New
Art Books / Videos
ART
TIMES November 2007
ABRAMS:
Bruegel: The Complete Paintings by Manfred Sellink. 304 pp.; 10
x 12 ¾; 255 Illus., 155 in Color; Chronology; Bibliography; Indices.
Titian: The Complete Paintings by Peter Humphrey. 408 pp.; 10
x 12 ¾; 400 Color Illus.; Chronology; Bibliography; Indices; Concordance.
(Each) $150.00 Hardcover. Surely the most definitive publications
on both Bruegel and Titian, these sumptuously produced volumes contain
comprehensive analyses of the lives, works, and careers of these masters.
Scholars Manfred Sellink and Peter Humphrey, the former Director of Musea
Brugge, the latter Professor of History at the University of St. Andrews
in Scotland, present commentary and overviews on each of their respective
subjects, both using the latest research available. Hugely impressive.
*****
YALE
UNIVERSITY PRESS: Tapestry in the Baroque: Threads of Splendor (Ed.)
Thomas P. Campbell. 563 pp.; 10 1/8 x 12 3/8; B/W & Color Illus.;
Bibliography; Index. $75.00 Hardcover. With scholarly essays and catalogue
entries by a host of scholars, Tapestry in the Baroque serves as the accompanying catalogue of a major exhibition presently at
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC (thru Jan 6, ’08). Gorgeously produced
and lavishly illustrated, the book presents a comprehensive overview of
17th-century European tapestry. Vastly impressive. *****
David after David: Essays on the Later Work (Ed.) Mark Ledbury. 376 pp.; 6 ¾ x 9 ¾;
150 Illus., 15 in Color; List of Contributors. $65.00 Hardcover. Distributed
for the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Museum, Williamstown, MA,, David
after David represents the fruition of a symposium entitled “Jacques-Louis
David: Empire and Exile”, the book a compendium of essays by twenty-one
leading art historians that explore the artist’s later works. Scholarly
and comprehensive, the book sheds light on David’s work through the help
of newly uncovered correspondence written by the artist during his exile
to Brussels from Napoleon’s court in 1816. *****
Aaron Douglas: African American Modernist (Ed.) Susan Earle. 272
pp.; 9 ¼ x 110 ¾; 189 Illus., 139 in Color; Chronology;
Selected Bibliography; Index. $65.00 Hardcover. Hailed by Alaine Locke
as the “father of Black American Art”, Aaron Douglas, the subject of this
first comprehensive overview, is here given a thorough assessment insofar
as his work, his career, and his influence on both African American artists
and modernism in general are concerned. Handsomely illustrated and exhaustively
researched. ****
Graphic Design: A New History by Stephen J. Eskilson. 464 pp.;
9 x 11 ¾; 480 Illus., 380 in Color; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.
$65.00 Hardcover. The first survey of graphic art in more than a decade,
Graphic Design is, as its title proclaims, a “new” history. Contains
the latest in research on the topic and covers a range of time that begins
with the Arts and Crafts Movement in the 19th century and on
into the 21st century. A major effort. *****
The Origins of American Photography: From Daguerreotype to Dry-Plate,
1839-1885: The Hallmark Photographic Collection at The Nelson-Atkins Museum
of Art by Keith F. Davis. 360 pp.; 9 ¾ x 12 ¼; 606
Tritone and Color Illus.; Notes; Catalogue; Index. $65.00 Hardcover. Published
in conjunction with an exhibition of the same name at The Nelson-Atkins
(thru Dec 30), The Origins of American Photography presents an
exhaustive and scholarly overview of the evolution of photography in American
art. A massive effort, this will surely be the definitive text on the
subject for some time to come. Lavishly illustrated. *****
The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse
(Ed.) Eik Kahng. 200 pp.; 8 ¼ x 10 ¼; 200 Illus.,
164 in Color; Checklist; Index. $50.00 Hardcover. Published to coincide
with a traveling exhibition that is presently at the Walters Art Museum,
Baltimore (thru Jan 1, ’08), The Repeating Image explores the re-cycling
images — study to finished work, prints in various states, copying,
etc. — through the eyes of a host of scholars with the intent of
showing that this “modern” innovation actually started in the 19th-century.
Fully illustrated and well-documented, this will stand as a definitive
study on the subject for some time to come. *****
John Sloan’s New York by Heather Campbell Coyle and Joyce K. Schiller. 208 pp.; 9 7/8 x 11
¼; 147 Illus., 126
in Color; Chronology; Index. $50.00 Hardcover. Although John Sloan
and his fellow “ashcan” artists later disclaimed the catchy label imposed
on them by the press, he — like his fellows — did indeed —
as this book clearly shows — capture the vibrant life of New York
City’s streets. A handsome book, this will not only serve as a nostalgic
look back for many. but also show some of the latest assessments of Sloan,
his circle, and their accomplishments. ****
Abstract Expressionism and Other Modern Works: The Muriel Kallis Steinberg
Newman Collection in The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Ed.) Gary Tinterow, et al. 592 pp.; 9 x 12; 109
Illus., 99 in Color; Index. $50.00 Hardcover. This volume catalogues
the newly acquired collection of some 63 paintings, sculptures, and works
on paper of such artists as Gorky, Pollock, de Kooning, Kline —
50 in all — donated to the Museum in 2006. Added to its already impressive
collection of modern art, this makes The Metropolitan a major holder of
such works. If modernism is your particular cup of tea, then Abstract
Expressionism and Other Modern Works will delight you; if not, then
it is merely much ado about nothing. ***
Degas and the Art of Japan by Jill DeVonyar and Richard Kendall. 112
pp.; 9 x 12; 99 Illus., 96 in Color; Footnotes; Checklist; Bibliography.
$24.95 Softcover. Published in conjunction with an exhibition presently at The Reading Public
Museum, Reading, PA. (thru Dec 30), this is the first study to explore
the various facets of Japanese Art that influenced the work of the French
Impressionist, Edgar Degas. Comprehensive and absorbing. ****
THE
JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY: I Will Wake the Dawn: Illuminated Psalms by
Debra Band and Arnold J. Band. 222 pp.; 9 ¼ x 12 ¼; Color
Illus.; Notes; Bibliography. $65.00 Hardecover. As much art book as
scriptural text, I Will Wake the Dawn is a beautifully wrought
edition that is meant to please the eye as it edifies the sensibilities.
With text in both Hebrew and English, this scholarly and sensitive presentation
of the psalms is a treasure that readers will want to periodically take
down from the book shelf to browse and savor for years to come. *****
FRESCO
FINE ART PUBLICATIONS/UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO PRESS: Encounters with
Beauty: Excerpts from an Artist’s Journal 1963-2006 by Sam Scott (with an Introduction
by William Peterson). 120 pp.; 5 ¾ x 8; 46 Illus., 23 in Color;
List of Works. $35.00 Hardcover. A long-time detractor of artist’s “statements”, I agree both with William
Peterson’s observation in his Introduction that writing is not an artist’s
“first choice as a means of expression” and in his willingness to endorse Sam Scott’s brave attempts
in his Journal. The close reader will find Scott’s words both penetrating
and instructive. A good read. ****
GEORGE
BRAZILLER, INC., PUBLISHERS: Mountains of the Heart: Paintings of Kameda
Bôsai by Stephen Addiss. 112 pp.; 10 ½ x 7 ¼; 44
Illus., 22 in Color. $34.95 Hardcover. This delightful little volume, the latest addition to Braziller’s growing
collection of Far Eastern titles, presents the landscapes of Bôsai as
well some insights into his life and vision. Lovely. ****
BLACK
DOME PRESS: American Wilderness: The Story of the Hudson River School
of Painting by Barbara Babcock Millhouse. 194 pp.; 8 ¼ x
9 ¼; B/W & Color Illus.; Index. $25.95 Softcover. A highly
readable account of the life and work of John Cole, American Wilderness
takes us on a journey that covers Cole’s earliest years to his touted
status as “father of the Hudson River School” of painters. Includes the
work of many of his emulators and followers. ***
PRESTEL:
Impressionism: 50 Paintings You Should Know by Ines Janet Engelmann. 144 pp.; 7 ¾ x 9 ½; B/W &
Color Illus.; Artist Biographies. 50
Buildings You Should Know by Isabel Kuhl. 173 pp.; 7 ¾ x
9 ½; B/W & Color Illus.; Glossary, Index. (Each): $19.95 Softcover.
Two of a series by Prestel Publishing, both of these books offer concise
information about their respective subjects. Sturdily bound in plastic
covers, these volumes are designed for ready, constant use and easy reference.
Informative. ****
Compiled by Raymond J. Steiner