American Art 1908-1947: From Winslow Homer to Jackson Pollock [Hardcover]

Eric De Chassey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2002

Featuring works by important American artists and photographers, among them Ansel Adams, Edward Hopper, Romare Bearden, George Bellows, Thomas Hart Benton, Margaret Bourke-White, Walker Evans, Jacob Lawrence, John Marin, Georgia O'Keeffe, Maurice Prendergast, and Paul Strand, this stunning book provides an overview of American art in the first half of the twentieth century. Published to accompany an exhibition held at several French regional museums.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The past ten years have seen a wealth of good publications devoted to American art and, in particular, the formation of a uniquely American artistic identity. Expanding that list are two new publications, one from that bastion of American art, the Whitney Museum, and one from an unlikely source: an exhibition created and shown solely in France. Fresh, intelligent, informative, and wide-ranging, the Whitney's American Visionaries illuminates the work and careers of over 280 artists in the collection, from its earliest exhibitors to the big names of postwar American art to contemporary new media artists. Each entry includes a full-color reproduction of a work and a short text that considers both the specific work and the artist's larger role in American art. The introductory essay by Maxwell L. Anderson, the Whitney's director, traces the growth and evolution of this premier collection. This handbook adds nicely to the array of focused collection catalogs recently produced by the museum. Beginning in the early 20th century, American Art surveys its subject through the often-critical eyes of European (primarily French) art historians. The exhibition itself, one in a proposed series, was organized by FRAME (French Regional & American Museums Exchange), a loose organization of 18 French and American museums. The catalog presents 200 works (paintings, sculptures, prints, and photographs), with essays that provide important viewpoints on the development of a unique American art form as seen from a distinctly European perspective. Although the translation is a little awkward at times, the essays are beautifully and liberally illustrated with images from the exhibition. Both books are recommended for all libraries with American art historical collections, though American Art is best for academic and museum libraries, and American Visionaries will be most valued by libraries that do not have other recent collection catalogs from the Whitney. Kraig A. Binkowski, Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

American Art, 1908-1947 offers fresh interpretations of diverse modern American artworks by a cast of mostly French art historians, an unusual perspective given the stupendous influence of French artists on American artists during that era, and the disconcerting fact that this essential period of American art has been little known in France. American readers will be piqued by the provocative title of editor de Chassey's introductory essay, "Why Has There Been No Great American Art (Before the Triumph of Abstract Expressionism)?" And what follows is a series of mind-stretching, sometimes goading discussions that trace the emergence of a genuine American aesthetic accompanied by paintings, photographs, and some sculpture by the likes of Alfred Stieglitz, John Marin, Paul Strand, Charles Demuth, and Thomas Hart Benton, as well as less familiar artists. This is a skewed but intriguing overview of a dynamic and globally influential chapter in the increasingly complex history of art. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 254 pages
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams; 1ST edition (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810963639
• ISBN-13: 978-0810963634
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 8.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,154,740 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)