Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2019 -

This splendid large-format book is the catalogue of a summer 2019 exhibition at the J. Paul Getty Museum. Each of the exhibition's 114 objects is shown in this catalogue in one or more fine color photographs accompanied by concise descriptions with bibliographical citations. But the volume is much more than a catalogue: it serves as an excellent introduction to the lore and images of beasts in medieval culture. Morrison (senior curator of manuscripts at the Getty) offers an overview of the subject, and a team of distinguished scholars provide similarly concise and up-to-date essays on such themes as artists and patrons, the function of medieval illuminated bestiaries, the role of animal images in royal courts, and the impact of medieval bestiaries in the modern age. The majority of the items are medieval manuscripts for Christian audiences dating from the 10th to 15th centuries, but there are groups of objects in the Hebrew and Islamic traditions and also many objects in stone and metal. Including four appendixes that will have great value for scholars, this beautifully produced book is accessible to nonspecialists, who will find it sometimes strange and uniformly delightful reading.Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.

Over the past half century, Kunzle (emer., art history, UCLA) has introduced the Anglophone world to a legion of previously unknown comics and caricature pioneers. In recent years, he has written monumental volumes on Rodolphe Topffer, Gustave Dore, and now Count Amedee de Noe, better known as Cham. Cham typifies Kunzlean scholarship: Kunzle scoured troves of primary materials (including unknown correspondence) in their original languages; became familiar with the sociopolitical climate of the times, periodicals, and books in which Cham's work appeared, and stories of Cham's family and friends; then cross-checked sources, sieved the nuggets from his findings, and showcased them in smooth, polished text. Describing Cham as a "famous nonentity [who was] more ubiquitous, more popular, more versatile, a greater commercial draw" than his contemporary Honore Daumier, Kunzle reveals the prolific Cham as a lover of animals, a harmless prankster, and unafraid of moving out of his vaunted class. The first part of the book discusses Cham's periodical work, his picture stories, and his parody of Les Miserables; the remaining 451 pages comprise facsimiles (many color on high-gloss paper) of 19 of Cham's best comic strips and novelettes and summaries and images of "minor works." The magnitude, sophistication, and erudition of this book make it a masterpiece.Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates; graduate students; professionals.

History of Illustration provides a global overview of illustration from ancient times to the digital age. The 29 essays are divided into five sections: "Illustrative Traditions from around the World," "Images as Knowledge, Ideas as Power," "The Advent of Mass Media," "Diverging Paths in Twentieth Century American and European Illustration," and "The Evolution of Illustration in an Electronic Age." Each essays provides a list of key terms and a list of relevant further reading. In addition, the volume includes more than 800 excellent images, a scrupulously detailed table of contents, and a thorough index. Though the content is divided by time period, geographic location, stylistic movements, and illustration techniques, Doyle (Rhode Island School of Design) and her fellow editors designed the book so readers never lose sight of the underlying communicative quality in the artistic medium of illustration as a whole. This volume will be invaluable for those embarking on study of art, design, or visual culture.Summing Up: Essential. Lower- and upper-division undergraduates.

Sentimentality has long been a recognized presence in 19th- and 20th-century American visual art, and it has also occasionally been perceived in works of American architecture. But sentimentality came to be increasingly shunned in the critical context of the modernist era, because critics regarded it as overly emotional and notably feminine, and therefore presumably lacking in intellect and seriousness. Examining an impressive range of examples--some of which seem obvious (e.g., Winslow Homer), others more surprising (buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright)--Bedell (Wellesley College) explores the many ways in which "the art of the sentimental" can and should be recontextualized in American culture. In offering up a thoughtful and astute analysis, the author succeeds brilliantly in dispelling well-established critical myths, and she opens up many refreshing avenues of interpretation. Well illustrated, carefully researched, and beautifully written in a sophisticated yet accessible style, this study will be invaluable to students and scholars of the history of art and culture in the US, and a treat for those interested in art history more broadly.Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.