Living With Art by Mark Getlein (2006, Paperback)

My art friend introduced this book to me, for I have great interest in but little knowledge about art. It turns out to be an excellent introductory book!

The whole book means to teach people like me how to enjoy and appreciate art. For each and every piece of art, Mark Getlein provides insightful guidelines of how to understand the focus, the dynamics among subjects, the culture background, and the distinction of this one from others. Especially he encourages readers to explore the story behind the scene - an exercise to establish our own opinion on art, which he praises as the essential of art appreciation.

The book starts with an introduction of schools of arts, glossary, and the principle of design, followed by the categories of drawing, paining, print, architecture etc., and ends with arts in different phrases of mankind. Each chapter includes famous master pieces as well as distinctive artworks. Within chapter there are mini bios of well-known artists. The arrangement is comprehensive but I have to say the author successfully fulfills his ambition.

This book is written in such a friendly way to beginners, only using intimidating terms when necessary. It also provides extra reading by web links to people who want to know more. Overall it is a must-have book if you are just about to knock on the door of art.

exactly what I needed for my class. The book was in good condition with no torn or marked pages. The cover was not torn or ripped either.

I needed it for Art history and its in excellent condition Now i can stay up to date with homework and class discussions. Besides the fact thats its a bit heavy lol I like my art history book. The graphics are incredible and the pages are unmarked

I have to admit that I am only taking this class because an art elective is required. However, this book makes the class interesting and describes all the various forms of art. The interviews with artists such as Maya Lin are also interesting. A lot of pictures of various forms of art as well and the book is well organized.

I purchased this book as a textbook for an Art Appreciation class I am taking.
I have found it to be an excellent reference book concerning the elements of art.
It is not a historically written book but one that delves into what makes art and what to look for when viewing art. It is nicely illustrated and contains a nice glossary for looking up terms.