A01=Charlotte Mullins
anglo-saxon
art trade
artists of color
Author_Charlotte Mullins
Category=AGA
Category=NHD
colonial
colonies
empire
england
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
exploration
georgian
hirst
hockney
holbein
imperialism
norman
royalty
scotland
social history
tudor
turner
united kingdom
wales
women artists
Product details
- ISBN 9780300272130
- Dimensions: 156 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 14 Oct 2025
- Publisher: Yale University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
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The British Isles hold a unique position in the history of art, a place where local traditions fuse with international ideas in extraordinary ways
At once isolated by coastal boundaries, yet also part of larger networks of diverse peoples, these islands have always benefited from a dual perspective.
Artistic creativity in the British Isles stretches back to Ice Age engravings of reindeer, horses and birds. International networks were already shaping prehistoric art and by 1,000 CE artists working in Britain and Ireland were using lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, walrus tusks from Greenland, garnets from India and elephant ivory from Africa. The Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings and Normans introduced new styles from overseas, as did later European artists, attracted by the wealth of royal courts. Art was traded and looted across the British empire by colonial explorers, merchants and the military.
In the course of the 20th century these islands have been a refuge, but also a place where migrants have faced resistance. Sculptures by Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazi death camps, paintings by post-war Caribbean artists and protest murals sparked by the Troubles in Northern Ireland all express artists’ complex relationships with the idea of home.
Artists today such as Grayson Perry, Lubaina Himid, Yinka Shonibare, Rachel Whiteread and Edmund de Waal consciously reflect on this long history in their work, exploring concepts of identity and belonging.
Fresh, pacy and surprising, The Art Isles tells the story of why art in Britain and Ireland is so rich and dynamic – and why it has always extended far beyond geographical borders.
At once isolated by coastal boundaries, yet also part of larger networks of diverse peoples, these islands have always benefited from a dual perspective.
Artistic creativity in the British Isles stretches back to Ice Age engravings of reindeer, horses and birds. International networks were already shaping prehistoric art and by 1,000 CE artists working in Britain and Ireland were using lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, walrus tusks from Greenland, garnets from India and elephant ivory from Africa. The Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings and Normans introduced new styles from overseas, as did later European artists, attracted by the wealth of royal courts. Art was traded and looted across the British empire by colonial explorers, merchants and the military.
In the course of the 20th century these islands have been a refuge, but also a place where migrants have faced resistance. Sculptures by Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazi death camps, paintings by post-war Caribbean artists and protest murals sparked by the Troubles in Northern Ireland all express artists’ complex relationships with the idea of home.
Artists today such as Grayson Perry, Lubaina Himid, Yinka Shonibare, Rachel Whiteread and Edmund de Waal consciously reflect on this long history in their work, exploring concepts of identity and belonging.
Fresh, pacy and surprising, The Art Isles tells the story of why art in Britain and Ireland is so rich and dynamic – and why it has always extended far beyond geographical borders.
Charlotte Mullins is an art critic, writer and broadcaster. She has published over a dozen books on visual art, including A Little History of Art. She contributes to the weekly column “My Favourite Painting” for Country Life, is the presenter of the podcast Making a Mark for the Cristea Roberts Gallery and is a regular reviewer on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row.
