Form & Decoration Innovation in the Decorative Arts 1470-1870

London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson. New. 1998. First Edition (?). Softcover. 0297824880 . Cover is heavy paper. Pages are clean and tight; this is a NEW book. Printed on glossy paper. Extravagantly illustrated with 437 color and b/w photos. Sections are: Florence and Venice 1470-1510; Rome and Florence 1510-1580; Venice 1510-1620; Paris 1530-1580; Antwerp 1530-1620; Augsburg and Nurnberg 1510-1640; Rome and Bologna 1580-1660; Paris 1610-1660; Amsterdam 1610-1670; Rome 1660-1720; Paris and Versailles 1660-1720; The Hague, London and the chief cities of Germany 1670-1730; Paris and the German Courts 1720-1760; Rome and Paris 1750-1820; London, Dublin and Philadelphia 1720-1800; Europe 1820-1870; index. Anyone interested in a history of the European decorative arts, in any form, has got to love this book, as well as any other by the award winning author, Peter K. Thornton. "Style does not originate in a vacuum. New styles are devised to meet new demands, responding to the needs and aspirations of patrons, to shifts in fashion, to leaps in technology, to the availability of materials, and even to political factors. The development of style is unpredictable, but not arbitrary; it builds on what has been done before, investing it with vitality by adding something new...this book's purpose is to draw attention to the vast repertoire of exemplars handed down to us from the past..." ISBN on book is 0297824880. Oversized, 4#. ; Photographs; 9 x 11; 216 pages .