Joseph Beuys is one of the most important and controversial German artists of the late twentieth century, an artist whose persona and art is so tightly interwoven with Germany's fascist past--Beuys was, after all, a former soldier in the Third Reich--that he has been a problematic figure for postwar and post-reunification Germany. In illuminating the centrality of trauma and the sustained investigation of the notion of art as the two defining threads in Beuys's life and art, this book offers a critical biography that deepens our understanding of his many works and their contribution.

...

This text provides students with insight into how historical and contemporary visual art, architecture, and design have engaged with social, cultural, political, and economic landscapes. The book establishes a visual foundation for students in covering important traditional aspects of the history of art of the period of the Renaissance and after through its most renowned works. It further demonstrates how artists have challenged issues within Western culture through various artistic mediums.