REMBRANDT

Another fine entry in the Masters of Art series that is coming to represent the very best in art books for young people. Pescio provides a panoramic view of 17th-century Holland as seen through the eyes of artists such as Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Frans Hals, as they developed their original styles of painting for the prosperous merchants of the great trading nation. Rembrandt is the focal point of this comprehensive volume, from his beginnings as a renegade young artist defying the guild system to his popularity as a painter of individual and group portraits, ""history paintings,"" and landscapes. Every page is filled with good quality, fullcolor reproductions of famous paintings along with lucid analysis. Sergio offers scintillating counterpoints to the artists' stories with his meticulous illustrations of Holland's distinctive architecture, intricate canal system, and artists' studios during this glorious period of history. The book's great strength is its breadth, thoroughly examining the cultural, political, and religious forces at work, and its inclusion of artists who influenced and were influenced by Rembrandt.