Imagining Childhood [Hardcover]

Erika Langmuir (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 12, 2006

The images of children that abound in Western art do not simply mirror reality; they are imaginative constructs, representing childhood as a special stage of human life, or emblematic of the human condition itself. In a compelling book ranging widely across time, national boundaries, and genres from ancient Egyptian amulets to Picasso’s Guernica, Erika Langmuir demonstrates that no historic period has a monopoly on the ‘discovery of childhood’. Famous pictures by great artists, as well as barely known anonymous artefacts, illustrate not only Western society’s perennially ambivalent attitudes to children, but also the many and varied functions that works of art have played throughout its history.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Erika Langmuir was formerly head of education at the National Gallery, London; she taught at the University of Sussex and was professor of art history at the Open University. She is the author of the National Gallery Companion Guide and several titles from the best-selling National Gallery Pocket Guides series, as well as co-author of the Yale Dictionary of Art and Artists, all published by Yale University Press.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (December 12, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300101317
• ISBN-13: 978-0300101317
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,008,919 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Serious art history readable by all, July 30, 2007

By 

Val Langmuir - See all my reviews

This review is from: Imagining Childhood (Hardcover)

This book is by my mother, so I am prejudiced in its favor. This said, I can't think why anyone who is seriously interested in art history wouldn't love this book. Erika writes very well, and this book will teach the reader a great deal without being preachy or lecturing. A true 5 * read - and makes a beautiful addition to your coffee table.