The World of Art

Very few books try to capture a subject as vast as the world of art, and even fewer succeed. But Robert Payne has succeeded, and in this book he portrays, in vivid, fresh, nontechnical language, the entire history and achievement of the world’s artists—from the original caveman painters who decorated their homes with animal paintings to contemporary artists, who fill their canvases with often bewildering abstract forms. Payne approaches each artistic period and each great artist with sympathetic understanding and an appreciation of the values and aesthetic ideals of the time. Through carefully chosen illustrations woven into his text, moreover, he shows exactly what makes a work of art great.

WORLD OF ART casts its view over all the types of art: not only the Western tradition, but the contributions of Egypt, Persia, India, China, Japan, and other important cultures as well. Yet the book is more than a mere survey, for Robert Payne's special brilliance lies in showing the common spirit and aspiration that have united all the world's great artists.

“The main value of this book is spontaneity. There is nothing pedantic about it. Although it ranges all over the world art from its earliest beginnings to the present, the author keeps the flow of his account moving at a rapid pace. Its importance is to offer a fast-paced critical reassessment of the history of art in terms of today’s outlook. Mr. Payne relies chiefly on a beautiful use of language, which enables him to telescope the essence of a culture or period into a few well-turned paragraphs. He gives the reader a dynamic reevaluation based on critical judgments and first-hand observations rather than a rehash of conventional academic views…

“Rather than the pedantic accuracy of an encyclopedia approach, Mr. Payne’s book possesses the rare quality of persuasiveness and enthusiasm, and it will send the reader off to go and look.”
—Henry A. La Farge, Senior Editor, Art News

Robert Payne (1911-l983) was born in Cornwall, U.K. His father was English, his mother French. He was educated at St. Paul's School in London and at the universities of Liverpool, Capetown in South Africa, Munich and The Sorbonne.

During his lifetime he had over a hundred books published on a wide range of subjects, the widest range of any known author. He was known chiefly for his biographies and history books, among them Hitler, Lenin, Stalin, Gandhi, Leonardo, Chaplin, the Christian Centuries, The World of Art. He also wrote novels and poetry.

Librarians loved him; critics raved about him. Orville Prescott of The New York Times referred to him as "a literary phenomenon of astounding versatility and industry."