Art with a Difference: Looking at Difficult and Unfamiliar Art

Rating:
Summary: Good supplemental text for art history courses
Review: This short and very readable book helps the intelligent but uninitiated reader come to terms with works of art that can be confusing, or even intimidating. Art can be daunting if it comes from a culture different from our own, is the work of "outsider" artists, or -- as with most contemporary art -- is deliberately obscure, or "difficult," in some way. The authors don't attempt to supply pat answers to the questions "is this art?" and "what does this mean?" but they help the readers to frame additional questions that can lead them to their own better understandings of these objects.

I definitely will assign this book in my course on writing and critical thinking for art history majors. This summer term, I also plan to experiment with using it as a recommended, supplemental text in my art history survey.

Rating:
Summary: Good supplemental text for art history courses
Review: This short and very readable book helps the intelligent but uninitiated reader come to terms with works of art that can be confusing, or even intimidating. Art can be daunting if it comes from a culture different from our own, is the work of "outsider" artists, or -- as with most contemporary art -- is deliberately obscure, or "difficult," in some way. The authors don't attempt to supply pat answers to the questions "is this art?" and "what does this mean?" but they help the readers to frame additional questions that can lead them to their own better understandings of these objects.

I definitely will assign this book in my course on writing and critical thinking for art history majors. This summer term, I also plan to experiment with using it as a recommended, supplemental text in my art history survey.