Best in Show: The Dog in Art from the Renaissance to Today [Hardcover]

Peter Bowron (Author), Carolyn Rose Rebbert (Author), Robert Rosenblum (Author), William Secord (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 3, 2006

Dogs have been featured in works of art in various ways—from primary subjects to supporting characters to props. Best in Show is the most up-to-date, comprehensive survey of the dog as shown in painting, sculpture, works on paper, and photography from the end of the sixteenth century to today.

This beautifully produced book features sixty works by such illustrious artists as Francis Bacon, Gustave Courbet, Salvador Dalí, Lucian Freud, Thomas Gainsborough, Edouard Manet, Andy Warhol, William Wegman, Andrew Wyeth, and many more. Four fascinating essays by distinguished scholars discuss the dog in the context of the art of the 16th through the 21st centuries; examine the purebred and how breeds have developed and changed over the years; and outline the results of scientific inquiry over the centuries regarding the nature of dogs.

Best in Show brilliantly illuminates the captivating and intriguing history of the dog in art––offering myriad interpretations and irrefutable reasons for celebrating “the artist’s best friend.”

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Edgar Peters Bowron is Audrey Jones Beck Curator of European Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Carolyn Rose Rebbert is Curator of Science at the Bruce Museum of Arts and Science, Greenwich, Connecticut. Robert Rosenblum is Henry Ittleson, Jr., Professor of Modern European Art at New York University, and author of The Dog in Art: From Rococo to Post-Modernism. William Secord is a dog-painting historian and author of Dog Painting: The European Breeds and Dog Painting 1840-1940: A Social History of the Dog in Art, among others.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; First Edition edition (August 3, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300115881
• ISBN-13: 978-0300115888
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 0.8 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #110,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #32 in Books > Arts & Photography > Painting > Landscape
  • #66 in Books > Arts & Photography > History & Criticism > Themes > Plants & Animals

More About the Author

William Secord is the world's leading authority on nineteenth century dog paintings, and the owner of the eponymous gallery on Manhattan's Upper East Side, specializing in the sale of fine nineteenth and early twentieth dog and animal paintings.

With a background in art history and arts administration (B.A. with Honors in Art History, Carleton University; M.A. Arts Administration, New York University), Secord worked at the Museum of American Folk Art before embarking on his career in dog and animal art. In 1981 he became the first director of The Dog Museum of America in New York City, which mounted an impressive series of exhibitions. When the Museum moved to its current headquarters in St. Louis in 1986, Secord started his own art business and in 1990 opened a commercial gallery.

The author of many books and articles on the subject of the dog in art, Secord's first book on dog painting, Dog Painting, 1840-1940, A Social History of the Dog in Art, published in 1992, went into six printings and is now out of print. His 456 page revision of this book, now entitled, Dog Painting, A History of The Dog in Art, is lavishly illustrated in full color with 525 illustrations.

Secord is also the author of Dog Painting, The European Breeds, his second book for The Antique Collectors' Club, published in 2000, and now in its second edition. His third book on nineteenth century dog painting A Breed Apart, The Art Collections of The AKC and The AKC Museum of The Dog, with 450 color illustrations, was published in 2002 by the Antique Collectors' Club, and is currently in its second printing. Secord also co-authored Best in Show, The Dog in Art from the Renaissance to the Present, a catalogue published by Yale University Press in 2006. His latest book, The American Dog at Home, The Dog Portraits of Christine Merrill, published by ACC Editions in 2010, is in its second printing.

An acknowledged expert in the field, Secord has lectured extensively on dog painting. He is active in many dog and animal-related charities. He served on the National Board of Directors of The ASPCA from1997 to 2008. He is member of the Morris and Essex Kennel Club, an overseas member of The Kennel Club, London, and a life member of The British Sporting Art Trust.

Please visit William Secord Gallery website to see our entire collection: www.dogpainting.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice blend of "cocktail table" and reference September 22, 2006

By Janine Kilty

Format:Hardcover

I am an artist who paints animals - wildlife and pet portraits. I bought this book in hopes that I would have, in one volume, fine art images of dogs: to learn from, to get inspiration from.

This book did not disappoint me. WHile it is not by any means a scholarly work - in other words, it contains no real information on the methods, motives or analysis of the works depicted. It is very well illustrated and has light context commentary about the works and the artists who produced them. The number of color plates is generous, the range of illustrations is broad, well produced and includes little known as well as famous works, by masters from western and eastern traditions, from pre-renaissance through modern times.

I recommend this book for anyone who loves dogs - and for artists who are looking for a compilation reference.