Picturing California's Other Landscape: The Great Central Valley [Paperback]

Heath Massey Schenker (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1999

This lavish, oversized, full-color book features 150 years of paintings, photographs, tourist and advertising art, and maps that depict California's Great Central Valley. Through text and images, Picturing California's Other Landscape examines the portrayal of the Central Valley over the last 150 years: as promised land, exploitable resource, paradise lost, a source of unexpected life and beauty.

Picturing California's Other Landscape is filled with works by world-renowned artists including Albert Bierstadt, William Hahn, William Keith, Maynard Dixon, Frank LaPena, Wayne Thiebaud, Ansel Adams, Robert Dawson, Dorothea Lange, Carleton Watkins, and others--however, it is far more than a beautiful art book. Using the region as a backdrop, essays by Central Valley scholars explore more general questions about art: whether photography depicts "real" landscapes or invents them; who creates art and for what purpose; how does artistic enterprise--or lack of it--shape the way in which people see their own environment.

Picturing California's Other Landscape will supplement a groundbreaking show of these paintings and other graphics at the Haggin Museum in Stockton, California (OctoberDecember 1999).

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Heath Schenker, guest-curator of the Haggin Museum's Picturing California's Other Landscape exhibit, is associate professor in the Landscape Architecture Program at University of California at Davis.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

"As the harvest finally winds down, and the days grow shorter, I turn my attention again to the unique look and feel of our incredible valley.Shadows lengthen, temperatures cool, and there is once again time to reflect and be thankful for the great valley we call home. It is time again to gather the 'visual harvest'"--Paul Buxman

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Heyday Books; 1 edition (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890771252
• ISBN-13: 978-1890771256
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 12 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,672,848 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning, June 5, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Picturing California's Other Landscape: The Great Central Valley (Paperback)

This is a beautiful book for art lovers and those interested in California's landscapes.