Art in Renaissance Italy: 1350-1500 (Oxford History of Art) [Paperback]

Evelyn Welch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 17, 2001 | ISBN-10: 019284279X | ISBN-13: 978-0192842794

The Italian Renaissance was a pivotal period in the history of Western culture during which artists such as Masaccio, Donatello, Fra Angelico, and Leonardo created some of the world's most influential and exciting works in a variety of artistic fields. Here, Evelyn Welch presents a fresh picture of the Italian Renaissance by challenging traditional scholarship and placing emphasis on recreating the experience of contemporary Italians: the patrons who commissioned the works, the members of the public who viewed them, and the artists who produced them. Art in Renaissance Italy 1350-1500 dramatically revises the traditional story of the Renaissance and takes into account new issues that have greatly enriched our understanding of the period. From paintings and coins to sculptures and tapestries, Welch examines the issues of materials, workshop practices, and artist-patron relationships, and explores the ways in which visual imagery related to contemporary sexual, social, and political behavior.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"His discussion is marked by its scholarly breadth, clarity of argument, and willingness to include objects not within the canonic corpus....Welch's deeply informed and wide-ranging synthesis is a significant and welcome addition to the literature."--Library Journal

"This is a splendid book: well-conceived, lucidly presented, beautifully illustrated. The practical information on the production of works of art (the techniques of fresco painting and casting bronze) and on the social organization of artistic production is most welcome."--Daniel Bornstein, Texas A&M University

"An up-to-date, lucid and entirely readable synthesis of a wide range of current scholarship...should be required reading."--Nicholas Mann, Warburg Institute

"Learned and helpful...I do not know any other book which covers these topics so satisfactorily."--George Holmes, All Souls, Oxford

"A fresh and richly documented perspective on the role of images in the early Renaissance."--Martin Kemp, Trinity College, Oxford

About the Author

Evelyn Welch is Lecturer at the Warburg Institute, University of Sussex. Her publications include Art and Authority in Renaissance Milan.

Product Details

• Paperback: 354 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (May 17, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 019284279X
• ISBN-13: 978-0192842794
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #204,246 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dense and anachronistic, November 4, 2006

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Kevin Inman - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Art in Renaissance Italy: 1350-1500 (Oxford History of Art) (Paperback)

I think the reader will get lost here and come away with a misapprehension about the times unless they already have a strong background in European history.

You really have to read this book critically because some parts are bizarre. I remember at one point the writer describes artists as being involved in several businesses, such as owning rental property, with the aim of providing for their retirement. While in individual cases, I am sure this was true, as a description of the role of artists in society I can't believe it is widely true in early modern society only beginning to develop a middle class. Who knows what is meant by "retirement" in an era when several generations of a family might live in the same house, and work work together in the same artists' workshop, and when average life expectancy was in the 30s and people could drop dead of blood poisoning at any time from a hangnail. That sounds like anachronism to me.

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing. Stretches my patience a bit too thin., January 27, 2012

By 

Ouch! (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Art in Renaissance Italy: 1350-1500 (Oxford History of Art) (Paperback)

Welch has a point. Much of what we focus on in our understanding of Renaissance art is rooted in our looking at "genius" and exceptional works. Her point is that we should also look at continuity and commonalities among artists of this period in what is now called "Italy." That may be her agenda as a publishing academic, but for casual readers like myself, I have to admit to being rather bored by much of the detail in this book, which focuses a lot on contracts and workshop organizations. A bit of this seems like the story of the drunk looking for his keys under a streetlight. When asked where he dropped his keys, he points over to a dark part of the street, but the light is so much better over here! Welch is so busy with her contracts (many of which are quoted at length or even in full) that she forgets to tell us what we learn from them. As with all history, we rely heavily on the documents to tell our story. But the documents are not themselves the story we wish to learn. With art, we also have the work itself, which speaks to us from across time and geography. What strikes me as most odd about this book is the lack of actual discussion of the works. The book is beautifully illustrated and is part of a series that I've come to associate with quality. Usually, these books find the exact right balance between introducing novices to the period in question AND engaging us with the current debates and compelling ideas around the work. In this case, however, we are buried in the contractual minutiae, and we never learn what these documents, and the works, mean. Perhaps Oxford could have enlisted a more engaging writer? Has Welch every hear of inference?

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Overview, February 8, 2006

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J. Paige "paige me" (Houston, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Art in Renaissance Italy: 1350-1500 (Oxford History of Art) (Paperback)

Well written and researched, Ms. Welch does a very good job of giving an overall view of an important period of history - both artistic and political. Good jumping off point for more specific studies in Italian Renaissance history.