The Nude: A Study in Ideal Form (original 1956; edition 1956)

While it's written in a very accessible style, this book is aimed at art historians. If statements like "The ideal form of Apollo scarcely appears again before that false dawn of the Renaissance, Nicola Pisano's pulpit in the Baptistery of Pisa" don't leave you scratching your head about who Pisano was and when that false dawn happened (the book doesn't give even a hint), then you might really get a lot out of it. Laymen such as myself can still enjoy it, but might feel--as I did--that you're missing out on many of Clark's finer points. ( )

298 illustrations in b&w

Clark is delightful to read and his analysis is fascinating ( )