Baroque Book

A richness of visual and descriptive exemplification is paired with clarity and thoroughness to deliver a top-notch primer on the period. Martin manages to wrangle vast differences into a coherent analytical model that doesn't make easy elisions to obfuscate that complexity. For instance, here is how he helpfully breaks down the Baroque into periods: "The first or 'Early Baroque' phase, essentially a naturalistic one, originated in Italy, and its pioneering figure was beyond doubt Caravaggio...'High Baroque' found its fullest realization in the sensuousness and colourism of Rubens...The third or classicist phase, in which the opulent and emotional qualities of the 'High Baroque' were supplanted by a more rigorous order, clarity and composure, had its beginnings in Rome in the early 1630s...'Late Baroque' [equates to the] later Louis XIV style, with its decorative reworking of the classic vocabulary." From there he goes on to analyze works through the lenses of space, light, time, etc., which gives the reader a grasp of those concepts in art, in general, while also underscoring their importance to the 17th century. A highly recommended resource, even if just for the wealth of wonderful images alone.