A Guide to Eighteenth Century Art

A Guide to Eighteenth-Century Art offers an introductory overview of the art, artists, and artistic movements of this period, and the social, economic, philosophical, and political debates that helped shape them. It uses an innovative framework to highlight the roles of tradition, modernity, and hierarchy in the production of artistic works during this influential era.

The book spans a broad range of topics from the trade and craft of art; the hierarchy of genres; and the emerging public for artistic works; through to the relationship of art to wider cultural developments of the Enlightenment; art and morality, and much more. It also explores the relationship between western art and the growth of colonialism. In examining the art of the period, Walsh reflects the latest research and insights from contemporary scholars. Complete with numerous illustrations and supported by online resources, A Guide to Eighteenth-Century Art offers illuminating insights into the dramatic artistic achievements that transpired between the waning days of the Baroque and the Age of Revolution.