Reddit reviews The Story of Art

The Story of Art by Ernst Gombrich. Reads like a novel, takes you from cave paintings to modern day.

I certainly consider A Little History of the World an essential read. It's basically a summary of the human history, from cavemen to the end of WWI over 300 easily read pages. He touches on all major events, and touches upon most religions in a very easy to follow and fun writing style. It's essentially a World History for dummies if you will, but is still a very interesting read. one of those books I plan to buy future kids. Highly recommended! he also has a similar book - The Story of Art - but this is a lot bigger and more advanced, requires an actual interest in art history.

http://www.amazon.com/Story-Art-H-Gombrich/dp/0714832472

My family has this book

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Story-Art-H-Gombrich/dp/0714832472/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1321891500&sr=1-1

which is a very good comprehensive introduction to art history, from the first evidence of creativity in pre-history to contemporary artists, with loads of lovely full page illustrations. This is the one I would go for if you're looking for a general overview.

Always start with Gombrich!

No problem! I have no experience with the UK industry but I can't imagine it's too different:

• My degree was a necessity. Job/intern experience was preferred and mine definitely helped my application, but since I started at an entry level gallery job (as a curatorial assistant) it was the degree that was the most important thing.
  
  
• There's not a huge market, honestly, in terms of simple availability - there are plenty of art galleries, sure, but there are way more people trying to get jobs in them. I'm not working in my specific field of interest, but I can't really be picky at this early stage of my career. It also depends what you want to go into: curating, conservation, acquisitions, education, exhibition design, fundraising, research, auction houses, consultation... art history as a degree opens so many more doors than people first realize, I think. Some of these fields are a lot more specialized than others.
  
  
• Books in general: my favourite is probably the Art in Theory three-part series. For AH as an academic discipline, you really can't go past it. I also really like Berger's Ways of Seeing, which is a really important text for analyzing artworks. For an overview of the art itself, Gombrich's The Story of Art is a good bet. The Getty's Guide to Imagery series is also fascinating (and very wide-ranging).
  
  
• Resources: subscriptions to JSTOR, ABM (Art Bibliographies Modern), ProQuest, and Grove Art / Oxford Art Online will be your best friends. If you're at uni, you should have access through your school. I'm also a huge fan of Trove (it's an Australian resource but there should be a comparable English one) which allows you to search for resources by subject/keyword and then tells you where said resources are located (both digitally and hard copy).
  
  Hope that helped a bit!

1. Read a lot of fiction. It's the closest thing to telepathy we have. You can pick up the point of view of someone long-dead or from a vastly different culture. The more widely read you become the better. Don't feel you have to suffer, though. If you like reading romance, go and read it. Read things that lead onto other things. Learn to read and your horizons will be infinite.
   
   
2. Take up a martial arts class. I recommend something like Aikido rather than kick-boxing. Your primary goal isn't to learn to fight but rather to straighten your posture and gain calmness and confidence. Hence, consider the more "art" based martial arts first.
   
   
3. Meditate. This will help you gain confidence and put you more at ease with yourself. I recommend Zen, but there are many good ones. It's basically taking quiet time to let yourself see your own flaws.
   
   
4. Make a list of activities that people from higher social classes do, and investigate them. This isn't to become something you're not - I actually think you should be proud of your desire to improve, and I think it's a bad idea to hate your upbringing, too. No, this is about making a list of all those things you've never been exposed to, so you can try them and find out for yourself if you like them. By systematic. I've put an example list at the bottom of the post.
   
   
5. Speak into a recorder and listen honestly to your voice. If it seems to bind you to a particular place and class, consider paying for lessons to change your accent. Actors do it all the time. Again, this shouldn't be about becoming something you're not, just softening any disadvantages. Accents are cute, you don't need to lose it, but if you find it a disadvantage, it will help to soften it.
   
   
6. Learn to do public speaking. Toastmasters are everywhere, and remarkably cheap. Just knowing you can stand in front of a crowd and deliver a speech will change the way people see you and you see yourself.
   
   
   Recommended activities (to see which you like):
   
   Art Go to an art gallery and take a look around. There are all sorts of paintings and statues that people have created for thousands of years. See if any appeal. This is best done with knowledge, so try reading an easy book like this, or a more in-depth one like this
   
   Theatre Try going to the theatre and watch a play. I recommend you pick a classic, but for your first one it might be better to pick one in your natural language rather than Shakespeare. Bear in mind, though, that when you get into it, there's a reason Shakespeare is considered amazing.
   
   Cooking Seriously, learn to cook. It's a life skill. You can take classes, but nothing beats picking up a good book and practicing. I'm English, so I don't know much about American cookery books. The one I learned off is this one, by the English cook Nigel Slater, and I heartily recommend it.
   
   Music I'm not personally a fan of classical music, but the aim is to see for yourself what you like. You could do worse than look at this online course. You could also get a cd, like this
   
   Cinema Go buy DVDs of classic film and extend your repertoire. For example, try watching Hitchcock, for example, and ground yourself in a major part of world culture. Note that this, like all the above, will give you a breadth of conversational topics.
   
   Finally Creativity Go and do something that makes you a creator rather than a consumer. I like writing, but you could equally take art classes or learn to play a musical instrument. Being creative will transform your life. If you want to try writing, I recommend nanowrimo and for science fiction writing, this book
   
   Notice what I'm saying with all of the above. The intention is to open your horizons to what other people enjoy, and give you the ability to converse with them fluently. It's also getting rid of the main markers that might hold you back. Ideally, you'll also find something you love, as well, that you might never have considered.
   

Gombrich - The Story of Art - a classic that takes you through all art periods and styles and gives a clear and interesting explanation. I love this book - it opened my eyes.

You used the term modern art, which is very different from contemporary art or postmodern art. None of the pics in OP are contemporary or postmodern. This is why it's very difficult to have a discussion when you don't understand the basics of art history, yet you're very adamant about what art is loathsome. How about getting an informed opinion instead?

>the urinal was an one time thing and how would it have made sense in a traditional world, the joke was anything is accepted as an art piece thanks to modern art so how would it make sense then if modern art wasnt meaningless and how would this piece makes sense if modern art wasnt a thing in the first place?

Are you trying to wind me up right now or do you have a learning disability? You defended Sam Hyde's art by saying it's a reaction to this fucked up world and just making fun of it all, that it wouldn't make sense if the world wasn't fucked. The urinal wasn't a one time thing, it belonged to an art movement that criticized art and modern society much like what Sam Hyde is doing.

>the joke was anything is accepted as an art piece thanks to modern art so how would it make sense then if modern art wasnt meaningless and how would this piece makes sense if modern art wasnt a thing in the first place

Congratulations on accomplishing babies first art analysis. You've just learned to appreciate an art movement you said you hated a moment ago. Now try it out again with another movement until you have a solid grasp on the subject.

> most of the art was made to deconstruct everything you know and have art that has no defined meaning

I don't know how many more ways I can say this. This is exactly what MDE does. If you hate that kind of art you hate MDE too. If you don't hate MDE you should learn more about art so you can better define what kind of art you hate, because the definitions you've given are contradictory.

I won't respond again until you've read this book.

The Story of Art by E.H. Gombrich. Passionate, precise, a clear and accessible view of thousands of years of art history. Alternatively, by way of introduction to the author, he has penned the informative A Little History of The World in a bright and accessible style that nobody could resist.

Here is the survey text for general works, and if you haven't read Gombrich's "The Story of Art," it is a must-read for a potential grad student!