In ”A History of Western Sculpture: From the Middle Ages to the Present”, Alkis Charalambidis examines the evolution of three-dimensional art—that is, the creation of images in physical, tangible form—from the Middle Ages to the present day. This is a study that not only traces the evolution of sculpture in the West over time, but also explores and highlights how people, in different historical, social, and aesthetic contexts, depict the world around them, objects, faces, and their stories through the mediums of carving, modeling, casting, and construction.

In this meticulously crafted and elegant 208-page volume featuring 376 color illustrations, the book examines the artist’s relationship with the medium and the subject matter, while also factoring in the viewer’s perception as a formative element. It traces the thread connecting the ornate carvings in Norway’s medieval timber-framed churches with Brancusi’s clean forms and Kirchner’s totemic Caryatids, the petrified kings in the cathedrals of Chartres and Saint-Denis with Giacometti’s emaciated figures, the cold perfection of Canova’s classicism with the non finito of Michelangelo and Rodin, Picasso’s cardboard guitar with the sturdy metal constructions of Smith and Serra, Moore’s monolithic forms with the ethereal acrobatics of Calder’s mobiles, Chryssa’s experiments and Saint-Phalle’s bold proposals with Andre’s purist geometry, the “numbness” of Oldenburg and Warhol’s carefree pop art with Beuys’s deeply contemplative creation, Takis’s devotion to the invisible forces of nature with the ecological and anthropocentric reflections of Kaniaris, Hatoum, and Ai Weiwei.

Finally, in response to the crucial question “What is the essence of sculpture today?”, the author proposes the concept of three-dimensional art—that is, the creation of images in physical, tactile terms.

Alkis Charalambidis is an emeritus professor of art history at AUTh.