THE STORY OF LOOKING by Mark Cousins (Canongate Books, 2017)
As with his previous book – The Story Of Film (the tie-in with the brilliant Channel 4 series) , Mark Cousins acts as an articulate and able guide in the same way that E.H. Gombrich did for ‘The Story of Art’ in 1950.
Like Gombrich, the language is kept simple and jargon free in order to appeal to readers of all ages.
It’s easy to imagine Cousins carefully preparing each chapter in the same way as teachers put together lesson plans. He’ll have pack of slides to show and discuss in the classroom but he’ll be ready to shuffle these up to keep students on their toes and to relieve boredom.
There is clearly an educational purpose behind such an ambitious study but there also a desire to keep things as light, accessible and entertaining as possible. Continue reading
