YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS: Max Ernst by Werner Spies and Sabine Rewald. 310 pp.; 9 1/2 x 12 1/4; 272 Illus., 184 in Color; Chronology; Selected Bibliography; Index. $65.00 Hardcover. Published in conjunction with a retrospective of the artist’s work at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (thru Jul 10), Max Ernst is a major reassessment of Ernst’s life, work and affect on the course of modern art. Second (to some) only to Picasso in his innovation and influence, Max Ernst made his mark not only in Germany and France, but the U.S. as well, finally exerting his often enigmatic vision on the development of the Abstract Expressionists. Lavishly illustrated and impressive in its scope. ***** Constructed Abstract Art in England: A Neglected Avant Garde by Alastair Grieve. 272 pp.; 10 x 11 1/2; 300 Illus., 150 in Color; Appendices; Chronology; Notes; Bibliography; Index. $65.00 Hardcover.  Author Alastair Grieve brings to light a hitherto overlooked group of English abstractionists (headed by Victor Pasmore, and followed by Kenneth & Mary martin, Adrian Heath, Robert Adams, John Ernest and Gillian Wise), analyzing their inception and development during the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. Handsomely produced and lavishly illustrated. ****El Greco by David Davies and John H. Elliott. 320 pp.; 9 1/2 x 12 1/2; 170 Color Illus.; References; Bibliography; Index. $40.00 Softcover. Reprinted now in a softcover edition, the highly praised El Greco has all the features of the hardbound edition — a comprehensive overview of the life and work of the artist lavishly illustrated with excellent reproductions — at a very modest price. A must for any serious art library. *****

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON PRESS: Collected Opinions: Essays on Netherlandish Art in Honour of Alfred Bader (Eds.) Volker Manuthy and Alex Rüger. 296 pp.; 9 x 11; 96 Color Illus.; Notes. $60.00 Hardcover. Some twenty-two scholars (including the editors) offer up a compendium of insights and analyses on the subject of Netherlandish art. Includes commentary on such artists as Rembrandt, Dou, van Ruisdael, Elsheimer, Lievens, Van Dyck, Vermeer, and others. A very handsome addition to any art library. ***** Jean Hélion by Didier Ottinger, et al. 216 pp.; 11 x 11; 160 Illus., 100 in Color; Chronology; Bibliography; Index. $50.00 Softcover. Shunned and almost forgotten after his “betrayal” of post-cubist abstraction to once again pick up figurative art, Hélion is here resurrected for us with an overview of both his life and work. Published to coincide with recent exhibitions in France and Spain, the show is now scheduled to appear at the National Academy Museum, NYC (Jul 14-Oct 9). ***Hungary’s Heritage: Princely Treasures from the Esterházy Collection (Ed.) András Szilágyi. 128 pp.; 7 7/8 x 10; 110 Color Illus.; Bibliography. Published to coincide with a recent exhibition in England, Hungary’s Heritage presents an overview of the extensive art and artifacts of the famed Esterházy Collection in Budapest, Hungary. An impressive celebration of the wide extent and holdings of Magyar culture. *****Cape Dorset Sculpture by Derek Norton, et al. 144 pp.; 8 1/2 x 10; 80 Illus., 70 in Color; Map; Bibliography; Biographical Notes on Artists. $ 27.95 Softcover. An overview of Inuit art, Cape Dorset Sculpture features an array of artists, their life-styles, and their work in this lavishly illustrated volume. Excellent reproductions. ****  The Bone Beneath the Pulp: Drawings by Wyndham Lewis w/essays by Paul Edwards and Jacky Klein. 88 pp.; 7 1/2 x 9 1/2; 60 Color Illus.; Selected Bibliography. $25.00 Softcover.  Published in conjunction with a recent exhibition at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, offers a close look at Lewis’s drawings, the first time they have been seriously considered in relation to his oeuvre. *** What’s Wrong with Contemporary Art? By Peter Timms. 184 pp.; 6 x 8; 8 B/W Illus.; Notes; Index. $19.95 Softcover. Timms, author and art critic for the Australian, takes a close look at the pernicious effects of the contemporary translation of art into commodity. Incisive, damning, and clear. *****

THE HISPANIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA: From Goya to Sorolla by Priscilla E. Muller. 157 pp.; 9 1/2 x 11 1/4; Over 65 Color Illus.; Catalogue of Exhibition; Bibliography; Index of Artists. $60.00 Softcover. Published in celebration of the Hispanic Society of America's 100^th Anniversary, From Goya to Sorolla offers an overview of the extensive holdings in their permanent collection. In addition to Goya and Sorolla, the volume includes work by some 34 other Spanish artists. Beautiful reproductions. ****

SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY PRESS: Texas Vision: The Barrett Collection: The Art of Texas and Switzerland (Ed.) Edmund P. Pillsbury. 200 pp.; 8 1/2 x 11; 120 Illus., 93 in Color; Index. $60.00 Hardcover. Two catalogues in one, Texas Vision, The Barrett Collection presents the somewhat eclectic mélange of homegrown, Texan and cosmopolitan, European art collected by Nona and Richard Barrett. Excellent reproductions. ***

PRESTEL: Henri Cartier-Bresson and Alberto Giacometti (Ed.) Tobia Bezzola. 160 pp.; 7 3/4 x 9 3/4; B/W Illus.; Biographies; Bibliographies; List of Works. $45.00 Hardcover. A dialogue of words and pictures, this little volume explores the relationship between Cartier-Bresson and Giacometti insofar as they interacted both personally and artistically. A fascinating look into the lives and visions of both.

THAMES & HUDSON INC.: Art Works: Perform by Jens Hoffman and Joan Jonas. Art Works: Place by Tacita Dean and Jeremy Millar. (Each): 208 pp.; 7 3/4 x 8 1/2; 329 Illus., 278 in Color; Index of Artists. $29.95 Softcover. Two in a series of Thames & Hudson’s celebration of 21^st century art (others include Art Works: Money; Art Works: Autobiography; Art Works: Memory; Art Works: Touch), both of these volumes feature an “exhibit” between its covers “curated” by two authors, concluding with a Q&A with noted persons in the field. An exciting new way of looking at art. ****

RUDER FINN PRESS: Portrait of the Artist, Running by Daniel Bennett Schwartz. 132 pp.; 8 3/4 x 10; 80 Color Illus.; Biography; Exhibitions and Collections; Index of Studies. $18.95 Softcover. An interesting analysis of the fifteen-year preparation of studies and emendments for the production of a single painting, “Portrait of the Artist, Running” by the artist Daniel Bennett Schwartz. A close-up look at the creative process. ***

WATSON-GUPTILL PUBL.: Landscape Meditations: An Artist’s Guide to Exploring Themes in Landscape Painting by Elizabeth Mowry. 160 pp.; 9 1/4 x 9 1/4; 175 Color Illus.; Bibliography; Index. $24.95 Softcover. The third in a trilogy — The Pastelist’s Year and The Poetic Landscape comprising the first two of the trio — Landscape Meditations takes us into the heart and soul of one of the finest pastelists currently on the scene. Inspiring to read and lovely to look at. ***** Drawing Wildlife by J.C. Amberlyn. 160 pp.; 8 1/2 x 10 1/2; 320 Illus., 20 in Color; Index. $24.95 Softcover. From mice to bears — and almost everything in-between — J.C. Amberlyn gives step-by-step instruction and tips on how to capture nature’s fauna in two dimensions. Comprehensive. *****

ALLWORTH PRESS: Artists Communities: A Directory of Residencies That Offer Time and Space for Creativity (Eds.) Deborah Obalil and Caitlin S. Glass w/Introduction by Robert MacNeil. 287 pp.; 6 x 9; B/W Illus.; Appendices; Indices. $24.95 Softcover. We can only echo the assessments we made in a previous review on the original of this updated and expanded reprint: enormously informative and concise, it is a must for artists of all disciplines. *****

SENTIENT PUBLICATIONS, LLC: The Inspired Heart: An Artist’s Journey of Transformation by Jerry Wennstrom. 189 pp.; 7 x 10; B/W & Color Illus. $18.95 Softcover. “I let it all go, became nothing, and found everything.” Thus, does author Wennstrom sum up the thesis of his book, The Inspired Heart, which relates his rise to success as a New York artist, his rejection of that success by burning all his art, and his eventual re-birth as, once again, an artist. Intriguing. ***

DAVID COOK FINE ART/WOODSTOCK ARTISTS ASSN: From Sweden to Woodstock: The Art and Career of Carl Eric Lindin by Tom Wolf. 133 pp.; 8 x 8; B/W & Color Illus.; List of Illustrations; Notes. $18.00 Softcover. Author Tom Wolf offers an overview of the life and work of Carl Eric Lindin, one of the famed Woodstock Art Colony’s leading lights during its early heydays as second only to Manhattan as one of America’s art Meccas during the 19^th century. Reproductions of early photographs and Lindin’s work are exceptionally good. ****\