Art historical text by R.H. Fuchs. "In this new survey R.H. Fuchs reviews its development from the foundation of Netherlandish realism in the fifteenth century the Van Eycks, through the elevated style of Renaissance history painting, the language of symbols of the seventeenth century and the work of its masters - Claesz's still life; the portraits of Hals and Rembrandt; and Ruisdael's landscapes - on through eighteenth- and nineteenth-century realism, right up to Van Gogh's pioneering Expressionism, the radical simplification of Mondrian, and the present-day art of Dibbets and Brouwn." -- from back wrapper. Includes 197 illustrations, of which 20 are in color. Text in English.