 of my favorites, but few of the artists were omitted. So if I had been new to paintings and became familiar with the 65 artists who did the 72 paintings, I would have eventually uncovered almost all of the other 100. That experience confirmed my impression that this book would be of most value to those who have seen relatively few great paintings and want to get a sense of what they like.
The images were quite well done for such small reproductions. Most paintings are represented on one page (a few are two to a page) with the minimum size being about one inch by two inches. But the printing was done well enough that you get a decent idea of the painting. I have seen more than 600 of these works in person and found that the reproductions often looked better than the originals: So don't be too disappointed when you see the real thing. Naturally, others look at lot better in person: You cannot capture the Sistine Chapel's paintings very well in a small image, for example.
The nice surprise for me was to find that the book contains works from private collections, several of which were new to me. This made me feel like I was visiting a blockbuster traveling show, especially when the works were by some of my favorite artists.
One of the most impressive aspects of the book was its equal emphasis over 1400 to the present with some representation even earlier than that. As a result, you get a good cross-section of different styles among Western artists (other artists are underrepresented, as they are in major Western museums).
Those who want to travel to see these works will be pleased to see that their locations are noted. There is a missed opportunity to index the works by museum to make trip planning easier. But most good museums today have extensive online catalogs of images that you can scan to plan what you want to see in advance. Simply jot down museums you should visit, but haven't been to yet. Then go online to see which art there will appeal to you.
I would love to see someone take this same concept and apply it to each century of paintings, sculptures, and graphic art.
Take a good look!
With that perspective in mind, I first read through the book to identify which paintings would be on my list. I came up with 72. Almost all of those were on my mental list when I started reading the book. I was also missing about 100 of my favorites, but few of the artists were omitted. So if I had been new to paintings and became familiar with the 65 artists who did the 72 paintings, I would have eventually uncovered almost all of the other 100. That experience confirmed my impression that this book would be of most value to those who have seen relatively few great paintings and want to get a sense of what they like.
The images were quite well done for such small reproductions. Most paintings are represented on one page (a few are two to a page) with the minimum size being about one inch by two inches. But the printing was done well enough that you get a decent idea of the painting. I have seen more than 600 of these works in person and found that the reproductions often looked better than the originals: So don't be too disappointed when you see the real thing. Naturally, others look at lot better in person: You cannot capture the Sistine Chapel's paintings very well in a small image, for example.
The nice surprise for me was to find that the book contains works from private collections, several of which were new to me. This made me feel like I was visiting a blockbuster traveling show, especially when the works were by some of my favorite artists.
One of the most impressive aspects of the book was its equal emphasis over 1400 to the present with some representation even earlier than that. As a result, you get a good cross-section of different styles among Western artists (other artists are underrepresented, as they are in major Western museums).
Those who want to travel to see these works will be pleased to see that their locations are noted. There is a missed opportunity to index the works by museum to make trip planning easier. But most good museums today have extensive online catalogs of images that you can scan to plan what you want to see in advance. Simply jot down museums you should visit, but haven't been to yet. Then go online to see which art there will appeal to you.
I would love to see someone take this same concept and apply it to each century of paintings, sculptures, and graphic art.
Take a good look!
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
By Scott Woods
Format:Hardcover
An enormous, beautifully compiled collection of artwork whose title I couldn't agree with more. Filled with easily digested insights into some of the greatest artwork in history, this almost 1000-page book is great for people only mildly interested in art or for serious art-core types.
The pictures are lovely and there's just enough text to get you interested in someone new (or old) at every turn.
The pictures are lovely and there's just enough text to get you interested in someone new (or old) at every turn.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
very good
very good benefit/price ratio excellent deal good product.Excellent book just what I expected, so far very happy with my purchase.
Published 1 month ago by Homero Murzi
5.0 out of 5 stars
MUST HAVE REFERENCE FOR ART STUDENT
Try putting the book on a book holder somewhere nearby and turn a page every day or so and take a moment to read the page. What an education!!! Worth the price for that student. Read more
Published 2 months ago by H. Richards
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing book!
This is a book that I had seen advertised in the National Gallery in London. Fortunately for me, I found this online at Amazon through a Goodwill store out of Florida. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Lizzie
1.0 out of 5 stars
Bias and incomplete.
As the owner of "1001 Buildings You Must See Before you Die" and a lover of art, It was only natural that I purchase this book. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Adam
2.0 out of 5 stars
Lacks Important Masterpieces
Important masterpieces are missing. For example, while the Ukiyo-e art of Japan is defined in the glossary, the important Ukiyo-e works by Utagawa Hiroshige are missing. Read more
Published 19 months ago by R. L. DANIELS
3.0 out of 5 stars
It could be better
Great book if I plan to go around the world to see these paintings but as a visual reference it was just okey based on the size of the art in the book. Read more
Published 22 months ago by pokerstar
3.0 out of 5 stars
Another List
The title says it all - very few women included, but more than in the old art history books. I like the fact that a number of opinions from varied art world people were included... Read more
Published on August 15, 2010 by J. Johnson
3.0 out of 5 stars
Average reference
There are few things I don't like about the book:
1. Many paintings in the book belong to private collection. Read more
1. Many paintings in the book belong to private collection. Read more
Published on October 23, 2009 by A.J.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Interesting Art Book
I love this book for the way it orders the art examples and for the variety of art you will see in it. Read more
Published on August 24, 2009 by BlueBerry
3.0 out of 5 stars
wanted to love it
After reading the product description, all the reviews and reviewing several other books here at Amazon, I settled on this. Read more
Published on February 18, 2009 by H. Brumleve
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