Sister Wendy's Story of Painting

This is a lovely book to have in any home. It is great to look through while relaxing in a chair. It is also a good reference for homeschool or classroom. As an adult, you can get the art education you probably did not get in school.

How bizarre......and yet, how wonderful. Who would have ever thought that a nun going through the museum would have (a) been interesting, (b) been publishable, (c) been television-worthy, or (d) been within the realm of credible imaginings? And yet, here is the proof, on my coffee table. Sister Wendy's smiling face, next to a scowling Vincent, greets me each day with my morning cocoa.This is a book to be savoured. It cannot, like the morning cocoa, be rushed and enjoyed. This must take time. Not because the text is dense or confusing--indeed, it is not. It is lively, witty, historical, accessible, all that one could want in a book on art.But, mostly, it is exquisitely visual in layout. Everything is photographed and reproduced in stunning colour and low-gloss format to make the pages vibrant and durable yet easily seen. Care has gone into the production of this volume. None of the art is reduced to black and white, but rather presented in glorious colour. With over 800 images in under 400 pages, this is a feast for the eyes. Each page is dominated by art, not text. That makes for slow moving, like reading a museum..Sister Wendy Beckett takes us on an historical tour of painting (in the European theatre of history), beginning with prehistoric cave-art and drawings, leading up to modern and post-modern artists.She takes representative pieces, such as the Bosch painting of Death and the Miser to illustrate points of colour, detail, composition, and story. Some paintings have complex stories (such as this one), others have simple composition (such as the `innocently disadvantaged' Mona Lisa) which give endless speculation as to the meaning. Sister Wendy explores each era of artistic history, listed below in broad categories (there are several subcategories of each), giving history and philosophy as well as major and representative minor works, explaining in detail at least one or two works for each, concentrating on painting, but also bringing in as relevant sculpture, stained glass, architecture, and other artistic media.+ Art of the Ancient World+ Gothic Painting+ Italian Renaissance+ Northern Renaissance+ Baroque and Rococo+ Neoclassicism and Romanticism+ The Age of Impressionism+ Post-Impressionism+ The Twentieth CenturySister Wendy does an admirable job at not concentrating exclusively on religious and Christian art (for being a nun), however, given the history of art in Europe, this is a major theme in its own right.The Epilogue, says Sister Wendy, 'is both an afterword and a foreword: hundreds and thousands of artists come after the disappearance of the `story line' into the maze of contemporary artistic experience and these same artists may of course, be the forerunners of a new story.' In concluding her volume, she highlights the paintings of Robert Natkin, Joan Mitchell and Albert Herbert, the art of each she hopes will endure.

The expanded version of "The Story of Painting" features an exponentially larger selection of artwork and commentary from Sister Wendy; both being a plus that benefits the reader.This is not a dry, scholarly work, and I suspect the author would not desire it to be viewed that way anyway. What "The Story of Painting" brings to the reader is a very approachable style of writing and some of the most lush artwork you will see in any book on this subject. I was particularly surprised to see many works that I had never seen in any other book of this kind. Some were a revelation (like Tintorretto's "The Last Supper"), while others allowed - via the detailed closeups featured in the book - a closer inspection of brushstrokes and technique not normally covered in other historical painting overviews."The Story of Painting" begins with short section covering works before the medieval era, mostly Greek, Roman, and Etruscan, then kicks into high gear before ending with the 20th Century. This concluding section is one of the weaker parts of the book, but I think it can be argued that the latter half of that time period has not produced many of the glorious works featured in other parts of the book. Too much time deconstructing art and not enough making soul-stirring paintings, I suppose.As with any Sister Wendy art book, you get the sage, grandmotherly insights into the works from a woman who deeply enjoys art. Other books impart a barrier between the works, the critical evaluation of them by the author, and the reader. Sister Wendy smashes that piece of artifice and seeks to draw people into the works themselves, not to critique them and simply move on to the next, but to give life to each work. She does this admirably, in my opinion. From time to time she does take more time to dissect a piece and look at it elements apart from the work as a whole, and in each evaluation she lends her knowledge of iconography and symbolism to help the reader fully understand the painter's intent. Very helpful. When compared with other art books, it becomes even more rare as it also might be one of the few books of its kind that would work well as a primer for parents sitting down with children to examine the works together.Lastly, the book itself is classic Dorling Kindersley: bright, white, glossy paper; easy to read, well-spaced typesetting; beautiful and large illustrations; helpful sidebars; and just an overall feel of quality. It's quite hard to find fault with the book. And as an expanded version of the original, it works faultlessly. This hefty tome practically defines the phrase "coffee table book". At 736 pages in length, its sheer heft would make it a fine weapon against your least favorite sneering, art critic!Highly recommended.

After re-reading The Story of Painting up to the Mannerist period, I read History of Art, by A. W. Janson, up until the same time. I found both experiences wonderful.Glancing back at The Story of Painting, the incomparable visual presentation was dramatically apparant. I have been wondering ever since if Sister Wendy Beckett arranged for some of her profits to be plowed back into high quality paper and extra large details that you find throughout the book. I also appreciate the time she takes to closely analyze some of the paintings. In the History of Art, there are many references to the necessity to be brief. Sister Wendy takes the time to look in depth at key paintings.In regards to a former review where it said that Sister Wendy knows nothing about art, I would be interested in a few solid examples of her ignorance. She certainly delights me with her presentations and has motivated me to further study.If you are a Sister Wendy Beckett fan, I would encourage you to get a copy of the VCR-taped interview with Bill Moyers. I find her depth and insight an inspiration and Bill Moyers is a most excellent interviewer. I wish they would do it with a few more topics, such as English Literature and European History.

Beautiful Italian printing of art set this book apart from ordinary. Details of pictures are expanded and commented on for greater understanding and appreciation. Side bars note where other work of the artist is available. Commentary is just right amount and depth for all to enjoy.

I first read this book when I was enrolled in an art history class in college. The text book we had for the class was informative, but many of the works we studied in detail were not pictured in the text. Sister Wendy covered each of those major works with great care. Her photos and close-ups were, almost work for work, the exact paintings and close-ups we had discussed in the class. I ended up reading more from Sister Wendy than from the text, because she gave wonderful synopses of key points, and included more photos. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who is curious about painting. It will improve your future museum visits just by flipping through the pages