Booklist
Who's afraid of abstract art? Many, many people, it seems. Seldom has an art movement been so misunderstood, yet been so instrumental in shaping the direction of art in so many ways. In this series of lectures, distinguished art historian and critic Golding brings to life an often-disconcerting subject. Studded throughout with colorful illustrations, Golding shows the progression of modern, abstract art from its roots in expressionism and Fauvism to its postmodern expressions. The artists featured--Mondrian, Malevich, Kandinsky, Newman, Rothko, and Still--are all exemplars of a specific turn taken in the development of abstract art. Each chapter illustrates that turn and approachably describes each artist's artistic growth and influence on the future. Golding clearly communicates the artists' visions, the vision of abstract art, and why it's so important to understand the abstract movement in relation to where art is going. Golding's excellent work brings the reader from an artistic cloud of unknowing into expert mode with beauty and precision. Michael Spinella
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
The New York Review of Books
The restraint, subtlety, and intellectual rigor of John Golding's Paths to the Absolute . . . are especially timely.
