Art History Methods

Art history as a discipline is currently going through a remarkable period in which both traditional and new theoretical approaches to visual art are being discussed. The first part of this introductory handbook, Methods of Art History, examines the subjects of the discipline of art history, the personality of the art historian, and the fundamentals of art history techniques. It then explores the main figures in art history and the major currents of the discipline in the second half of the 20th century, focusing on the latest trends in the interpretation of artistic and pictorial works. An important part of the publication is a discussion of the basic concepts of art history (style, structure, theme-symbol, function-role, and historicity) and an overview of the most significant art-historical approaches, approaches from different disciplines, and applied approaches in multidisciplinary fields. The volume is intended primarily for students of art history and follows on from the previous volume, The School of Art History.