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aethelgifu's review against another edition
5.0
This would be my 'Desert Island' book - I've loved it and lived in it since I was 16.
readingoverbreathing's review against another edition
3.0
"Design, however, is the foundation of both these arts, or rather the animating principle of all creative processes; and surely design existed in absolute perfection before the Creation when Almighty God, having made the vast expanse of the universe and adorned the heavens with His shining lights, directed His creative intellect further, to clear air and the solid earth. And then, in the act of creating man, He fashioned the first forms of painting and sculpture in the sublime grace of created things."
I picked this up in a used bookshop with great curiosity after having read so many snippets and fragments from it as well as studying Vasari himself for art history at university. I thought it'd be interesting to read this pivotal work in its entirety and learn a little more about the Renaissance artists I know so well from one of their contemporaries.
This is certainly a dense work, denser, perhaps, than I had anticipated, but I found its level of detail, and Vasari's commitment to the facts, incredibly impressive. The vignettes he offered up were amusing, and I was surprised to learn just how much overlap there was across the lives of many of these artists.
I think it would be a stretch to really say I enjoyed this, as, again, it was pretty dense. My main issue was that Vasari spent a lot of time going into detail describing specific works, which, even with ones I was familiar with, I found difficult to visualize. I suppose at the time when you couldn't just quickly Google these pieces, this would have been helpful, but I honestly found these descriptions uninteresting and even sometimes rather overwhelming. I think reading an illustrated edition of this would be a wonderful experience, much more fulfilling than just reading a blanket description; I suppose I could have Googled this pieces as they arose for myself, but I honestly didn't really go to that effort.
All in all, I'm glad I picked this up, though, again, for the modern reader, I'd recommend seeing if you can find an illustrated edition that includes the works Vasari references, as I think it would allow for a far more rounded appreciation of both this text and the lives of the artists celebrated here themselves.
mducks's review against another edition
3.0
My edition of the Lives is no longer in print but this is a good translation and is worth reading by anyone interested in Renaissance art and politics. Vasari is deservedly the most famous writer on art and his contemporaries read and find some Italian art and understand the works.
stellamcvey's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.5
Only 2 more volumes of Vasari lying for fun
aoifeh_doheny's review against another edition
3.0
review coming soon
REVIEW HERE!
"Provided they are honest and innocent of lies, books travel freely and are trusted wherever they go."--Giorgio Vasari, Lives of the Artists, page 209.
Some quick thoughts:
1. It only focuses on Italian artists, at least in my shortened version. I couldn't find my edition here but of the twenty artists discussed, thirteen were from Florence and the rest from like two or three other Italian cities.
2. The only women mentioned are either unnamed wives, unnamed mistresses or saints. This may not be a big deal for some people, or it may be the kind of thing they pick up immediately.
3. The main theme of the paintings was Roman Catholicism. And then a bit more Roman Catholicism. And then some Greco-Roman myth. And then--you guessed it--Roman Catholicism.
4. The ultimate goal and the ultimate beauty of a painting lay in how near it was to Nature and real life.
5. I grew to like Vasari's voice. Some of the dryer highlights include:
"What a deplorable contrast is presented by our modern artists who are not content with injuring one another, but who viciously and enviously rend others as well."--page 139
"And if I have failed to mention any other foreigners and Florentines who have gone there to study, let me just say that where great artists flock, so do the lesser."--page 131
"[T]his comes at no surprise, since everyone in Florence has pretensions to understanding art as much as the experience master."--page 146
Also da Vinci's entire chapter was a rollercoaster that I won't describe for spoiler-y reasons, but that I highly recommened.
REVIEW HERE!
"Provided they are honest and innocent of lies, books travel freely and are trusted wherever they go."--Giorgio Vasari, Lives of the Artists, page 209.
Some quick thoughts:
1. It only focuses on Italian artists, at least in my shortened version. I couldn't find my edition here but of the twenty artists discussed, thirteen were from Florence and the rest from like two or three other Italian cities.
2. The only women mentioned are either unnamed wives, unnamed mistresses or saints. This may not be a big deal for some people, or it may be the kind of thing they pick up immediately.
3. The main theme of the paintings was Roman Catholicism. And then a bit more Roman Catholicism. And then some Greco-Roman myth. And then--you guessed it--Roman Catholicism.
4. The ultimate goal and the ultimate beauty of a painting lay in how near it was to Nature and real life.
5. I grew to like Vasari's voice. Some of the dryer highlights include:
"What a deplorable contrast is presented by our modern artists who are not content with injuring one another, but who viciously and enviously rend others as well."--page 139
"And if I have failed to mention any other foreigners and Florentines who have gone there to study, let me just say that where great artists flock, so do the lesser."--page 131
"[T]his comes at no surprise, since everyone in Florence has pretensions to understanding art as much as the experience master."--page 146
Also da Vinci's entire chapter was a rollercoaster that I won't describe for spoiler-y reasons, but that I highly recommened.
abigail_spencer's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
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