Reviews

Art + Travel: Discover the Worlds of Your Favorite Painters by Jillian Tamaki, Museyon Guides

vanessakm's review

4.0

Alas, I'm not planning a trip to Europe anytime soon but I loved this book anyways. This guide takes five great artists and provides travel information to deepen your experience of their work. Goya for Spain, Van Gogh for the South of France, Caravaggio for Italy, Munch for Norway and Vermeer for Holland. Yes, it's a travel book but it's well-written and full of historical background on the artist's lives and eras and beautiful reproductions of their paintings with information on how and when they were created. I picked this up on a whim at the library and ended up loving it. Few art books give the proper geographical context. I loved how this book, for example, contrasted Van Gogh's pictures with photos of the actual landscapes that inspired him.

It also has practical information about where to stay and eat and walking tour routes so that you can plan a vacation to see both these artists' works and their milieu. The author also suggests additional reading, local festivals to attend and when to visit. Even if you aren't traveling, you'll learn a lot.