"Yes, but is it art?" This lucid book by Julian Bell, himself a painter,
confronts the uncertainty many people feel about art today and
challenges generally accepted ideas.
Now in a completely revised second edition, What is Painting? is a
fresh, focused look at painting. Bell addresses questions such as "does
anything unite those objects we call paintings?" and "what factors have
changed the nature of painting over the last two centuries?" by looking
at historical evidence and reasoning from common experience. The current
shape of painting pushes the book's arguments in new directions and a
substantial new chapter, The Arts and Art, speaks to the interplay
between 2D work, 3D work, and the immateriality of digital imagery. The
text has been revised paragraph by paragraph considering both force of
presentation andr />historical perspective. The intention is to provide
a general reader's introduction to theories of painting that is not only
reliably informative but stimulating and amusing to read. The book is an
introductory guide to art theory for everyone interested in
understanding modern art or in making art themselves.