What Makes Great Art?

A richly illustrated guide to understanding what makes art meaningful, powerful, and enduring

For as long as people have made images, they have argued about which ones matter most. Why are some works of art celebrated as timeless masterpieces, while others fade from view? Who decides what counts as “great,” and on what grounds—beauty, skill, emotion, originality, cultural power, or something else entirely?

In What Makes Great Art?, art historian Janetta Rebold Benton guides readers through th...