Electa gains access at last to the valuable texts in the great manual by Paola Barocchi. The history of italian art reconstructed via a constant comparison of writings by artists, clients, critics and historians.
The first in a series that rearranges, comments on and links up the writings that accompanied the production of painters, sculptors and architects, who discussed their work and actions and argued about or justified cultural choices. Art historians, critics, journalists and the artists themselves plus events, declarations, controversies and thoughts – all these are at the core of the book, which covers the period from 1859 to 1883. This material would be difficult to follow were it not constantly compared and commented in detail with long introductions, notes, chronologies and biographies that provide a minute by minute understanding of important ideas, criticisms and aesthetics on modern art.