The Art of
Reading Art

In The Art of Reading Art, Matthew Olivier expands his exceptionally popular online series into a conversational read of over 100 of history's great paintings — from Bosch's The Conjurer and Jan van Eyck's The Arnolfini Portrait to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks. In his uniquely welcoming style, Olivier captures, for readers, what these paintings say, and how exactly they say it.

Not a timeline of movements. Not an academic catalogue. A way of dwelling with paintings that helps a reader see what they say — without needing an art history degree.