What Are You Looking At?
The Surprising, Shocking, and Sometimes Strange Story of 150 Years of Modern Art
Penguin Publishing Group · Print & ebook · October 25, 2012
For skeptics, art lovers, and the millions of us who visit art galleries every year—and are confused—What Are You Looking At? by former director of London’s Tate Gallery Will Gompertz is a wonderfully lively, accessible narrative history of Modern Art, from Impressionism to the present day.
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- Who it’s for
- Modern art gets lively, irreverent explanation without the intimidating art speak.
- Themes
- Modern art history, Understanding and interpreting art, Artists and their works
- Genres
- Contemporary Art History (1945-), Modern Art History (to 1945), Art Criticism & Ideas
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For skeptics, art lovers, and the millions of us who visit art galleries every year—and are confused—What Are You Looking At? by former director of London’s Tate Gallery Will Gompertz is a wonderfully lively, accessible narrative history of Modern Art, from Impressionism to the present day. What is modern art? Who started it? Why do we either love it or loathe it? And why is it such big money?
Continue reading
Join BBC Arts Editor Will Gompertz on a dazzling tour that will change the way you look at modern art forever. From Monet's water lilies to Van Gogh's sunflowers, from Warhol's soup cans to Hirst's pickled shark, hear the stories behind the masterpieces, meet the artists as they really were, and discover the real point of modern art. You will learn: not all conceptual art is bollocks; Picasso is king (but Cézanne is better); Pollock is no drip; Dali painted with his moustache; a urinal changed the course of art; why your 5-year-old really couldn't do it. Refreshing, irreverent and always straightforward, What Are You Looking At? cuts through the pretentious art speak and asks all the basic questions that you were too afraid to ask. Your next trip to the art gallery is going to be a little less intimidating and a lot more interesting. With his offbeat humor, down-to-earth storytelling, and flair for odd details that spark insights, Will Gompertz is the perfect tour guide for modern art. His book doesn’t tell us if a work of art is good; it gives us the knowledge to decide for ourselves.
Art Without the Hush
Modern art gets lively, irreverent explanation without the intimidating art speak.
Come here for
- Straightforward answers to the questions galleries tend to raise
- Odd details and down-to-earth storytelling that make ideas click
Expect
- A narrative history from Impressionism to the present
- Knowledge to decide what you think about the art
Where it sits
| Modern Art History (to 1945) | 66% |
|---|---|
| Art Criticism & Ideas | 63% |
| Contemporary Art History (1945-) | 62% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Modern Art History (to 1945)
- Authors
- Will Gompertz
- Publisher
- Penguin Publishing Group
- Published
- October 25, 2012
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Modern art history · Understanding and interpreting art · Artists and their works
- Reading lane
- Modern Art History (to 1945)