Art and Illusion: A Study in the Psychology of Pictorial Representation.

A great book, it is a bit long but filled with information, so take your time when reading and prepared yourselve for an epiphany

Art & Illusion is an altogether brilliant text - one of the most profound discussions of fine art in the 20th century. No matter what one's field - whether painting, film, new media, performance art - it is a book both timeless and essential.

As someone with an interest in art I found this book very interesting.However, this book is also a classic example of how a non-fiction book should be written. It flows smoothly from topic to topic, is not written on too high a level, but on the other hand does not insult your intelligence.His other book are also very good.

In this now classic work, Gombrich uses his command of the history of art to reflect deeply on how creators and viewers of illusionistic, that is representational art, do what they do. While he wrote this in the 50's, and is deficient when it comes to issues of abstract art (which is really outside his stated purview) he comes close to what might now be termed a post-structuralist view of seeing, certainly an extremely careful and sophisticated one. Old-fashiioned as some of the language is, the book remains fresh and well worth reading or re-reading. The numerous and very well-chosen illustrations are unusually well coordinated in their placement, so that the reader rarely is forced to lose her place while thumbing back and forth in search of them.