I found this to be a good introductory text to the art of this era. By "Baroque", Kitson means the era, during the 17th and 18th centuries, rather than just the style of art. As such, he points out that Baroque art was not the only style in vogue during the era: Classicism, Rococo and Realism would all compete and influence one another. There are two hundred illustrations, one hundred of them color plates. The are numbers in the margins referring the reader to a particular illustration as appropriate; I found this very helpful. A few were incorrect, but generally only by one number or so, and it was easy to find the correct plate. I have learned a great deal more about the definitions of the particular art styles, especially Baroque, although I already had a "sense" of which was which. I was not previously aware of the complexity with which the styles interacted. ( )

Original title: The age of Baroque ( )