1001 Paintings You Must See Before You Die

For the most part I loved this book. Who wouldn't love all the best paintings in one book? My complaints are the pictures of paintings are too small and they left out some of the most important paintings and artist in the world, no Keith Haring,no Jacques louis David but Damien Hirst all I have to ask is really. ( )

The title is self-explanatory. I have a guilty preference for books of this nature. It helps to see this not as a definitive statement of the top 1001 paintings in human history (from ancient Egypt to 2006), but as a roadmap of some of the most significant paintings, artists and movements. It certainly helped me in that regard, serving as a guide to point me toward artists I find particularly intriguing, and expanding my knowledge of old favorites. The format is well-organized and informative; each page (or 1/2 page occasionally) shows the painting, biographical information on the artist, his postulated intent and frame of mind in creating the painting, any relevant historical information, and a written persuasion of why this painting satisfys the book's title. I was most intrigued by Monet's "Impression" (which inspired the title of the Impressionist movement), Winslow Homer's "Snap the Whip", and Andrew Wyeth's "Christina's World", an old favorite of mine which I saw in New York a few weeks prior to reading this book. Actually, I wish I'd read this book before my New York trip; many of the paintings herein I remember from the museums we visited, and it would have increased my pleasure. I was not so taken with the latter part of the 20th century (nor the next century); it seems almost totally comprised of abstract paintings that do not appeal to me so much. I was interested by the editors' valiant attempts to make sense of the works, though. My only real quibble with the book, strange though it might be for a nearly 1000-page book, is the small size of the reproductions. I realize cost is a factor here, but I would have gladly paid much more for a coffee-table size book that would have room for decently-sized illustrations. ( )

A cliché art book that actually delivers. ( )

I love the fact that many of these paintings are reproduced (in however small a form here). Makes for a very useful book... ( )

Pros: fast food book; good selection
Cons: some pictures are too small! ( )