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Title: Sister Wendy's Grand Tour: Discovering Europe's Great Art by Wendy Beckett, Sister Wendy Beckett ISBN: 1-55670-509-3 Publisher: Harry N Abrams Inc Pub. Date: 01 September, 1996 Format: Hardcover List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (1 review)
Rating: 5
Summary: A Thoroughly Absorbing Book for the Lay-Person
Comment: In a world where so many things compete for one's attention, the world of fine art is often overlooked for more contemporary and, as we often see it, more relevant media. This book opened up a whole new world for me as I read it, on an eight hour flight home to my native Britain from the US. I've since taken several art history courses and read a great deal more. Sister Wendy has had her critics in the art world, invariably from those elitists who would use art as a means to promote themselves, and perhaps don't wish to see any kind of knowledge or familiarity of great art trickle down to the person in the street. Sister Wendy, far from popularizing art in the trendy sense, individualizes it, not by personalizing it, but by humanizing it. While some of her interpretations may not always coincide with the the received criticism, she does something far more important and far more indicative of the true Christian nature of the woman; she humanizes it for us and thereby makes it accessible. What once looked like a painting of some people from the past on a balcony is now a comment on ourselves and our society, as relevant today as when it was painted, and that is the great truth Sister Wendy gave me: that art is not something to be afraid of but, like the great literature and music of the ages, with which many of us are infinitely more familiar, art is as important and as rich a source of the human experience, its moments and its continuity, as is any novel or symphony. I used to think that it was only given to a few people to really understand art, and that "I must not have a very visual mind" but I failed to see what is, in retrospect, quite stunningly obvious. Art was always, after all, meant to be seen, and with a little work to understand the references in a work, which viewers of the time would have often have immediately understood, and by not being afraid of it or thinking it obscure, one can find every bit as much satisfaction and humanity in a work of art as one can in literature. For me literature was always my habit, now, thanks to Sister Wendy, I have an art habit (all accusations of a very poor nun pun there are denied in the strongest possible terms). To be honest, I wasn't even all that interested in art. I knew nothing about it and didn't try to find out with any seriousness of intent, mostly because I thought it was all too terribly serious in itself and the arty people I knew all took themselves way too seriously. So, to her critics, I say, Sister Wendy has done more than anyone or anything I have encountered to truly bring art to the people, where it is meant to be. She does not jealously guard her knowledge of art, only to be shared with an elite few but, in true Christian spirit, is spreading an appreciation of it to those who might not otherwise care all that much, and gently opening up whole new amazing worlds for them. I thoroughly recommend this book to everyone.
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Title: Sister Wendy's 1000 Masterpieces by Wendy Beckett, Patricia Wright ISBN: 0789446030 Publisher: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Pub. Date: 01 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $40.00 |
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Title: Sister Wendy's Story of Painting (Enhanced and Expanded Edition) by Wendy Beckett, Patricia Wright, Sister Wendy Beckett ISBN: 0789468050 Publisher: DK Publishing Inc Pub. Date: 01 October, 2000 List Price(USD): $40.00 |
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Title: Sister Wendy's American Masterpieces: Sister Wendy Beckett's Selection of the Greatest American Paintings by Wendy Beckett, Patricia Wright ISBN: 0789459582 Publisher: DK Publishing Inc Pub. Date: 01 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Sister Wendy's Impressionist Masterpieces: Sister Wendy Beckett's Selection of the Greatest Impressionist Paintings by Wendy Beckett, Patricia Wright ISBN: 0789463067 Publisher: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Pub. Date: 01 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Sister Wendy's American Collection by Wendy Beckett, Toby Eady Associates, Wendy, Sister Beckett ISBN: 0060195568 Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Pub. Date: 01 November, 2000 List Price(USD): $40.00 |
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