Gardner-s Art Through the Ages (with ArtStudy Student CD-ROM and InfoTrac) (Gardner-s Art Through th Description:

Gardner's Art Through the Ages (with ArtStudy Student CD-ROM and InfoTrac) (Gardner's Art Through the Ages) review:
4 stars (Substantial Book ! ) - With what books cost these days,this a very nice art book covering most eras and the more important works of art though out history.


4 stars (Still a great book) - 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.
5 stars (Excellent introduction to art history) - 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.