Reddit mentions of Contemporary Art: A Very Short Introduction

This is an ok way of thinking about it...but if you really do want to appreciate it, OP, it is more than possible. Unfortunately (perhaps, although I like this aspect of it) contemporary art often ends up being more about (an) idea(s) than it is about the art object itself. If you walk in to a contemporary art gallery or museum without any prior knowledge, in reality you're not going to get much out of it. But if you want to go "beyond" your immediate, wholly personal reaction to a work, I'd say you need to bring other texts, other understandings of that work in to dialogue with what you see. Meaning...go check out some books on the topic of contemporary art. General beginners guides, like [Contemporary Art: A Very Short Introduction by Julian Stallabrass] (http://www.amazon.com/Contemporary-Art-Very-Short-Introduction/dp/0192806467/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341956544&sr=8-1&keywords=introduction+to+contemporary+art). The truth is that contemporary art is highly theoretical, and often refers to much more art history and theory than any period before it. Learn more about what these works refer to and you will find you get a flood of information coming at you when you look at a work. It's worth it!

It really depends on what she is interested in, it is a very broad subject. Here are some of the better things I've read in the past few years, trying to make up for a lack of art education in school:

History of Modern Art

Art in Theory 1900 - 2000: An Anthology of Changing Ideas

Color in Contemporary Painting: Integrating Practice and Theory

After Modern Art 1945-2000

Contemporary Art: A Very Short Introduction

Modern Sculpture: A Concise History

Sculpture since 1945

The Painting of Modern Life: Paris in the Art of Manet and his Followers

Aesthetics

The Art of Color: The Subjective Experience and Objective Rationale of Color

Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste