Of Texas Rivers and Texas Art

Art in the service of conservation is nothing new, as Andrew Sansom and William E. Reaves note in their introductions to this work. And rivers have figured prominently in the artistic imagination for all of recorded history and probably before that, as evidenced by the flood stories and myths preserved in almost all the religious and folk traditions of the world, as well as the vast current of literature, music, and art that has been inspired by rivers and their place in life and culture.
 
In Of Texas Rivers and Texas Art, Sansom, a leading Texas conservationist, and Reaves, an influential Texas art collector and historian, have teamed up to offer a compilation of some of the finest contemporary Texas artists painting scenes—real or imagined—from their favorite Texas rivers. In their introductions to the work, Sansom and Reaves provide not only the backgrounds and historical development of riverine themes in Texas art; they also reiterate the vital importance of water conservation and the means by which art can connect us—both intellectually and emotionally—to the many ways that rivers flow through and enrich our day-to-day lives.