Pop Art (Big Art Series)

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive and colorful
Review: First, an admission: I judge books about pop art mainly by the pictures. And by that measure, this book offers one of the broadest and most pleasing collection of pop art pieces to be found between two covers. The large 9-1/2" x 12" format allows for excellent reproduction of the art with ample detail. The vast majority of the photos are in color, and the few that aren't don't suffer greatly for it.

But even though I'm a pictures-first kind of guy, the supporting text has to be informational and relevant. Again, by this measure, this book delivers. The text by Osterwold is lucid and perceptive, without being overly-academic (which is the downfall of many a pop art book). The translation from German was done expertly, for it reads well in English without any obvious awkwardness in style.

Prior to this book, the best overall historical discussion of the subject was found in Lucy Lippard's _Pop Art_ (also available on Amazon), first published in the early 70s and reprinted in 1985. That book remains a worthy addition to any pop art aficionado's library, but if you're only looking for one book as a general treatment of the subject, Osterwold's is the one to get.

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive and colorful
Review: First, an admission: I judge books about pop art mainly by the pictures. And by that measure, this book offers one of the broadest and most pleasing collection of pop art pieces to be found between two covers. The large 9-1/2" x 12" format allows for excellent reproduction of the art with ample detail. The vast majority of the photos are in color, and the few that aren't don't suffer greatly for it.

But even though I'm a pictures-first kind of guy, the supporting text has to be informational and relevant. Again, by this measure, this book delivers. The text by Osterwold is lucid and perceptive, without being overly-academic (which is the downfall of many a pop art book). The translation from German was done expertly, for it reads well in English without any obvious awkwardness in style.

Prior to this book, the best overall historical discussion of the subject was found in Lucy Lippard's _Pop Art_ (also available on Amazon), first published in the early 70s and reprinted in 1985. That book remains a worthy addition to any pop art aficionado's library, but if you're only looking for one book as a general treatment of the subject, Osterwold's is the one to get.

Rating:
Summary: diversity
Review: This book was great! I really enjoyed it. It has a diverse selection of pieces in it, sculptures and paintings. It also had great explanations of the artists intent. I highly suggest this one.