Judy Chicago and Edward Lucie-Smith's Women In Art considers why so much art by women finds so little public recognition. From images chosen by female artists to how men portray and perceive women's works, this provides an important study by an artist and art historian who select and analyze images of women by both male and female artists from throughout Western art history.

This book is a nice introduction for the layperson to the history of ertotic art. It gives the background, but doesn't go over the average person's head. Some very nice art in here, though i think most of the poetry and some of the prose wasn't all that great. i do wish that lucie-smith had put the art of those he talked about in the text together, so that the reader can see an example of what he is discussing.

The discerning art lover will beas equally enthusiastic as the pro-fessional artist by ARS EROTICA.Seldomly researched in as much depth and clarity, here's a 1998 art book on erotica to treasure.

This is a great book for any art lover, classic or modern, abstract or old. My advice is buy now. A very good book you will definately enjoy

Better than a coffee table book(but works for that too), ARTODAY contains several features that make it desirable. The first of these being nice large clear examples - pictures. The representations of work are varied and important, the "who's who" and "must know" of the art world from 1960 on. Secondly, the writings on the work are, like the pictures, clear and to the point; expressing the concept and/or contexts of the artists or works susinctly. Finally, the artist/works/concepts have been organized into 18 catagories from "Land Art, Light and Space, Body Art" and "The Survival of Abstraction" to "The Far East". This ordering tends to contain the great variety of works by themes thus making very clear developments and interests of contemporary artists. Having clear images, text, and catagories together in this way make for a table book that is actually interesting to look at and read.

This would be a very good book for those who are interested in a general overview of contemporary art, but don't have time or resources to go in depth. For example, I personally am considering this to be one of several texts for a upper level studio art class; believing the students lacking art history credits will greatly benefit from its overview. While I feel some important artists were overlooked and it is heavily "western" it does a significantly better job than most books of its kind.

Artoday is so well organized and complete. it covers modern art history, artists and includes so many pictures! its insparational and innovating

I am a big fan of mordern art. There are many books on modern arts around the world. But my favorit book on modern art is the ARTODAY. This is book is extremely well made and fun to read(well written reviews on each artists and their works). It contains so many interesting works of modern art on many different medias. Modern arts are usually hard to be seen from museums or galleries. but If you have this this book, you wouldn't have to worry about that. It is amazing how many and different art works and artists are covered in this book. I am totally in love with this book. if you think you like modern art, this is the book that you must buy.......trust me....

this book was interesting because it traces all aspects of the arts (including painting, literature and philosophy) since ancient times. also the grouping of all the aspects of art of a particular time make it easier to trace their influences on each other. what is also interesting is that an excerpt from an influential book of that time is included in each chapter.

This is a very good book, which is wrothy to read!

I would have given the book five stars if, after having read through the entire book and encountered several rather obscure artists with whom I am not familiar, I had not suddenly realised that Andrew Wyeth was not even mentioned in the book. Why? He most certainly is twentieth century, and most certainly is an artist. Not even an obscure one. Bad enough that NC Wyeth only considered himself an illustrator of books and not a real artist; it is certainly reprehensible that his son, one of the greatest painters of any century, should be left out of a book which purports to chronicle the lives of the great twentieth century artists. This happens to be a very good book, a good overview of the various movements in art during the last century, but it has rather pointedly ignored a very fine and important artist whose enormous body of work should be at least be mentioned. And I won't even mention poor Norman Rockwell, who chronicled every day life in his own century much as the great artists of the past painted what was prosaic to them and very exotic to us. Maxfield Parrish was also ignored in this book. Not an artist, I guess, just an illustrator with the greatest understanding of light since Rembrandt. Oh, well. I feel much about this book as I do about "Great Poetry" collections which always manage to leave out that which I love the most. Everything, I guess, is a matter of opinion. If you know absolutely nothing about twentieth century art, this book will certainly give you a good introduction to the various artists and important movements. Perhaps the writer, Edward Lucie Smith, should have considered two or three volumes, in order to more completely cover this subject.

How does this book differ from the book published by Rizzoli in 1986 titled Lives of the GreatTwentieth Century Artists.? I find it interesting that this is not marketed as a second or revised edition.

This excellent reference of art terms is a must for readers and students of Western, Near East and Oriental art history. It covers most of the terminology used by artists and historians from the Middle Ages forward and includes some useful illustrations. Its only flaw appears to be the desire to cover terms used in 20th century art, where it is less comprehensive. In my opinion, if you're going to cover a period, do it well or don't do it at all. Better to spend the effort to make the book excel at something than be all things to all readers. Couple this volume with the Artspoke/Artspeak duo and you're well covered through undergrad and most of grad school.

This is an excellent reference tool, and should be a required purchase in all undergraduate Art programs.

I collect art history books, and I would not consider FLORA by Edward Lucie-Smith an art book. The representations of various paintings (mostly by European artists, even when they depict subjects in Africa or Asia) are too small to view as the works of art they were intended to be. The book is so crammed with illustrations (and very little text) that it appears overwhelming to the eye when casually flipped through. If you turn the pages slowly, each representation appears relatively more attactive (Monet is not juxtaposed with Cranach--though Watteau is, and on two side-by-side 3"x5" pages!!).

There is no chronological order to this book, nor does the author use cultural themes (Romantic, Classic, etc.) as an organizing principle. Rather, Lucie-Smith has organized a plethora of paintings via a subjective classification system that makes sense some of the time. A short introductory text is found at the beginning of each of these sections which include topics such as: "The Mirror of Paradise", "Sowing and Reaping", etc. Notable quotes are interspersed throughout the book along with information about each of the various illustrations. For example, the section on "The Language of Flowers" contains a quote from Albert Camus. "To lose touch with flowers is the supreme separation." I believe he wrote this regarding prison life, but how is one to know if one is not familiar with Camus? And, knowing this tidbit of information makes the words more meaningful.

If you appreciate and are somewhat familiar with European art you might find FLORA disappointing. If you love "feel good" books filled with pretty pictures (and plenty of weird ones too) and notable quotes (not Yogi Berra), you may enjoy the book. I am ambivalent. I neither like the book nor do I dislike it which is why I gave it 3 stars. This is the sort of item one expects to receive as a door prize, or a gift from an office mate who drew your name at Christmas, or a party favor, or to discover in the waiting room of the opthomologist's office.

Edward Lucie-Smith has done it again! In this new book FLORA he explores a subject as history, and tells that story with very fine writing and with an emphasis on fine art to illustrate his thoughts. This is as fine a tour of the history of man and his garden as you will find. Beginning with ancient gardens as vistas of Paradise, he traces chapters on Sowing and Reaping, The Language of Flowers, Nature and the Traveler, Arcadian Landscapes, personal garden plots, and Imaginary Realms. Well researched and eminently readable (as are all of Lucie-Smith's books), this volume is a cornucopia of paintings by Monet, Van Gogh, Watteau, Alma-Tadema, Archimboldo, Bosch, Renoir, and Gauguin with a thoroughly delightful mixture of equallly fine paintings by such contempoary artists as John Nava, Martha Mayer Erlebacher, Wes Christensen, Hunt Slonem, Robert Bissell, Jacquelyn McBain, David Ligare and many others. FLORA is a welcome addition to this series of small books which nave included DOG, CAT, SEX, HORSE, ZOO, ADAM, etc. This is bound to delight both the art lover and the passionate gardener and will surely be a book for every coffee table, solarium and library. Highly recommended!!!

Edward Lucie-Smith wrote so many books that I would be surprised he remembers this one. Every body needs to start a passion with a guide. This might be your choice. You will choose the directions you want to explore and will buy more recent and more specialised books afterwards.

Lucie-Smith addresses more than just stylistic developments in this book. He makes it easy to understand furniture history as it relates to social and political developments over time. For example, the advent of the printing press had a strong impact on furniture design in the 16th century. Of course! This all makes perfect sense now. Lucie-Smith's book is a great primer for those interested in furniture history.

This is a highly readable, clearly written, and extremely well illustrated introduction to the Symbolist Art movement that flourished primarily in France and England in the latter half of the 19th century.

Edward Lucie-Smith argues the Symbolism is the artistic movement that makes sense of the transition from the Romantics of the early 19th century to the Modernism that arose in the early 20th. All too often in the retelling of the history of art, the Symbolists get left out entirely, or at least are not considered as a movement, unlike the much better known and more highly celebrated Impressionists. Yet, there are some very good reasons for anyone interested in late 19th century culture in the wider sense to know more about the Symbolists. For one thing, the movement produced a number of very interesting painters, including Bourne-Jones, Moreau, Rossetti, and others. In addition, other artists not primarily considered Symbolists had close ties to them, especially Gaugin. A number of painters coming after Symbolism were very much influenced by the movement, including Franz Marc, Munch, Klimt, and the young Picasso through the Blue Period.

This last alone would be sufficient to reconsider their work, but Symbolism, unlike Impressionism, was a movement that extended well beyond painting and sculpture to include poetry and literature. In fact, the number of literary artists influenced by Symbolism far outstrips those working in the arts. Not merely Huysmans, but Yeats, Valery, Joyce, Eliot, Mallarme, and Proust were all indebted to one degree or other to Symbolist themes or concerns.

Wonderful book for art research. Short and very to the point, but also throughly informative on the different artists that manifested the ideals of the Symbolists. The vivid pictures, half in color, half in black and white, are filled with dreamlike images and an escapist attitude that the fin de siecle embodied.

These photographs taken during the last part of the 20th century work on many levels. The photos are erotic in content and in style, which means the pictures are sexy and shot in a sexy way. The photos are intellectually disturbing because each one makes the viewer think. That makes the photos subversive because while the viewer thinks they are merely erotic, they are thought-provoking, and even have a political edge. The photos are beautiful and unusual and are the kind of art that hides itself--which is the best kind of art. The photos get under the skin of men in an age when most media are focused on women. They are as steadfastly about gender as photos of women are about gender. In fact, these rather amazing photos taken before George W. Bush became the war president reflect the brute strength of America as perceived in the world today. In many ways, these photos are a cautionary warning about the basic American character. The fact that this book was published by a British publisher makes the vision and message of these photos about a secret side of the American character all the more revealing. It seems the photographer had a journalistic agenda to speak a truth while keeping the message about American harshness palpitating under the photos' raw beauty.

Comparing photo books is like comparing apples and oranges. I quite like Jack Fritscher's American Men as much as I like Chris Nelson's Bear Cult. Both are excellent photographers with two different points of views regarding bears. Nelson is formal. Fritscher is informal. Formal is good on Tuesday night for J/O. Informal is good for Wed night for J/O. Nelson shot Fritscher for his book, but Fritscher has no shot of Nelson in his. Maybe Nelso is more shy or maybe he's not a bear. Both books are also equalized by having introductions written by the same art critic, and by the fact that the same publisher published them both. Smart move, because Nelson and Fritscher give diversity to bears that could be triangulated nicely by the same art critic and publisher putting out a book of photographs by Lynn Ludwig who also shoots a lot of bears. Bears are rich photo territory. Nelson is great. Fritscher is great. Both photographers deserve to be side by side on my book shelf.

Black-and-white photos make this British coffee-table book of U.S.guys romantic, especially because by contrast so many of these photos have been printed in color in magazine covers and inside magazines like "Bear." Especially too because internet photos are almost all in color which makes the non-color here on a book page work by contrast, knowing that so many of these photos of ordinary bears and men and leather guys were taken during the filming of videos. The all-american cover is a flag-waver of patriotism, or at least American identity. Twice I've lost copies, one to a friend who had to borrow it, and another time I gave it as a birthday present. Donnie Russo and Chris Duffy head the pack. Viva los bears!