This book is a bestselling survey of art history, newly expanded with additional artworks and fresh commentary across six overarching themes: looking, materials, mind, devotion, power, and sex.

How is art made? How can we interpret the meaning behind it? And what is the significance of the way in which it is displayed? Using six common themes that bind together art from around the globe, this lively and illuminating journey through art history seeks to answer these questions and more, drawing parallels across different time periods and cultures – from cave paintings to contemporary multi-media works.

This expanded edition of Dana Arnold's bestselling survey offers new illustrations and fresh insights – the perfect companion for anyone seeking to learn more across a stunning breadth of art. ‘The most compelling short exploration of the visual arts that I have read since John Berger's Ways of Seeing.’ - Edward Dimendberg, Professor of Visual Studies, University of California, Irvine.

‘A wonderful introduction to art: precise, accessible and informative. The reader is expertly conducted through the major approaches to the making and understanding of art across the world.’ - David Peters Corbett, Professor of Art History and American Studies, University of East Anglia

‘A highly readable introduction to art, drawing on a deep historical sensibility, engaged by the voices of the artists as well as the aesthetic criteria involved in making and looking at art. No other introduction to art addresses these basic aspects of viewing so pertinent to the age of the image.’ - Catherine M. Soussloff, Professor, Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory, University of British Columbia

Dana Arnold is a researcher, writer, and broadcaster on art, architecture, and culture. She has published extensively on Art and Architectural History and is the author of two bestselling books: Art History: A Very Short Introduction (OUP, 2021) and British Architecture: A Very Short Introduction (OUP 2024) and her British Art: A Very Short Introduction is forthcoming. Her work has been translated into more than 25 languages and she enjoys a world-wide following. She is currently Professor of Architecture at Manchester School of Architecture and her honorary roles include being a Trustee of the Federation of British Artists and the Mall Galleries in London.