Art in Theory 1900-1990: An Anthology of Changing Ideas [Paperback]

Charles Harrison (Editor), Dr Paul J. Wood (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0631165754 | ISBN-13: 978-0631165750 | Publication Date: January 12, 1993 | Edition: 1

Current debates about the status of Modernism have led to an increasing interest in critical and aesthetic theories, and to a questioning of some of the traditional assumptions and limits of art history. The aim of this substantial anthology is to equip the student, teacher and interested general reader with the necessary materials for an up-to-date understanding of twentieth-century art.
Beside the writings of the century's major artists, Art in Theory includes relevant texts by critics, philosophers, politicians and literary figures. It is organised into eight sections, from the legacy of Symbolism at the turn of the century to contemporary debates about the Postmodern. Each section is prefaced by a brief essay. There are introductions for all of the 300-plus texts, which serve to place theories and critical approaches in context. The result is both a comprehensive collection of documents on twentieth-century art and an encylopaedic history of relevant theory.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It's hard to imagine a more useful and at the same time more imaginative selection of critical theory and theoretical texts than the ones gathered together in Art In Theory."

"Occasionally one comes across a book that is at once compelling and frightening, a book that excites and disorientates, a book with intimations of the sublime. Art in Theory is such a book. An indispensible source book." Arlis News-Sheet

"This anthology will be useful to all lecturers and students interested in this subject." Times Higher Education Supplement

"Harrison's and Wood's contribution to our understanding of art in this century seems likely to find its place on bookshelves and in bibliographies for many years." Journal of Art & Design Education

"Will be welcomed by teachers of art history, their students, and lay readers who are interested in the theories which have underpinned developments in the visual arts during the last century... Excellent... this will certainly become the standard work of its kind for a long time to come." British Journal of Aesthetics

"An outstanding instrument with which to explore modern art theory." Archis

From the Back Cover

Since it was first published in 1992, this book has become one of the leading anthologies of art theoretical texts in the English-speaking world. This expanded edition includes the fruits of recent research, involving a considerable amount of newly translated material from the entire period, together with additional texts from the last decades of the twentieth century.

The features that made the first edition so successful have been retained:

• The volume provides comprehensive representation of the theories, which underpinned developments in the visual arts during the twentieth century.


• As well as writings by artists, the anthology includes texts by critics, philosophers, politicians and literary figures.


• The content is clearly structured into eight broadly chronological sections, starting with the legacy of symbolism and concluding with contemporary debates about the postmodern.


• The editors provide individual introductions to each of the 340 anthologised texts.

Material new to this expanded edition includes texts on African art, on the Bauhaus and on the re-emergent avant-gardes of the period after the Second World War. Post-modernist debates are amplified by texts on gender, on installation and performance art, and on the increasing globalisation of culture.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 1216 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (January 12, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0631165754
• ISBN-13: 978-0631165750
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #99,888 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars a good choice, April 18, 2011

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The Bacon Fairy - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Art in Theory 1900-1990: An Anthology of Changing Ideas (Paperback)

This book is a great place to start when looking at art theory, thought and a small smattering of philosophy. The works chosen are well thought out, good length and generally have good food for thought.

16 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Art History in a Pill, April 3, 2000

By 

Anna Zakiewicz (Warsaw, Poland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Art in Theory 1900-1990: An Anthology of Changing Ideas (Paperback)

To read this book is absolutely essential not only for students and teachers (as the autthors suggest) but also for everybody interested in XX century art and its mental and intellectual origins. A wide spectrum of problems displayed in the book and careful selection of texts is really impressive and creates a panoramic view for entire artistic life and artistuc consciousness of the whole century. Even politicians like Lenin, Marx and Zdhanov have found their place in this interesting world! But what about Stanislaw ignacy Witkiewicz - a famous Polish painter, photographer, writer, philosopher and theoretician of art? I am slightly dissapointed because of an absence of his texts. His theory of Pure Form in painting, theatre and literature formulated during the years of the First World War (edeited as a book entitled 'Nowe formy w malarstwie...' ['New Forms in Painting...'] in 1919 in Warsaw is really worth presenting and omitting it can be treated as a serious mistake... But the rest is OK. Short introductory notes on each author or problem preceding texts are masterpieces of a species and can serve as patterns for everybody writing on art. These notes also create specific art history 'in a pill' (quite tasty pill, I can say), very useful for any quick researchings or, simply, for reading in spare time...