The Use and Abuse of Art
(Paperback)
Publishing Details
The Use and Abuse of Art
By (Author) Jacques Barzun
Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press
29th August 1975
United States
Classifications
Professional and Scholarly
Non Fiction
700
Physical Properties
Paperback
160
Width 152mm, Height 229mm
227g
Description
"When an extremely intellectual, extremely experienced, extremely wise man shares his thoughts with others, the result seizes the imagination at once. Such is the effect of these essays, a series given as lectures at the National Gallery in 1973. Mr. Barzun examines art as religion, as destroyer, as redeemer, and in relation to what he calls "its temper, science", but never forgets the basic essential. As he says, "the last word on art should indeed be: mystery. But that need not stop any of us from dealing with it as if we understood more than we can". And how good it is to have one's mind stretched to that understanding of "more.""--Virginia Quarterly Review
Reviews
"When an extremely intellectual, extremely experienced, extremely wise man shares his thoughts with others, the result seizes the imagination at once. Such is the effect of these essays. . . . Barzun examines art as religion, as destroyer, as redeemer, and in relation to what he calls its tempter, science, but never forgets the basic essential. As he says, the last word on art should indeed be: mystery. But that need not stop any of us from dealing with it as if we understood more than we can. And how good it is to have ones mind stretched to that understanding of more." * Virginia Quarterly Review *
Author Bio
Jacques Barzun (19072012) was professor of history at Columbia University and the author of many books, including the bestselling From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life, 1500 to the Present; Simple and Direct; The Energies of Art; and The House of Intellect.
