Have to admit I stopped reading a quarter in to watch the documentary instead. Watch the series first—the visual medium is so much more suited for art (in my opinion) and is much richer than just text, no matter how vibrant Schama's writing is. It's all on YouTube... no excuses!! ( )

I couldn’t put it down. One of the most compelling introductions to any subject I’ve ever read. Now, in museums, in classes, in my room surfin’ the net, I find myself remembering the sordid, passionate lives of Caravaggio and Van Gogh and Rothko and David. And Schama portrays each one in such vividly articulated descriptions, from their life to their artwork.

I must say, though, that I despise the Rothko chapter—maybe because I can’t stand his art, either. Who gives a shit about red lines on a canvas. And sure, no, I’m not one to criticize modern art—although after reading this book, you’ll feel prepared.

If I can choose one thing about this book, it’s the way Schama constantly attempts to propel emotions into us, to drive them in like darts, describing each painting as if it was a world within its own, our world, our reality, as if it was burnt onto our eyelids, as if we were blind and needed to know exactly how to feel, how to understand.

Incredible.
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a little over the top. not enough opinion about the illustrated works. it's not very helpful to talk about work you can't see. i could barely lift this book. ( )

I debated over and over whether to give this book three stars or four, and finally decided on the latter. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I read this as a stand-alone book, not a companion piece to the PBS series of the same name, as I'm not sure that I'd be able to stand Schama's endless attempts to dramatize and eulogize everything, implying that there is somehow meaning in even the most minute detail of the canvas, not the mention the personal lives of the artists.

Schama devotes forty or fifty pages a piece to eight artists presented in chronological order: Caravaggio, Bernini, Rembrandt, David, Turner, Van Gogh, Picasso, and Rothko. The text is interlarded with the most sumptuous full-plate color representations of some of the artists' most well-known and recognized work. One of the biggest advantages of the book is that, while technical aspects of the individual pieces of art are discussed, they are not put in a vacuum: Schama simultaneously emphasizes cultural, political, and social factors which facilitate a greater and fuller understanding of what he's talking about.

Depending on the reader (or, so I hear, the viewer of the eponymous PBS series), you will find Schama's prepossessing gregariousness and endless apotheosizing somewhat disconcerting. I certainly did. But at the same time, I recognize that if this is what it takes to get someone who has never previously cared about art into a museum to leave astounded and wanting to come back, then it has ultimately performed its job quite nicely. Introductory art educators or those who wish to gain a fundamental familiarity with the above artists will benefit most from this book. But those who already have this knowledge, as well as how the biographical information and the artwork interact with one another, will learn precious little. I must say, though, that the dozens upon dozens of color plates make the book well worth its $50 price tag (though from the looks of things, it's available for less than half that on Amazon). ( )

Excellent introduction to the works and lives of the eight artists starring in this book. Brilliant erudition exposed in lively writing. A very good way to make your start in art history.
Some critical remarks: it seems that for Schama a work of art is particularly powerful if the artist puts much of his (her?) own experience in it. Is a powerful work of art the same thing as "[the] Power of Art"? What about works by artists from Antiquity or Middle Ages? If the expression of personal (emotional)experience is absent, can a work of art still be powerful? I would have liked a little bit more of general reflections in a book with such a title. Even if this would mean trespassing on the territory of aesthetics...
The different chapters could be published as independent booklets or essays. This is probably the consequence of the initial nature of "Simon Schama's Power of Art" - a TV series. But in editing the text for book publication some rewriting could have been done making some more cross-references and unifying thus a little bit more the fascinating subject matter of this book.
The reproductions are very fine and well-placed next to the text they are illustrating. ( )