A Little History of Art

這本生動的著作非常適合早熟的高中生、懶惰的大學生……以及任何希望更好地掌握這一主題的成年人……Mullins給讀者留下了對藝術和人類故事的廣泛、深刻的賞析。——《華爾街日報》梅根·科克斯·古爾登（Meghan Cox Gurdon）

 

“這是對我們所知的藝術史的全新解讀。”——凱蒂·赫塞爾（Katy Hessel），《The Great Women Artists Podcast》

 

Charlotte Mullins通過創作者的故事將藝術栩栩如生地展現出來，重新詮釋了故事中的角色，創造出一個更多元化、更令人興奮的藝術風景。他展示了藝術如何幫助我們以不同的方式看待世界，並理解我們在其中的位置，它如何幫助我們表達自己，激發我們的創造力，並有助於我們的整體健康和積極心理健康。

 

我們的祖先為什麼要創作藝術？藝術對他們意味著什麼，而他們的藝術對我們今天又代表了什麼？甚至於藝術為何重要呢？

 

本書向讀者介紹了兵馬俑和諾克雕塑，文藝復興時期的藝術家如喬托和米開朗基羅，包括凱特·科爾維茨、巴布羅·畢加索、弗里達·卡羅等開拓者，以及將藝術視為抵抗的當代藝術家，如艾未未和雪林·內沙特。作者也描述了諸多「被遺忘的藝術家」，如索菲娜斯巴·安圭索拉、關道生和雅各布·勞倫斯。他還前往尼日河谷、秘魯、爪哇、復活島和澳大利亞，拓寬我們對藝術是什麼以及應該是什麼的理解。

 

這次跨越10萬年的非凡旅程，再次凸顯了藝術對於理解我們的集體文化和歷史，至關重要的地位。

A thrilling journey through 100,000 years of art, from the first artworks ever made to art’s central role in culture today
 
“This lively volume is ideal for the precocious high-schooler, the lazy collegian . . . and any adult who wishes for greater mastery of the subject. . . . Mullins leav[es] readers with an expansive, no-regrets appreciation of art and the human story.”—Meghan Cox Gurdon, Wall Street Journal
 
“A fresh take on art history as we know it.”—Katy Hessel, The Great Women Artists Podcast
 
Charlotte Mullins brings art to life through the stories of those who created it and, importantly, reframes who is included in the narrative to create a more diverse and exciting landscape of art. She shows how art can help us see the world differently and understand our place in it, how it helps us express ourselves, fuels our creativity and contributes to our overall wellbeing and positive mental health.
 
Why did our ancestors make art? What did art mean to them and what does their art mean for us today? Why is art even important at all?
 
Mullins introduces readers to the Terracotta Army and Nok sculptures, Renaissance artists such as Giotto and Michelangelo, trailblazers including Käthe Kollwitz, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, and contemporary artists who create art as resistance, such as Ai Weiwei and Shirin Neshat. She also restores forgotten artists such as Sofonisba Anguissola, Guan Daosheng and Jacob Lawrence, and travels to the Niger valley, Peru, Java, Rapa Nui and Australia, to broaden our understanding of what art is and should be.
 
This extraordinary journey through 100,000 years celebrates art’s crucial place in understanding our collective culture and history.