Eric Michaud has written a brilliant book that has substantially revised my understanding of European art history and historiography. (This is not a book for the uninitiated. You need a pretty strong grounding in European art and social history to appreciate the importance of this book.)

Eric Michaud has written a brilliant book that has substantially revised my understanding of European art history and historiography. (This is not a book for the uninitiated. You need a pretty strong grounding in European art and social history to appreciate the importance of this book.)

Eric Michaud has written a brilliant book that has substantially revised my understanding of European art history and historiography. (This is not a book for the uninitiated. You need a pretty strong grounding in European art and social history to appreciate the importance of this book.)

Since I retired, I've been reading an enormous number of art books and art history, but I couldn't make it through this one. As Anna Russell said in her parody of Wagnerian disciples, it's apparently "written by a Great Expert for the edification of other Great Experts". It's extremely academic, in the worst sense, and relies much more on earlier theoretical writings than on actual works of art. Primarily for those most interested in arguing about terminology.

Since I retired, I've been reading an enormous number of art books and art history, but I couldn't make it through this one. As Anna Russell said in her parody of Wagnerian disciples, it's apparently "written by a Great Expert for the edification of other Great Experts". It's extremely academic, in the worst sense, and relies much more on earlier theoretical writings than on actual works of art. Primarily for those most interested in arguing about terminology.