The Oxford History of Art is a series of over thirty books on the history of art and architecture. What are some opinions on them?
In particular I’ve been looking at the Early Medieval Architecture and Medieval Architecture volumes, respectively by R.A.Stelley and Nicola Coldstream. I’m not familiar with them but they seem to be pretty authoritative names. Both books are roughly 20 years old.
Can they be considered “in-depth” or are they more of an introduction? And if they are, are there any readings you could recommend? I’m not a student but I’m fairly well learned on architecture in the european Middle Ages, so I’ve been trying to find a more challenging book.
Thanks in advance
I’m by no means an expert on medieval architecture (hopefully, someone more familiar with these particular volumes will come forward to offer a specialist opinion), but I am extremely familiar with the modern architecture books from the Oxford series, and they are excellent: written by leading authorities on the given subject and with a depth and rigor that is challenging even for advanced students at the most selective institutions. I have been assigned readings from a number of volumes from the Oxford series in upper-level undergraduate or graduate art history courses, and I have also assigned readings from them in courses I have taught.
There are two other series you should look at: Yale/Pelican History of Art and the World of Art from Thames & Hudson. The books from these publishers are similar in approach and scope and are likewise written by some of the biggest names in the field. Again, I can’t say much about the titles dedicated specifically to medieval architecture, but if they are anything like those covering Japan, Islam, and early modern and modern architecture, I imagine you would find them enlightening. Some of the volumes from the Pelican series were first published nearly 70 years ago but are still considered to be seminal reading. Many of the oldest have received updates by a new generation of scholars in their recent editions.
Both are excellent, but are intentionally on the shorter side as far as comprehensive explorations go. The OHA series books are not meant to be one-stop-shops for <topic>, just excellent and authoritative introductions. Typically after the OHA book, you would want to zoom in further on a particular topic to get more in-depth. For instance, there are numerous studies of (western) Medieval architecture at specific sites, like London, Rouen, or Canterbury.
Some other introductory studies:
Ousterhout, Robert G. 2019. Eastern medieval architecture: the building traditions of Byzantium and neighboring lands. Newcastle upon Tyne : Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Bork, Robert Odell, William W. Clark, and Abby McGehee. 2011. New approaches to medieval architecture. Farnham, Surrey, England: Ashgate.
Marquardt, Janet T., and Alyce A. Jordan. 2009. Medieval Art and Architecture after the Middle Ages. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
McClendon, Charles B. 2005. The origins of medieval architecture: building in Europe, A.D 600-900. New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press New Haven.
Radding, Charles M., and William W. Clark. 1992. Medieval architecture, medieval learning: builders and masters in the age of Romanesque and Gothic. New Haven: Yale University Press.