Customer Reviews

Gardner's Art through the Ages

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I first used Gardner's Art Through the Ages for my AP art history class back in high school, and I still refer to it sometimes for my college art history courses. It goes over a huge array of artists and periods (both in the Western and non-Western traditions) and is helpful if you need to find some general information or refresh your memory. The picture reproductions are very good (if not slightly dark).

Be aware that this book will sometimes not provide in-depth explanations for all of its subjects; however, this text is a firm foundation of knowledge for beginner art history students. Highly recommended.

For those who are new to art history and need a good overview, Gardner has always been a great place to start. It and Janson's History of Art are the books most often used for introductory art history classes, and you can see why: Garner gives a really broad and understandable overview of thousands of years of art history. Plus, nearly all of the book's illustrations are in color, which is a very rare thing for any art history book.

My only criticisms are for more advanced students of art history. First of all, if you've got the 11th edition, don't worry about getting the 12th - the new edition makes relatively small changes to the old version, adding more color pictures as well as the CD-ROM. And those who already have a good knowledge of art history may want to look elsewhere - being such a wide survey, "Art Through the Ages" doesn't have time to go into a lot of the little details and lesser-known pieces that make art history so fun.

I'm an AP Art History student in high school, and I fully recommend Gardner's; I bought this book for my personal library. Not only is it an easy read, it's interesting, engaging and informative. In each chapter it covers the social, political, and economical characteristics and all the attributes that affected the art styles of the particular period; not only is the information concise and detailed, it's generalized enough so not to be boring or flood you with too much information.
The pictures and diagrams are in high-quality, color representations with easy to understand reference numbers and information. Only a few pictures are in black and white either because of original colors of the piece or the work is better represented that way. The CD is easy to use, and great for reviewing the pieces and related information for tests, or memorization.
The glossary, index and guide to pronuncing artists' names are comprehensive and easy to understand.
I also recommend the accompanying study guide by Kathleen Cohen (the author might differ for other editions), it stresses the right information.
GET THIS BOOK! It works wonders, currently I have the highest grade in the class with a 103% because of the quality of this book.

This book was a required textbook for a 200-level Art History course that I took in University. It is probably one of the most entertaining and interesting textbooks that I was ever required to spend $100+ on. Very very heavy at 1150 over-sized pages.

Firstly, it is full of large, colourful pictures. They make turning the page fun and engrossing. Secondly, the book is written in such a way that you're actually INTERESTED (this is rare in a textbook!). Thirdly this book is COMPLETE-- it literally surveys art from cave paintings to contemporary photography, and every single thing inbetween.

It's the sort of book that, sure, works well as a required textbook, but it's also the sort of book that you keep after the class ends because it's just GOOD. Honestly, I think it would be a great addition to *anyones* collection-- I keep mine on my coffeetable!

I am an Art major and an Art lover! Due to my passion for fine arts and my interest in painting, I decided to go to college and learn the academic way and styles (In my 30's). I am required to have 4 Art History courses before I can graduate. I took an art history class 2 years ago and Gardner's book was the required book. It is very easy reading! It cover the social, political, economical and all the atributes that affected the arts in any particular period. Every time we have class discussion or topics and art period to cover, I research on this book. People get impressed by my knowledge, but all that I do is read this book, it is very informative! I am considering to buy the latest edition to add to my personal library. Also the book is filled with rich images to exemplify the artists and the periods. I used volume 1 and 2. I sold my volume 1, but now I want to buy it back. Both volumes are a real treasure! Thanks!

I'm not an art major but I thought it'd be cool to take an art history course for a humanities requirement in college and I'm very happy I decided to take it.

Gardner was the required text for the class and it's been through this textbook that grasping art history is not as hard as I initially thought it would be. The language is plain and clear and the artwork contained within is rich and the captions detailed.

I could resell this book for a good bit but I'm seriously considering keeping it because it's such a treasure and an excellent reference tool. - Donna Di Giacomo

I needed this book for my college art history classes and found that it contained everything I needed, from the large book itself, which has two ribbon bookmarks attached to the spine, to the study cd-rom, which aided my memorization of the material with visual flash cards, matching games, links to sites with study tips, etc. The only thing with it having so much information is that it is a thick book that you can feel its weight in your backpack. Not fun if you have to lug it around all day.

Gardner's is obviously the top choice for intro survey art history courses. It's a beautiful book with great color layout and all the basic info that one needs for a solid foundation. Sure, it's a little bulky and heavy, but one can't get all the info that one needs without that concession. There are, however, two big problems I continue to find with Gardner's: 1) under-representation of non-western art (perhaps because of an over-representation of Renaissance art); and 2) not the best organization (it can get too focused on the west that it ends up jumping back and forth through time to include other geo regions; plus it's just 40+ disjointed chapters with no overarching/unifying "parts" [e.g., Twentieth Century Art]). Those faults aside, it's still the best text out there for what it's supposed to do.

The main strength of this book are the pictures - most of them in colour and all of superb quality. To each picture corresponds a section in the text which describes the displayed work in a vivid and informative way, cultivating the reader's ability to look at art, understand and appreciate it. Another excellent feature are the "boxes", containing e.g. a description of an artistic technique or an excerpt from an original written source.

However, questions arise when it comes to more general parts of the text, e.g. chapter introductions aimed at conveying a broad picture of art and society of the epoque. Simplifications are expected, but they shouldn't be misleading - here are just some examples of the contrary: it's not correct to include Merovigians among the barbarian tribes (Goths, Franks, ...) that invaded the Roman empire! This is absent in the 11th edition but present in the 12th. Or, one cannot say that the Treaty of Westphalia granted religious freedom in Europe: that freedom mostly applied only to the local sovereigns, while their subjects were forced, sometimes quite brutally, to follow the religion of their boss. The Centre Pompidou in Paris is not quite a place of "popular entertainment", etc.

Conceptually, the book follows a certain point of view, emphasizing e.g. the question of gendre - the reader learns, for instance, that the communities in ancien Grece were dominated by "white males" ... The authors have also decided to include some works which are not generally accepted as art - but is an introductory textbook like this a good place to redefine the notion of art?

In summary, if you want in the first place to enjoy splendid pictures described in revealing yet understandable terms, go for this book. If you are looking for a more solid and reliable information, look somewhere else.

This is an excellent text for studying art history or just learning about how art has evolved through the ages.