What is a good art history book?

Question

Design

Hello. I am a beginner graphic designer and I heard somewhere that a graphic designer without knowledge of art history is not a designer.
Please tell me a good book on the history of art, so that there is no water and is not very sophisticated.

Answer 1

Hello!
It is strange that the question is posed in this way, and not "why should a designer know the history of art?".
Is the ability to distinguish baroque from rococo or elinism from archaic something to help you in, roughly speaking, drawing layouts, logos or creating an identity? Paul Rand, a famous American designer, in his books builds a theoretical foundation on his own knowledge of philosophy. For example, Descartes' deductive way of knowing perfectly clarifies the designer's method of work - from the general to the particular.
The idea that a designer must understand the paintings of Anatoly Zverev or Kokoschka was sucked out of thin air by art students who were fed new "isms" every week. I myself am one of those. Undoubtedly, you need to know the history of design, that is, the history of art from the end of the 19th century, when avant-garde and modernists appeared. You need to understand how the Golden Section works, how the Fibonacci numbers work, understand the theory of color ( Itten ), the basics of typography ( James Craig ). Own the tools with which you can bring your ideas to life. Why do you need to know what the Fayum portraits are - I do not understand.
I do not deny that people should be versatile, but to say that knowledge of the history of art for a designer is an axiom. I don't understand this. A designer is a utilitarian profession that solves certain problems. Rembrandt also solved the tasks set by the customer (“show that the night watch is tough peppers”), but Rembrandt did this without focusing on the purchasing power of the audience, on contrast, on context, on the concept. The customer paid for Rembrandt to do it the way Rembrandt does it.
In general, here are the "easy" art history books:
4. Go to the library, ask the local employees to help you find the right book to introduce you to the world of art.

Answer 2

there is no such
https://shakko-kitsune.livejournal.com/
everything is academic, but if
you don't need it

Answer 3

I recommend the New History of Art in Russian. Books are hard to come by though. Some are on trackers.

Answer 4

I recommend not to listen to nonsense, but to perceive art through the prism of books and films.
You may not believe it, but my sincere love for Rome, its architecture, temples, streets, sculptures and fountains, appeared due to just two films - popcorn "Angels and Demons" and the beautiful Woody Allen with his "Roman Adventures". I have been there three times already and would go 300 more times if possible.
Approximately the same thing happened with Moscow, only through the prism of books - first Akunin and his excellent ability to describe life and details, and then, logically, Gilyarovsky with his "Moscow and Muscovites".
Just go in the direction of what is interesting. Nobody is interested in reading abstract art history books.