Dictionary of American Art by Matthew Baigell (review)

260 BOG iks Dictionary of American Art. Matthew Baigell. John Murray. London. 1979. 390 pp. €8.95. The author, who teaches art at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. NJ, U.S.A., states in his Preface: 'The purpose of this dictionary is to provide in a conveniently sized volume essential information about important American painters, sculptors, printmakers, and photographers, as well as about the topics and movements central to American art from the 16th century to the present day.' There are close to 600 biographies and 60 essays (e.g. on Abstract Expressionism, American Art-Union, Taos Colony).There are 'more entries on painters and sculptors than on printmakers and photographers, and on artists whose works are derived from western European sources ...I have tried to include all the significant names and topics, but there may be omissions that disappoint some readers.' 'The emphasis ... is placed on artistic achievement and stylistic development rather than on biographical detail.' For each artwork mentioned, the date of execution is given; the locationof each of those in public collections is also provided. Bibliographic references are given at the end of many entries. BOOKS RECEIVED The Airbrush Book: Art. History and Technique. Seng-gye Tombs Curtis and Christopher Hunt. Orbis. American Art Directory 1980. Bowker Publ. Ann Arbor, MI. 740 pp. $62.00. Analyzing an Art Museum. William S. Hendon. Praeger. Eastbourne, England, 1979. 263 pp.. illus. €14.25. Art in the ThirdReich. Bartold Hinz. Robert and Rita Kimber, trans. Basil Blackwell,Oxford. 1979.268pp., Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World.Simon Welfare and John Fairley. Collins, London, 1980.217 pp., illus. The Artist by Himsew Sey-portrait Drau,ingsfrom Youth to Old Age. Joan Kinneir, ed. Granada. London, Beyond the Crisis in Art. Peter Fuller. Writers and Readers Publ. Cooperative, London. 1980. 267 pp. The Big Bang: The Creation and Evolution of the Universe. Joseph Silk. W. H. Freeman, Oxford, 1980. The Boston Athenaeum Art Exhibition Index: 1827-1974. Robert F. Perkins. Jr. and William J. Gavin 111. eds. Bruegel. Alexander Wied. Studio Vista. London, 1980. 190 pp.. illus. €12.95. Cartes et Figures de la Terre. Centre National d'Art et de Culture Georges Pompidou exh. catalogue. Jean-Claude Groshens et al. Paris, 1980. 479 pp., illus. Paper FFI 10.00. Claes Oldenburg: Large-Scale Projects. 1977-80. Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen Oldenburg. Rizzoli, New York, 1980. 100 pp.. illus. Paper $20.00. Collecting Decanters. Jane Hollingworth. Studio Vista. London, 1980. 128 pp.. illus. €6.95. Color Manual for Artists. Arthur L. Guptill. Catherine Sullivan, ed. Van Nostrand Reinhold, Wokingham, England, 1980. 126 pp., illus. Paper €8.95. Contemporary Authors. Vol. 93-96: A Bio-Bibliographic Guide to Current Writers in Fiction, General Non-fiction, Poetry, Journalism. Drama. Motion Pictures, Television. and Other Fields. Frances C. Locher. ed. Gale Research, Detroit. 1980. 574 pp. $48.00. Copyright: Intellectual Property in the Information Age. Edward W. Ploman and L. Clark Hamilton. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, 1980. 248 pp. €12.50. The Curves of Life. Being an Account of Spiral Formations and Their Application to Growth in Nature. to Science and to Art. With Special Reference to the Manuscripts of Leonard0 da Vinci. Theodore Andrea Cook. Dover, New York, 1979. 479 pp., illus. Paper $5.95. 18th Century Wedgwood:A Guidefor Collectors and Connoisseurs. David Buten et a/. Pitman, London. 1980. 192 pp.. illus. €8.95. The Emerging Goddess: The Creative Process in Art. Science and Other Fields. Albert Rothenberg. Univ. of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979. 440 pp.. illus. $22.50. English Printsfor the Collector. Stephen Calloway. Butterworth Press, London, 1980.232 pp.. illus. €15.00. Feminine Beauty. Kenneth Clark. Rizzoli, New York, 1980. 199 pp., illus. $25.00. Feminist Collage: Educating Women in the Visual Arts. Judy Loeb. ed. Colombia Univ. Press. New York, From Atoms To Quarks: An Introduction to the Strange World of Particle Physics. James S. Trefil. Georges Braque: Illustrated Note-books 1917-1955. Stanley Appelbaum, trans. Dover, New York, I17 pp.. German Romantic Painting. William Vaughan. Yale Univ. Press, London, 1980. 260 pp.. illus. €19.95. Health Hazards in the Arts and Crafts. Michael McCann and Gail Barazani, eds., Soc. for Occupational and Heresies of Modern Art. Xavier Rubert de...