One problem with art reference books is that they are very expensive. Expect to pay between 60-80 dollars for the latest editions of Gardner or Stokstad. Perhaps you might think about getting a used copy of Gombrich's The Story of Art, which is quite good, and weighs less than the 20-pound behemoths. I would rank the major 100-101-110-type books as follows: 1. Gardner's Art Through the Ages (new 11th edition has GREAT photos, up to date, etc. etc. Fred Kleiner, a Boston U. classical art professor actually delegated the writing to experts in each field, which makes a huge difference) 2. Marylin Stokstad's Art History. Weighs a few pounds less than Gardner but it is also pretty through and well done..her problem is that she tries to write chapters on topics (like on Islamic art) that she has no experience in, and they are a little 'dubious' as a result. 3. Frederick Hartt... 4. Janson... I never liked either of these. But you might get yourself a biographical dictionary (Yale, Oxford, Penguin, Bullfinch)since as was previously mentioned, there are very few good questions ON art that are not among the '25 most popular/well known objects.' Better to just learn who studied under who, and other QB chestnuts. - Guy
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