James Beck (art historian)

James H. Beck ( born May 14, 1930 in New Rochelle, NY; † 26 May 2007 New York) was an American art historian.

Beck taught since 1963 art history at Columbia University and has written numerous books and articles on the art of the Renaissance (including Jacopo della Quercia over, Leonardo da Vinci, Masaccio, Michelangelo, Raphael).

He was founder and chairman of the Organisation Type Watch, which opposes the commercialization of museums and strong intervention by restorers.

This from the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art acquired for 45 million U.S. dollars painting Madonna with child of the painter Duccio di Buoninsegna designated Beck 2006 as a forgery.

Beck died on 26 May 2007 after prolonged illness in New York.

Works (excerpt)

• With Gino Corti: Masaccio, the documents. JJ Augustin, Locust Valley 1978
• Leonardo's rules of painting: an unconventional approach to modern art. Viking Press, New York 1979, ISBN 0670424277
• The tyranny of the detail: contemporary art in an urban setting. Willis, Locker & Owens, 1992 in New York, ISBN 0930279204
• Jacopo Della Quercia. Columbia University Press, New York 1992, ISBN 0-231-07200-7 (2 volumes)
• With Michael Daley: Art restoration: the culture, the business, and the scandal. J. Murray, London, 1994, ISBN 0719554306
• Italian Renaissance painting. Konerman, 1999 ( German: Paintings of the Italian Renaissance Könemann, Cologne 2001, ISBN 3829004850. )
• Raphael. Harry N. Abrams, New York 1999 ( German: . Raphael Dumont, Cologne 2003, ISBN 3832173366 )
• Three Worlds of Michelangelo. WW Norton, New York 1999 ( German: The Three Worlds of Michelangelo CH Beck, Munich 2001, ISBN 3406471935. )