If you want to understand art iconography (the author prefers 'symbols') this is the book to read. In just four chapters: power; faith; uncertainty; hope, each of which has twelve themes, Matthew Wilson reveals the meaning behind a piece of art that is there for all to see but to appreciate it properly requires some background awareness.
Erwin Panofsky was the art historian who inspired Wilson to analyse art and discover the various themes that artists used in their work. One of the attractions of the book for me was the very wide range of art considered. The essay on Lotus has a photo of the 'Shivaas the Lord of Dance' statue from centuries ago, the Mirrors essay has John William Waterhouse's 'The Lady of Shalott', 1894 painting, and more or less up-to-date Picasso's 'Guernica', a painting surely loaded with symbols in the Raging Bulls essay.
Each of the forty-eight themes is written as an illustrated self-contained essay and Wilson writes in an easy conversation style with some delightful humorous touches, the elephant essay is called 'Next stop, Elephant and Castle' labyrinth is called 'Lose yourself in a history of Labyrinths.
The book has 249 illustrations of paintings and sculptures, each with a technical caption (artist, date, size) but also a few words about the meaning of the work. Considering the price I thought this was a bargain for any art lover
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