Etruscan Art (The World of Art)

Rating:
Summary: Etruscan art in the Mediterranean world.
Review: In spite of it's modest dimensions and only 216 pages, this book gives a rather exhaustive account of Etruscan art.It goes from well known art like the bronze Chimaera from Arezzo to a multitude of votive human terracotta heads (meant as offerings or gifts in temples).
Discussing Etruscan art deals with mainly two problems. There are for example a number of wall paintings and decorated vases showing athletes performing their discipline. Since there survived several kinds of lists but no literature at all, we don't know if the Etruscans knew events like for instance the games of Olympia in Greece. There is nothing or very little known about their sociological structure. Moreover there are no archaeological sites with a stadium (or at least the foundations of it). Therefore, those wall paintings of athletes could also be regarded as imagination of the artist.
Another problem is the originality of Etruscan art. Many say that they were only capable of imitating Greek and Eastern examples. Nigel Spivey proves that the Etruscans had a high level of original art in spite of those cosmopolitan influences.
Strongly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: An Introduction to Etruscan Art
Review: The format of this survey of Etruscan art is typical of Thames and Hudson's (publishers) "World of Art" series: concise (200pp.), inexpensive, unevenly illustrated (186 photos, but only 37 in color). Author Nigel Spivey arranges his material in chronological order, from Villanovan Etruria (Early Iron Age, 1000 - 750 BC) through successive waves of Greek influence and Roman conquest, ending around 90 BC when the Etruscan cities had become thoroughly Roman in outlook and culture. A final chapter provides brief but interesting glimpses into historical responses to the Etruscan legacy, from Cosimo di Medici to D. H. Lawrence and the modern (and ancient) Italians.

The book is up-to-date (as of 1997) and interestingly written in a sometimes-aphoristic style, with a useful bibliography. As I closed the final page, I was left wanting more (and missing some old favorites, such as the Capitoline Wolf, that did not make it into the book). However, considering its inexpensive price and overall quality, it can certainly be recommended to readers who would like an introduction and overview of Etruscan art.

Rating:
Summary: An Introduction to Etruscan Art
Review: The format of this survey of Etruscan art is typical of Thames and Hudson's (publishers) "World of Art" series: concise (200pp.), inexpensive, unevenly illustrated (186 photos, but only 37 in color). Author Nigel Spivey arranges his material in chronological order, from Villanovan Etruria (Early Iron Age, 1000 - 750 BC) through successive waves of Greek influence and Roman conquest, ending around 90 BC when the Etruscan cities had become thoroughly Roman in outlook and culture. A final chapter provides brief but interesting glimpses into historical responses to the Etruscan legacy, from Cosimo di Medici to D. H. Lawrence and the modern (and ancient) Italians.

The book is up-to-date (as of 1997) and interestingly written in a sometimes-aphoristic style, with a useful bibliography. As I closed the final page, I was left wanting more (and missing some old favorites, such as the Capitoline Wolf, that did not make it into the book). However, considering its inexpensive price and overall quality, it can certainly be recommended to readers who would like an introduction and overview of Etruscan art.