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Title: Interesting premise not fulfilled
Review: This book has an interesting premise: that the central theme of Western art has been the exaltation of the human body. Unfortunately it doesn't do a particularly good job of making its case; instead, Rice rambles on about random masterpieces that ostensibly support his thesis. At some point he makes the claim that Fragonard's "The Bathers" is "the most powerful composition in the world." Seriously? According to the author, art gets derailed in the 19th century, and what we need to get back on track is a unifying purpose. While I'm sympathetic to his nostalgia for a time when painting and sculpture was central to culture, Rice's conservatism strikes me as profoundly naive and close-minded.
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