Lure of the West: Treasures from the Smithsonian American Art Museum

These picture books accompany four of the eight exhibitions traveling through 2002 while the National Museum of American Art undergoes renovation. They cover periods or themes in American art and history the West from the Louisiana Purchase to the Taos School, young America from 1760 to the Civil War, the Gilded Age from the Civil War into the 1920s, and American Impressionism from 1880 to 1930. Organized alphabetically by artist, each book presents single-page color plates facing brief entries of 100-150 words written by the museum's staff. With the minimal text and the arrangement by artist, the books lack sustained arguments. Nevertheless, they give a broad overview of their particular periods, including many famous and less-well-known works, and will make quite affordable additions to public libraries. (Illustrations seen only in galleys.) Jack Perry Brown, Art Inst. of Chicago Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.