The History of Art in Six Emotions

Desire, suffering, wonder, doubt, joy, madness... We have heard these simple words a million times, but do we know their meaning for world art?
The history of art can be told from different perspectives: through techniques, movements, languages, or styles. Art historian Costantino d’Orazio chooses a different, unexplored path. The author invites us to embark on a journey through time from antiquity to the present day to discover how artists represented the emotions hidden in our most inexpressible and captivating dreams.
Costantino d’Orazio will guide you through famous masterpieces and lesser-known works that evoke a whole range of moods: desire, madness, joy, suffering, wonder, and doubt. Immerse yourself in the feelings that humanity has experienced and contemplated over the centuries. From the finds of Ancient Greece to the masterpieces of the Renaissance, from the inventions of Baroque to the revolutions of Romanticism, to the provocations of the twentieth century, art has attracted the emotions of women and men, creating symbols of art. Eros for desire, Prometheus for suffering, Medusa for madness, Magdalen for wonder, Polymnia for doubt, and cherubs for joy — these are just some of the figures that reveal the excitement of the emotions contained on these pages.