A concise, reader-friendly, illustrated essay on Western art and architecture from prehistory to the present. Recognizing how architecture, painting, sculpture, and decorative arts reflect the culture and society of their time, this latest addition to the Art Essentials series invites the reader to experience and appreciate the whole of Western art from prehistory to the present. Each of the twelve chapters opens with a question for reflection, followed by a summary of the main historical developments of the period, addressing social structure, political organization, migration, race, religious beliefs, scientific advances, and customs. An exploration of these themes in the visual arts reveals how architecture, sculpture, and painting simultaneously shape, reflect, and record the culture of the era and place in which they were created. A secondary reflection explores the ever-evolving aesthetic preferences that oscillate between donatism and abstraction, as each era and style either revolts against or seeks to improve upon the previous one. Earlier origins and external influences are also discussed.