Painting as an Art

About this book

One of the twentieth centurys most influential texts on philosophical aesthetics Painting as an Art is acclaimed philosopher Richard Wollheims encompassing vision of how to view art. Transcending the traditional boundaries of art history he draws on his three great passionsphilosophy psychology and artto present an illuminating theory of the very experience of art. He shows how to unlock the meaning of a painting by retrievingalmost reenactingthe creative activity that produced it. In order to fully appreciate a work of art Wollheim argues critics must bring to the understanding of a work of art a much richer conception of human psychology than they have in the past. This classic book points the way to discovering what is most profound and subtle about paintings by major artists such as Titian Bellini Willem de Kooning.