"Art and Illusion" is one of the most inspired books of art criticism and a fundamental reference work for the study of representation. The answer to the question "What is the style of an artist?" is not simple. E.H. Gombrich, using his keen insight and vast knowledge of history and psychology of visual representation, approaches a series of critical issues. Trying to prove that faithful representation of reality is much more difficult than we usually think, Gombrich examines, challenges, and reevaluates older and more contemporary views on representation and "imitation," the role of artistic conventions, abstraction, the rendering of perspective depth, and illusion in the plastic arts.
Gombrich was always distinguished for his ability to deeply understand the issues of artistic creation, both theoretically and otherwise. At the same time, he never ceased to be amazed by the inexhaustible inventiveness of the human spirit, as well as the subtle differences in the way art can be approached by creators and the public.
The sixth and definitive edition (2002) of this classic work, first published in 1960, is accompanied by a new Introduction in which the author explores the thorny issue of the relationship between image and point."