The Appreciation of the Arts. Vol. 4. The Art of Appreciation by Harold Osborne, and: Painting by Peter Owen (review)

Books 265 classical'. In his celebrated thesis, 'Principles ofArt History' (1915), Heinrich Wolffiin completely disregarded the existence of Mannerism. Between 1918-20, during his lectures at the University of Vienna, Max Dvorak fully treated Mannerism as an independent style. His lectures were published posthumously within his 'Geschichte der italienischen Kunst im Zeitalter der Renaissance' (192729 , Munich). Nikolaus Pevsner gave a short account ofMannerism in 'Die italienische Malerei vom Ende der Renaissance bis zum ausgehende Rokoko' (,HandbuchderKunstwissenschaft', Wildpark-Postdam , 1928). Dvorak's idea of the 'Age of Mannerism ' as a cultural tie among European countries was defended by Otto Benesh in his book on 'The Art of the Renaissance in Northern Europe' (Cambridge, 1967). This style, which culturally unified Europe for a while, was well exploited by the Council of Europe in 1965 when they organized an exhibition in Amsterdam entitled 'The Triumph of European Mannerism'. The two latest publications on Mannerism, inspired by the preparations for this exhibition, were Jacques Bousauet's 'La peinture manieriste' (Neuchatel, 1964) and Arnold Hauser's 'Mannerism' (London, 1965). Chastel actually avoids using the term 'Mannerism '. He labels the era between 1520 and 1600 in Italian art 'The Crisis of the Renaissance'. Because of the conflicts of the period, the art has many significant components and they do not appear in anyone work. Chastel has taken account of this situation. Chastel is not only a scholar but an educator as well, for he gives in this book a new aspect to the teaching of art history. In every chapter, with deep philosophical conclusions , he presents the cultural atmosphere surrounding the particular question he is treating. The titles serve as key words for the treated questions . The subtitles usually suggest the nature of the particular crisis under consideration. For example, in the section entitled 'Force of style: The Inheritors', Chastel talks about those masters who inherited styles from Raphael or Michelangelo. The subtitles 'Terribilita' and 'Venusta' express conflict or crisis and relate these subdivisions to the entire book. I feel that in the chapter on 'Strangeness ofLiving Things', Leonardo de Vinci's scientific work should have been mentioned in the background material. In the chapter on 'Apparati and Masquerades', it would have been interesting to include the bizarre journey of Charles V and his reception in Chateau Chambord. The book is copiously illustrated but the fine text saves it from being simply an attractive picture book. The Appreciation of the Arts. Vol. 4. The Art of Appreciation. Harold Osborne. 296 pp., illus.£2.50. Vol. 5. Painting. Peter Owen. 301 pp. illus. £3.50. Oxford University Press, London, 1970. Reviewed by: Norman Narotzky* * C6rcega 196, Barcelona 11, Spain. 'The Art of Appreciation' is the fourth (the first three were reviewed in Leonardo 4, 183 (1971) in this series ofbooks aimed at developing in the reader the skills and understanding necessary for an informed appreciation of the arts. The author, who is also general editor of the series, sees the acquisition of appreciative skills as a developing of our powers of perception, our ability to become increasingly aware of a thing in a special