I thought this book would be more about art history or art appreciation, however it covered the psychology of how we view things and most of the writing was way above my head. I would only recommend this to college-level psychology students or professors. No one else will understand the writing.

*For good measure, I did not stop reading and finished the entire book. The writing wasn't bad, but my understanding didn't reach the level of the subject matter.

For the reader searching for a lively discussion of art and its increasing importance in an age dominated by distractions and a certitude that everything has an answer, J.F. Martel’s Reclaiming Art in the Age of Artifice is a great read.
The book begins with an excellent introduction from Donna Tartt. Some introductions make it painfully clear the author hasn’t even read the work, while others reveal so much information the reader wonders why they should bother reading the book. But Tartt’s intro lays out the strengths of the book while not sharing every detail of the book and adding a memorable personal story.
I’ve been a fan of J.F. Martel’s work since May 2018 when I came upon the Weird Studies podcast. Martel and his co-host Phil Ford had just released a fantastic episode discussing one of my favorite authors Philip K. Dick. I’ve listened to the podcast off and on ever since.
In this work, Martel skillfully cites works ranging from Herman Melville to James Hillman, from Albert Camus to Gilles Deleuze, from Fyodor Dostoevsky to Wilco. Martel begins the book by citing Werner Herzog’s Cave of Forgotten Dreams. Herzog goes into the Chauvet Cave, where some of humanity’s earliest known paintings were discovered. Martel uses Herzog’s documentary to begin a discussion of how the human imagination led to art so long ago and how art is one of the few things that differentiates humans from other animals.
My least favorite chapter was chapter six on politics and art, though even in this chapter I agree with his main point: overtly political art loses its power. My only quibble (and I'm really quibbling here, as this is a really outstanding book on the whole) is Martel’s asserting that authors must follow their visions regardless of their political beliefs, which I don't necessarily agree with. Dostoevsky does a compelling job of presenting atheist beliefs through the character of Ivan (Brothers Karamazov), as Martel notes. Also, in general, highly political works of art tend to be underwhelming because interpretations are limited. I think particularly of the heavy-handed Neil Young albums heavily influenced by political outrage. However, Radiohead and R.E.M. are contemporary bands who created politically inspired works that still held artistic merit. In the end, Martel’s main point holds water, as even though Hail to Thief is a good album, it doesn’t have the power of an album like Kid A or OK Computer, two albums more open to different interpretations.
My personal favorite chapter in the book is chapter five, wherein Martel discusses art and the mysterious. In our age where we search for permanence and pretend to have all the answers, art offers us the reality that we don’t have all the answers, that life is impermanent and that there are many things beyond our understanding. Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground foresaw the nihilism that dominated the world during the 20th century. The coincidences Martel cites with Wilco and 9/11 are intriguing and a strong example of the mystery that comes through art.
Ultimately, Martel's book is an excellent discussion about the power of art to remind us of the beauty and mystery, some of the very things that make life living, though it may get lost in our age dominated by artificial intelligence, by our endless quest for answers to everything, even those beyond our understanding. Through art, we can consider and connect with the things that are beyond our understanding,