Leonardo

Masterpieces of Dobell. Masterpieces of Drysdale. Masterpieces of Nolan by Charles OsborneReview by: Julie EwingtonLeonardo, Vol. 10, No. 2 (Spring, 1977), pp. 168-169Published by: The MIT PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1573734 .

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168 168 168 Books Books Books

so tactile in their presence, serve as illustrations to the sculptures and not vice versa, although, of course, both media are intended to be mutually complementary.

In endeavoring to combine literary and artistic media, Bentov maintains the well-known 'synthetic' traditions of the Russian and Ukrainian Modernists and, like them, is interested primarily not in form but in content and in its relevance to the human and spiritual condition. Her concern with the theme of escape ('illusory desires', 'freedom from matter', 'the radiant fire-bird') is deeply autobiographical and seems to allude to her experiences of a forced-labor camp, darkly remembered. Essentially, however, Bentov's objective is not the evocation of a cruel, distant childhood but the anticipation of some luminous ideal. Just as her sculptures 'end' often with an ascendant or forward impulse (stairs, raised hands, etc.), so her poems end on a note of presentiment. It is the kind of optimism, of imminent flight that we identify with Bentov's Ukrainian colleagues, Archipenko and Zadkine (she studied with Zadkine in Paris).

Sylvia Juran, who translated the poems from the original Russian texts (some published in 1972), has succeeded in rendering the essential meaning of the poems, although, of course, she cannot reproduce the economy of image and subtlety of orchestration germane to the Russian.

Arthur Dove. Barbara Haskell. New York Graphic Society, Boston, Mass., 1974. 136 pp., illus. ?11.50. Reviewed by Naomi Boretz*

This is a well-designed and carefully-organized exhibition catalog, with good color reproductions, accompanied by a thoroughly researched and documented text. The author had access to Dove's unpublished writings and consulted, as well, with Dove's son and others who knew him well. She has made a real effort to be accurate and has done an excellent job of placing Dove's early work in its proper chronological context. That task was rather more difficult than it might appear at first glance. With rare exceptions, Dove did not date the work he did between 1911-1920. To complicate matters further, it seems that his dealer, Steiglitz, often changed the titles of paintings after they had been delivered to the gallery.

A group of pastels (1911), originally entitled 'The Ten Commandments' and exhibited at Steiglitz's '291' gallery in 1912, were shown again in 1916 as part of a 'Nature Symbolized' series; some of them later acquired individual titles. The significance of these works-the fact that they, as well as Dove's 1910 'Abstractions 1-6' (1910), were the first nonre- presentational works to be produced in the U.S.A. before the Armory Show (1913)-makes it particularly disappointing that they cannot be identified correctly, so that they may take their rightful place in the early 'modernist' movement. That Dove was an innovator cannot be denied. Steiglitz had said of Dove's first exhibition: 'So the pictures went up, and, of course they were over the heads of the people ... They were beautiful, they were not reminiscent of any one else.'

Although the Armory Show in New York City had shocked the public, for artists the shock was rather that of sudden recognition. It seemed impossible for them to avoid the impact of the European Moderns. Interestingly, Dove had been thinking in a 'modernist' vein since 1910, apparently without any knowledge of similar innovations in that year by Kandinsky and Delaunay. By 1913, when others were turning to 'abstraction', Dove spoke of giving up working with 'pure form' and 'going back to nature'. But his vision remained amazingly consistent and his earliest 'Abstractions' still have much in common with his later work. Actually, in a letter he wrote to Arthur Jerome Eddy in 1912, he defined his attitude toward his art that was to hold true throughout his life: 'One of these principles [in all good art] which seemed the most evident was the choice of the simple motif... a few forms and a few colors sufficed for the creation of an object .... I gave up trying to express an idea by stating innumerable little facts, the statement of facts having no more to do with the art of painting than statistics with literature ....'

For reasons difficult to assess, Dove never achieved a popular

so tactile in their presence, serve as illustrations to the sculptures and not vice versa, although, of course, both media are intended to be mutually complementary.

In endeavoring to combine literary and artistic media, Bentov maintains the well-known 'synthetic' traditions of the Russian and Ukrainian Modernists and, like them, is interested primarily not in form but in content and in its relevance to the human and spiritual condition. Her concern with the theme of escape ('illusory desires', 'freedom from matter', 'the radiant fire-bird') is deeply autobiographical and seems to allude to her experiences of a forced-labor camp, darkly remembered. Essentially, however, Bentov's objective is not the evocation of a cruel, distant childhood but the anticipation of some luminous ideal. Just as her sculptures 'end' often with an ascendant or forward impulse (stairs, raised hands, etc.), so her poems end on a note of presentiment. It is the kind of optimism, of imminent flight that we identify with Bentov's Ukrainian colleagues, Archipenko and Zadkine (she studied with Zadkine in Paris).

Sylvia Juran, who translated the poems from the original Russian texts (some published in 1972), has succeeded in rendering the essential meaning of the poems, although, of course, she cannot reproduce the economy of image and subtlety of orchestration germane to the Russian.

Arthur Dove. Barbara Haskell. New York Graphic Society, Boston, Mass., 1974. 136 pp., illus. ?11.50. Reviewed by Naomi Boretz*

This is a well-designed and carefully-organized exhibition catalog, with good color reproductions, accompanied by a thoroughly researched and documented text. The author had access to Dove's unpublished writings and consulted, as well, with Dove's son and others who knew him well. She has made a real effort to be accurate and has done an excellent job of placing Dove's early work in its proper chronological context. That task was rather more difficult than it might appear at first glance. With rare exceptions, Dove did not date the work he did between 1911-1920. To complicate matters further, it seems that his dealer, Steiglitz, often changed the titles of paintings after they had been delivered to the gallery.

A group of pastels (1911), originally entitled 'The Ten Commandments' and exhibited at Steiglitz's '291' gallery in 1912, were shown again in 1916 as part of a 'Nature Symbolized' series; some of them later acquired individual titles. The significance of these works-the fact that they, as well as Dove's 1910 'Abstractions 1-6' (1910), were the first nonre- presentational works to be produced in the U.S.A. before the Armory Show (1913)-makes it particularly disappointing that they cannot be identified correctly, so that they may take their rightful place in the early 'modernist' movement. That Dove was an innovator cannot be denied. Steiglitz had said of Dove's first exhibition: 'So the pictures went up, and, of course they were over the heads of the people ... They were beautiful, they were not reminiscent of any one else.'

Although the Armory Show in New York City had shocked the public, for artists the shock was rather that of sudden recognition. It seemed impossible for them to avoid the impact of the European Moderns. Interestingly, Dove had been thinking in a 'modernist' vein since 1910, apparently without any knowledge of similar innovations in that year by Kandinsky and Delaunay. By 1913, when others were turning to 'abstraction', Dove spoke of giving up working with 'pure form' and 'going back to nature'. But his vision remained amazingly consistent and his earliest 'Abstractions' still have much in common with his later work. Actually, in a letter he wrote to Arthur Jerome Eddy in 1912, he defined his attitude toward his art that was to hold true throughout his life: 'One of these principles [in all good art] which seemed the most evident was the choice of the simple motif... a few forms and a few colors sufficed for the creation of an object .... I gave up trying to express an idea by stating innumerable little facts, the statement of facts having no more to do with the art of painting than statistics with literature ....'

For reasons difficult to assess, Dove never achieved a popular

so tactile in their presence, serve as illustrations to the sculptures and not vice versa, although, of course, both media are intended to be mutually complementary.

In endeavoring to combine literary and artistic media, Bentov maintains the well-known 'synthetic' traditions of the Russian and Ukrainian Modernists and, like them, is interested primarily not in form but in content and in its relevance to the human and spiritual condition. Her concern with the theme of escape ('illusory desires', 'freedom from matter', 'the radiant fire-bird') is deeply autobiographical and seems to allude to her experiences of a forced-labor camp, darkly remembered. Essentially, however, Bentov's objective is not the evocation of a cruel, distant childhood but the anticipation of some luminous ideal. Just as her sculptures 'end' often with an ascendant or forward impulse (stairs, raised hands, etc.), so her poems end on a note of presentiment. It is the kind of optimism, of imminent flight that we identify with Bentov's Ukrainian colleagues, Archipenko and Zadkine (she studied with Zadkine in Paris).

Sylvia Juran, who translated the poems from the original Russian texts (some published in 1972), has succeeded in rendering the essential meaning of the poems, although, of course, she cannot reproduce the economy of image and subtlety of orchestration germane to the Russian.

Arthur Dove. Barbara Haskell. New York Graphic Society, Boston, Mass., 1974. 136 pp., illus. ?11.50. Reviewed by Naomi Boretz*

This is a well-designed and carefully-organized exhibition catalog, with good color reproductions, accompanied by a thoroughly researched and documented text. The author had access to Dove's unpublished writings and consulted, as well, with Dove's son and others who knew him well. She has made a real effort to be accurate and has done an excellent job of placing Dove's early work in its proper chronological context. That task was rather more difficult than it might appear at first glance. With rare exceptions, Dove did not date the work he did between 1911-1920. To complicate matters further, it seems that his dealer, Steiglitz, often changed the titles of paintings after they had been delivered to the gallery.

A group of pastels (1911), originally entitled 'The Ten Commandments' and exhibited at Steiglitz's '291' gallery in 1912, were shown again in 1916 as part of a 'Nature Symbolized' series; some of them later acquired individual titles. The significance of these works-the fact that they, as well as Dove's 1910 'Abstractions 1-6' (1910), were the first nonre- presentational works to be produced in the U.S.A. before the Armory Show (1913)-makes it particularly disappointing that they cannot be identified correctly, so that they may take their rightful place in the early 'modernist' movement. That Dove was an innovator cannot be denied. Steiglitz had said of Dove's first exhibition: 'So the pictures went up, and, of course they were over the heads of the people ... They were beautiful, they were not reminiscent of any one else.'

Although the Armory Show in New York City had shocked the public, for artists the shock was rather that of sudden recognition. It seemed impossible for them to avoid the impact of the European Moderns. Interestingly, Dove had been thinking in a 'modernist' vein since 1910, apparently without any knowledge of similar innovations in that year by Kandinsky and Delaunay. By 1913, when others were turning to 'abstraction', Dove spoke of giving up working with 'pure form' and 'going back to nature'. But his vision remained amazingly consistent and his earliest 'Abstractions' still have much in common with his later work. Actually, in a letter he wrote to Arthur Jerome Eddy in 1912, he defined his attitude toward his art that was to hold true throughout his life: 'One of these principles [in all good art] which seemed the most evident was the choice of the simple motif... a few forms and a few colors sufficed for the creation of an object .... I gave up trying to express an idea by stating innumerable little facts, the statement of facts having no more to do with the art of painting than statistics with literature ....'

For reasons difficult to assess, Dove never achieved a popular success. Other painters associated with the Steiglitz gallery, success. Other painters associated with the Steiglitz gallery, success. Other painters associated with the Steiglitz gallery,

*15 Southern Way, Princeton, NJ 08540, U.S.A. *15 Southern Way, Princeton, NJ 08540, U.S.A. *15 Southern Way, Princeton, NJ 08540, U.S.A.

notably John Marin and Georgia O'Keefe, whose work was also innovative, seemed to appeal to a wider public. Thus, Dove has seldom been accorded the recognition due to him for his significant role in the acceptance of modern art in the U.S.A. This catalog, based on a traveling exhibition organized by the San Francisco Museum of Art, is a substantive addition to the scholarly literature on Dove and the corrected information makes it an indispensable source for researchers. There is a selected bibliography and chronology of personal events and exhibitions.

Masterpieces of Dobell. Masterpieces of Drysdale. Masterpieces of Nolan. Charles Osborne. Each: Thames & Hudson, London, 1975. 24 pp., illus. Paper. 75p. Reviewed by Julie Ewington**

This collection extends, in a most enterprising fashion, the possibilities in art-book publication for the sale of the maximum in full-colour illustration with the minimum of intellectual content. Indeed, the books are actually glorified annotated postcards, 'high-culture' versions of the fold-out variety offered to tourists. As such, the illustrations in these books will be useful teaching aids in Australian classrooms, for which they are so obviously and so cynically intended; no teacher need hesitate to dismember and display a book that costs so little.

However, with the one exception of Nolan's 'Menopause' (1946), these illustrations are available in other Thames and Hudson monographs (James Cleeson's on Dobell, Geoffrey Dutton's on Drysdale, and Colin Maclnnes and Bryan Robertson's on Nolan, all first released in 1961)-more interesting still, so are the texts. The collection under review claims texts by 'an established authority': Charles Osborne is particularly knowledgeable about Australian literature but has never been at the centre of informed debates about Australian visual art. Perhaps this is the explanation for his heavy reliance on the works mentioned above, but it is more difficult to see why no reference was made to this debt.

Unhappily, Osborne's texts seem to be merely paraphrased and abbreviated versions of these monographs. Worse, they can be criticized for a series of inaccuracies attributable to lack of familiarity and to abbreviation. For example, the text accompanying Plate 3 of the Drysdale book incorrectly interprets a quoted statement by Donald Friend about Drysdale's experiences during the years of World War II. Friend refers to time spent in the country town of Albury, not to that spent in Sydney as is implied here. Osborne's version makes nonsense of the Friend quotation, mentioning as it does 'lanky gnarled farmers with their amply-shaped wives in sulkies and gigs', and nonsense of the illustration, supposedly a painting of one of these country women in a hotel bedroom.

Another error of omission occurs on the Plate 6 text of the Dobell book where Osborne claims that in 1938 Dobell returned from Europe to a country 'untouched by twentieth-century movements in modern art'. Gleeson's account [ World Library of Art, 1969, pp. 73-74] is not so sweeping in its generalizations, indicating that while the Australian public was then, as it is now, profoundly conservative in its attitude towards modern art, contemporary European painters had been studied in Australia. In fact, many artists had been painting and showing work that was clearly influenced by post-impressionist and cubist painting for over two decades. And if by 1938 many of them had abandoned the quasi-academic style to which Dobell clung, it was not under the influence of one travelling exhibition of modern European art, seen in that year, as Osborne implies.

Plate 10 by Dobell, which is discussed in detail, is incorrectly titled 'Narrows Beach' (1956) instead of 'Westerly Breeze' (1948), which can easily be ascertained by reference to the illustration itself, where the word Westerly and the date 1948 appear. And so on....

Finally, the text in the three books is quite out-of-date, skimpy on the painters' work in the late 1960's and 1970's and makes no attempt at a re-assessment of their work that must be made in the light of developments in Australian art during the last 15 years. How dreary these books are: potted art history, in the fulsome

notably John Marin and Georgia O'Keefe, whose work was also innovative, seemed to appeal to a wider public. Thus, Dove has seldom been accorded the recognition due to him for his significant role in the acceptance of modern art in the U.S.A. This catalog, based on a traveling exhibition organized by the San Francisco Museum of Art, is a substantive addition to the scholarly literature on Dove and the corrected information makes it an indispensable source for researchers. There is a selected bibliography and chronology of personal events and exhibitions.

Masterpieces of Dobell. Masterpieces of Drysdale. Masterpieces of Nolan. Charles Osborne. Each: Thames & Hudson, London, 1975. 24 pp., illus. Paper. 75p. Reviewed by Julie Ewington**

This collection extends, in a most enterprising fashion, the possibilities in art-book publication for the sale of the maximum in full-colour illustration with the minimum of intellectual content. Indeed, the books are actually glorified annotated postcards, 'high-culture' versions of the fold-out variety offered to tourists. As such, the illustrations in these books will be useful teaching aids in Australian classrooms, for which they are so obviously and so cynically intended; no teacher need hesitate to dismember and display a book that costs so little.

However, with the one exception of Nolan's 'Menopause' (1946), these illustrations are available in other Thames and Hudson monographs (James Cleeson's on Dobell, Geoffrey Dutton's on Drysdale, and Colin Maclnnes and Bryan Robertson's on Nolan, all first released in 1961)-more interesting still, so are the texts. The collection under review claims texts by 'an established authority': Charles Osborne is particularly knowledgeable about Australian literature but has never been at the centre of informed debates about Australian visual art. Perhaps this is the explanation for his heavy reliance on the works mentioned above, but it is more difficult to see why no reference was made to this debt.

Unhappily, Osborne's texts seem to be merely paraphrased and abbreviated versions of these monographs. Worse, they can be criticized for a series of inaccuracies attributable to lack of familiarity and to abbreviation. For example, the text accompanying Plate 3 of the Drysdale book incorrectly interprets a quoted statement by Donald Friend about Drysdale's experiences during the years of World War II. Friend refers to time spent in the country town of Albury, not to that spent in Sydney as is implied here. Osborne's version makes nonsense of the Friend quotation, mentioning as it does 'lanky gnarled farmers with their amply-shaped wives in sulkies and gigs', and nonsense of the illustration, supposedly a painting of one of these country women in a hotel bedroom.

Another error of omission occurs on the Plate 6 text of the Dobell book where Osborne claims that in 1938 Dobell returned from Europe to a country 'untouched by twentieth-century movements in modern art'. Gleeson's account [ World Library of Art, 1969, pp. 73-74] is not so sweeping in its generalizations, indicating that while the Australian public was then, as it is now, profoundly conservative in its attitude towards modern art, contemporary European painters had been studied in Australia. In fact, many artists had been painting and showing work that was clearly influenced by post-impressionist and cubist painting for over two decades. And if by 1938 many of them had abandoned the quasi-academic style to which Dobell clung, it was not under the influence of one travelling exhibition of modern European art, seen in that year, as Osborne implies.

Plate 10 by Dobell, which is discussed in detail, is incorrectly titled 'Narrows Beach' (1956) instead of 'Westerly Breeze' (1948), which can easily be ascertained by reference to the illustration itself, where the word Westerly and the date 1948 appear. And so on....

Finally, the text in the three books is quite out-of-date, skimpy on the painters' work in the late 1960's and 1970's and makes no attempt at a re-assessment of their work that must be made in the light of developments in Australian art during the last 15 years. How dreary these books are: potted art history, in the fulsome

notably John Marin and Georgia O'Keefe, whose work was also innovative, seemed to appeal to a wider public. Thus, Dove has seldom been accorded the recognition due to him for his significant role in the acceptance of modern art in the U.S.A. This catalog, based on a traveling exhibition organized by the San Francisco Museum of Art, is a substantive addition to the scholarly literature on Dove and the corrected information makes it an indispensable source for researchers. There is a selected bibliography and chronology of personal events and exhibitions.

Masterpieces of Dobell. Masterpieces of Drysdale. Masterpieces of Nolan. Charles Osborne. Each: Thames & Hudson, London, 1975. 24 pp., illus. Paper. 75p. Reviewed by Julie Ewington**

This collection extends, in a most enterprising fashion, the possibilities in art-book publication for the sale of the maximum in full-colour illustration with the minimum of intellectual content. Indeed, the books are actually glorified annotated postcards, 'high-culture' versions of the fold-out variety offered to tourists. As such, the illustrations in these books will be useful teaching aids in Australian classrooms, for which they are so obviously and so cynically intended; no teacher need hesitate to dismember and display a book that costs so little.

However, with the one exception of Nolan's 'Menopause' (1946), these illustrations are available in other Thames and Hudson monographs (James Cleeson's on Dobell, Geoffrey Dutton's on Drysdale, and Colin Maclnnes and Bryan Robertson's on Nolan, all first released in 1961)-more interesting still, so are the texts. The collection under review claims texts by 'an established authority': Charles Osborne is particularly knowledgeable about Australian literature but has never been at the centre of informed debates about Australian visual art. Perhaps this is the explanation for his heavy reliance on the works mentioned above, but it is more difficult to see why no reference was made to this debt.

Unhappily, Osborne's texts seem to be merely paraphrased and abbreviated versions of these monographs. Worse, they can be criticized for a series of inaccuracies attributable to lack of familiarity and to abbreviation. For example, the text accompanying Plate 3 of the Drysdale book incorrectly interprets a quoted statement by Donald Friend about Drysdale's experiences during the years of World War II. Friend refers to time spent in the country town of Albury, not to that spent in Sydney as is implied here. Osborne's version makes nonsense of the Friend quotation, mentioning as it does 'lanky gnarled farmers with their amply-shaped wives in sulkies and gigs', and nonsense of the illustration, supposedly a painting of one of these country women in a hotel bedroom.

Another error of omission occurs on the Plate 6 text of the Dobell book where Osborne claims that in 1938 Dobell returned from Europe to a country 'untouched by twentieth-century movements in modern art'. Gleeson's account [ World Library of Art, 1969, pp. 73-74] is not so sweeping in its generalizations, indicating that while the Australian public was then, as it is now, profoundly conservative in its attitude towards modern art, contemporary European painters had been studied in Australia. In fact, many artists had been painting and showing work that was clearly influenced by post-impressionist and cubist painting for over two decades. And if by 1938 many of them had abandoned the quasi-academic style to which Dobell clung, it was not under the influence of one travelling exhibition of modern European art, seen in that year, as Osborne implies.

Plate 10 by Dobell, which is discussed in detail, is incorrectly titled 'Narrows Beach' (1956) instead of 'Westerly Breeze' (1948), which can easily be ascertained by reference to the illustration itself, where the word Westerly and the date 1948 appear. And so on....

Finally, the text in the three books is quite out-of-date, skimpy on the painters' work in the late 1960's and 1970's and makes no attempt at a re-assessment of their work that must be made in the light of developments in Australian art during the last 15 years. How dreary these books are: potted art history, in the fulsome

*School of Humanities, The Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia 5042. *School of Humanities, The Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia 5042. *School of Humanities, The Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia 5042.

This content downloaded from 91.229.229.44 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 00:53:36 AMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

A Primer of Visual Literacy. Donis A. Dondis. M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973. 194 pp., illus. ?5.00, $9.95. Reviewed by John M. Kennedy?

This is a small but quite packed elementary text for a design course, which would be useful to students unable to appreciate the intellectual scope and moral sensitivity of a Rudolf Arnheim. The survey of basic terms in visual media is systematic and concise, though naturally enough incomplete. Dondis writes enthusiastically; she is vigorous and provocative in praising visual displays and in predicting an increasing role for them in the near future. Her illustrations are generally clear, simple and to the point. At times the text is more blunt than strong and it will be the role of any instructor using this text to ensure that students who master Dondis' bold distinctions see the need for finer and more profound analyses.

Chinese Lattice Designs. Daniel Sheets Dye. Dover, New York, 1974. 469 pp., illus. Paper. $5.00. Reviewed by Arthur L. Loeb??

Mass production and the boredom induced by the sight of unimaginatively reproduced ugly modules has revived an interest in the fascinating repeating patterns found in such varied sources as Islamic Art, quilts and the art of M. C. Escher. This seems, therefore, to be an appropriate moment for Dover to have reprinted Dye's monumental A Grammar of Chinese Lattice, originally Volumes V and VI of the Harvard Yenching Institute Monograph series (Harvard University Press). The reprint is based on the second edition of 1949, but does not appear to differ appreciably from the original 1937 edition. Since the second volume commenced with p. 232, both volumes could be conveniently combined into one paperback with the original continuing pagination.

The work represents about 20 years of investigation by the author in China between the two World Wars, particularly in Szechwan. There are over 400 pages of illustrations accompanied by short descriptive passages, as well as introductory sections outlining the course of the research and the history of Chinese lattice design, a description of the technical details of constructing the lattices and an attempt at classification. In addition, Dye lists a number of his favorites. Some are Dye's own designs, in the style of a given region (e.g. p. 84, No. 3b; p. 87, No. 4a and p. 215, No. 3b).

Since most of the lattices are made of delicate wood and were meant to reinforce the oiled-paper windows, they are not very durable. In point of fact, many are replaced at the Chinese New Year. Yet the history of Chinese lattice design covers a period of at least 3,000 years. Fortunately, design books have outlived the lattices themselves; among sources quoted one finds such surprises as Chippendale's The Director of 1753.

The classification system appears to be somewhat arbitrary, but then who is to say on what basis to classify these patterns? Symmetry was not the basis; an occasional misconception might have been prevented if symmetry theory had been applied. For example, classes R. and S. are called 'Like' and 'Unlike' Swastikas, respectively. Nevertheless, it is known that a periodic pattern containing one four-fold center of rotational symmetry necessarily contains two distinct sets of such centers [cf. A. L. Loeb, Color and Symmetry (New York: Wiley, 1971) p. 173, Theorem 4]. Indeed, in the so-called 'Like' Swastika patterns, unlike swastikas can invariably be found. This observation is significant when on pp. 270 and 271 patterns 12a and b are found to be labeled 'Concealed Swastikas'.

Although Dye stresses the importance of the numberfive to the Chinese, five-fold symmetry is absent where one might have expected it, namely, in the so-called 'Single-Focus Frames'. Only in the appendix, the so-called 'Tail Pieces', do we find on p. 332, Nos. 2c and 2d, examples of five-fold symmetry.

Incidental delights are the Chinese names for what we know as Kagome (bamboo-weave) and honeycomb patterns; Dye translates these from the Chinese respectively as 'peppereye

A Primer of Visual Literacy. Donis A. Dondis. M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973. 194 pp., illus. ?5.00, $9.95. Reviewed by John M. Kennedy?

This is a small but quite packed elementary text for a design course, which would be useful to students unable to appreciate the intellectual scope and moral sensitivity of a Rudolf Arnheim. The survey of basic terms in visual media is systematic and concise, though naturally enough incomplete. Dondis writes enthusiastically; she is vigorous and provocative in praising visual displays and in predicting an increasing role for them in the near future. Her illustrations are generally clear, simple and to the point. At times the text is more blunt than strong and it will be the role of any instructor using this text to ensure that students who master Dondis' bold distinctions see the need for finer and more profound analyses.

Chinese Lattice Designs. Daniel Sheets Dye. Dover, New York, 1974. 469 pp., illus. Paper. $5.00. Reviewed by Arthur L. Loeb??

Mass production and the boredom induced by the sight of unimaginatively reproduced ugly modules has revived an interest in the fascinating repeating patterns found in such varied sources as Islamic Art, quilts and the art of M. C. Escher. This seems, therefore, to be an appropriate moment for Dover to have reprinted Dye's monumental A Grammar of Chinese Lattice, originally Volumes V and VI of the Harvard Yenching Institute Monograph series (Harvard University Press). The reprint is based on the second edition of 1949, but does not appear to differ appreciably from the original 1937 edition. Since the second volume commenced with p. 232, both volumes could be conveniently combined into one paperback with the original continuing pagination.

The work represents about 20 years of investigation by the author in China between the two World Wars, particularly in Szechwan. There are over 400 pages of illustrations accompanied by short descriptive passages, as well as introductory sections outlining the course of the research and the history of Chinese lattice design, a description of the technical details of constructing the lattices and an attempt at classification. In addition, Dye lists a number of his favorites. Some are Dye's own designs, in the style of a given region (e.g. p. 84, No. 3b; p. 87, No. 4a and p. 215, No. 3b).

Since most of the lattices are made of delicate wood and were meant to reinforce the oiled-paper windows, they are not very durable. In point of fact, many are replaced at the Chinese New Year. Yet the history of Chinese lattice design covers a period of at least 3,000 years. Fortunately, design books have outlived the lattices themselves; among sources quoted one finds such surprises as Chippendale's The Director of 1753.

The classification system appears to be somewhat arbitrary, but then who is to say on what basis to classify these patterns? Symmetry was not the basis; an occasional misconception might have been prevented if symmetry theory had been applied. For example, classes R. and S. are called 'Like' and 'Unlike' Swastikas, respectively. Nevertheless, it is known that a periodic pattern containing one four-fold center of rotational symmetry necessarily contains two distinct sets of such centers [cf. A. L. Loeb, Color and Symmetry (New York: Wiley, 1971) p. 173, Theorem 4]. Indeed, in the so-called 'Like' Swastika patterns, unlike swastikas can invariably be found. This observation is significant when on pp. 270 and 271 patterns 12a and b are found to be labeled 'Concealed Swastikas'.

Although Dye stresses the importance of the numberfive to the Chinese, five-fold symmetry is absent where one might have expected it, namely, in the so-called 'Single-Focus Frames'. Only in the appendix, the so-called 'Tail Pieces', do we find on p. 332, Nos. 2c and 2d, examples of five-fold symmetry.

Incidental delights are the Chinese names for what we know as Kagome (bamboo-weave) and honeycomb patterns; Dye translates these from the Chinese respectively as 'peppereye

A Primer of Visual Literacy. Donis A. Dondis. M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973. 194 pp., illus. ?5.00, $9.95. Reviewed by John M. Kennedy?

This is a small but quite packed elementary text for a design course, which would be useful to students unable to appreciate the intellectual scope and moral sensitivity of a Rudolf Arnheim. The survey of basic terms in visual media is systematic and concise, though naturally enough incomplete. Dondis writes enthusiastically; she is vigorous and provocative in praising visual displays and in predicting an increasing role for them in the near future. Her illustrations are generally clear, simple and to the point. At times the text is more blunt than strong and it will be the role of any instructor using this text to ensure that students who master Dondis' bold distinctions see the need for finer and more profound analyses.

Chinese Lattice Designs. Daniel Sheets Dye. Dover, New York, 1974. 469 pp., illus. Paper. $5.00. Reviewed by Arthur L. Loeb??

Mass production and the boredom induced by the sight of unimaginatively reproduced ugly modules has revived an interest in the fascinating repeating patterns found in such varied sources as Islamic Art, quilts and the art of M. C. Escher. This seems, therefore, to be an appropriate moment for Dover to have reprinted Dye's monumental A Grammar of Chinese Lattice, originally Volumes V and VI of the Harvard Yenching Institute Monograph series (Harvard University Press). The reprint is based on the second edition of 1949, but does not appear to differ appreciably from the original 1937 edition. Since the second volume commenced with p. 232, both volumes could be conveniently combined into one paperback with the original continuing pagination.

The work represents about 20 years of investigation by the author in China between the two World Wars, particularly in Szechwan. There are over 400 pages of illustrations accompanied by short descriptive passages, as well as introductory sections outlining the course of the research and the history of Chinese lattice design, a description of the technical details of constructing the lattices and an attempt at classification. In addition, Dye lists a number of his favorites. Some are Dye's own designs, in the style of a given region (e.g. p. 84, No. 3b; p. 87, No. 4a and p. 215, No. 3b).

Since most of the lattices are made of delicate wood and were meant to reinforce the oiled-paper windows, they are not very durable. In point of fact, many are replaced at the Chinese New Year. Yet the history of Chinese lattice design covers a period of at least 3,000 years. Fortunately, design books have outlived the lattices themselves; among sources quoted one finds such surprises as Chippendale's The Director of 1753.

The classification system appears to be somewhat arbitrary, but then who is to say on what basis to classify these patterns? Symmetry was not the basis; an occasional misconception might have been prevented if symmetry theory had been applied. For example, classes R. and S. are called 'Like' and 'Unlike' Swastikas, respectively. Nevertheless, it is known that a periodic pattern containing one four-fold center of rotational symmetry necessarily contains two distinct sets of such centers [cf. A. L. Loeb, Color and Symmetry (New York: Wiley, 1971) p. 173, Theorem 4]. Indeed, in the so-called 'Like' Swastika patterns, unlike swastikas can invariably be found. This observation is significant when on pp. 270 and 271 patterns 12a and b are found to be labeled 'Concealed Swastikas'.

Although Dye stresses the importance of the numberfive to the Chinese, five-fold symmetry is absent where one might have expected it, namely, in the so-called 'Single-Focus Frames'. Only in the appendix, the so-called 'Tail Pieces', do we find on p. 332, Nos. 2c and 2d, examples of five-fold symmetry.

Incidental delights are the Chinese names for what we know as Kagome (bamboo-weave) and honeycomb patterns; Dye translates these from the Chinese respectively as 'peppereye

A Primer of Visual Literacy. Donis A. Dondis. M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973. 194 pp., illus. ?5.00, $9.95. Reviewed by John M. Kennedy?

This is a small but quite packed elementary text for a design course, which would be useful to students unable to appreciate the intellectual scope and moral sensitivity of a Rudolf Arnheim. The survey of basic terms in visual media is systematic and concise, though naturally enough incomplete. Dondis writes enthusiastically; she is vigorous and provocative in praising visual displays and in predicting an increasing role for them in the near future. Her illustrations are generally clear, simple and to the point. At times the text is more blunt than strong and it will be the role of any instructor using this text to ensure that students who master Dondis' bold distinctions see the need for finer and more profound analyses.

Chinese Lattice Designs. Daniel Sheets Dye. Dover, New York, 1974. 469 pp., illus. Paper. $5.00. Reviewed by Arthur L. Loeb??

Mass production and the boredom induced by the sight of unimaginatively reproduced ugly modules has revived an interest in the fascinating repeating patterns found in such varied sources as Islamic Art, quilts and the art of M. C. Escher. This seems, therefore, to be an appropriate moment for Dover to have reprinted Dye's monumental A Grammar of Chinese Lattice, originally Volumes V and VI of the Harvard Yenching Institute Monograph series (Harvard University Press). The reprint is based on the second edition of 1949, but does not appear to differ appreciably from the original 1937 edition. Since the second volume commenced with p. 232, both volumes could be conveniently combined into one paperback with the original continuing pagination.

The work represents about 20 years of investigation by the author in China between the two World Wars, particularly in Szechwan. There are over 400 pages of illustrations accompanied by short descriptive passages, as well as introductory sections outlining the course of the research and the history of Chinese lattice design, a description of the technical details of constructing the lattices and an attempt at classification. In addition, Dye lists a number of his favorites. Some are Dye's own designs, in the style of a given region (e.g. p. 84, No. 3b; p. 87, No. 4a and p. 215, No. 3b).

Since most of the lattices are made of delicate wood and were meant to reinforce the oiled-paper windows, they are not very durable. In point of fact, many are replaced at the Chinese New Year. Yet the history of Chinese lattice design covers a period of at least 3,000 years. Fortunately, design books have outlived the lattices themselves; among sources quoted one finds such surprises as Chippendale's The Director of 1753.

The classification system appears to be somewhat arbitrary, but then who is to say on what basis to classify these patterns? Symmetry was not the basis; an occasional misconception might have been prevented if symmetry theory had been applied. For example, classes R. and S. are called 'Like' and 'Unlike' Swastikas, respectively. Nevertheless, it is known that a periodic pattern containing one four-fold center of rotational symmetry necessarily contains two distinct sets of such centers [cf. A. L. Loeb, Color and Symmetry (New York: Wiley, 1971) p. 173, Theorem 4]. Indeed, in the so-called 'Like' Swastika patterns, unlike swastikas can invariably be found. This observation is significant when on pp. 270 and 271 patterns 12a and b are found to be labeled 'Concealed Swastikas'.

Although Dye stresses the importance of the numberfive to the Chinese, five-fold symmetry is absent where one might have expected it, namely, in the so-called 'Single-Focus Frames'. Only in the appendix, the so-called 'Tail Pieces', do we find on p. 332, Nos. 2c and 2d, examples of five-fold symmetry.

Incidental delights are the Chinese names for what we know as Kagome (bamboo-weave) and honeycomb patterns; Dye translates these from the Chinese respectively as 'peppereye

A Primer of Visual Literacy. Donis A. Dondis. M.I.T. Press, Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973. 194 pp., illus. ?5.00, $9.95. Reviewed by John M. Kennedy?

This is a small but quite packed elementary text for a design course, which would be useful to students unable to appreciate the intellectual scope and moral sensitivity of a Rudolf Arnheim. The survey of basic terms in visual media is systematic and concise, though naturally enough incomplete. Dondis writes enthusiastically; she is vigorous and provocative in praising visual displays and in predicting an increasing role for them in the near future. Her illustrations are generally clear, simple and to the point. At times the text is more blunt than strong and it will be the role of any instructor using this text to ensure that students who master Dondis' bold distinctions see the need for finer and more profound analyses.

Chinese Lattice Designs. Daniel Sheets Dye. Dover, New York, 1974. 469 pp., illus. Paper. $5.00. Reviewed by Arthur L. Loeb??

Mass production and the boredom induced by the sight of unimaginatively reproduced ugly modules has revived an interest in the fascinating repeating patterns found in such varied sources as Islamic Art, quilts and the art of M. C. Escher. This seems, therefore, to be an appropriate moment for Dover to have reprinted Dye's monumental A Grammar of Chinese Lattice, originally Volumes V and VI of the Harvard Yenching Institute Monograph series (Harvard University Press). The reprint is based on the second edition of 1949, but does not appear to differ appreciably from the original 1937 edition. Since the second volume commenced with p. 232, both volumes could be conveniently combined into one paperback with the original continuing pagination.

The work represents about 20 years of investigation by the author in China between the two World Wars, particularly in Szechwan. There are over 400 pages of illustrations accompanied by short descriptive passages, as well as introductory sections outlining the course of the research and the history of Chinese lattice design, a description of the technical details of constructing the lattices and an attempt at classification. In addition, Dye lists a number of his favorites. Some are Dye's own designs, in the style of a given region (e.g. p. 84, No. 3b; p. 87, No. 4a and p. 215, No. 3b).

Since most of the lattices are made of delicate wood and were meant to reinforce the oiled-paper windows, they are not very durable. In point of fact, many are replaced at the Chinese New Year. Yet the history of Chinese lattice design covers a period of at least 3,000 years. Fortunately, design books have outlived the lattices themselves; among sources quoted one finds such surprises as Chippendale's The Director of 1753.

The classification system appears to be somewhat arbitrary, but then who is to say on what basis to classify these patterns? Symmetry was not the basis; an occasional misconception might have been prevented if symmetry theory had been applied. For example, classes R. and S. are called 'Like' and 'Unlike' Swastikas, respectively. Nevertheless, it is known that a periodic pattern containing one four-fold center of rotational symmetry necessarily contains two distinct sets of such centers [cf. A. L. Loeb, Color and Symmetry (New York: Wiley, 1971) p. 173, Theorem 4]. Indeed, in the so-called 'Like' Swastika patterns, unlike swastikas can invariably be found. This observation is significant when on pp. 270 and 271 patterns 12a and b are found to be labeled 'Concealed Swastikas'.

Although Dye stresses the importance of the numberfive to the Chinese, five-fold symmetry is absent where one might have expected it, namely, in the so-called 'Single-Focus Frames'. Only in the appendix, the so-called 'Tail Pieces', do we find on p. 332, Nos. 2c and 2d, examples of five-fold symmetry.

Incidental delights are the Chinese names for what we know as Kagome (bamboo-weave) and honeycomb patterns; Dye translates these from the Chinese respectively as 'peppereye

style one has learned to dread, and with none of the conventional scholarly niceties of accurate and intelligent research, of acknowledgment of ideas from other sources and of aids to further study in the forms of references and bibliography.

Total Art: Environments, Happenings and Performance. Adrian Henri. Praeger, New York, 1974. 216 pp., illus. $10.00. Reviewed by Paul Heyer* and William Vazan**

It is good to see a book devoted to environmental-performance art finally appear in Praeger's popular series. Henri makes a strong case that works of this kind are as important as painting or sculpture to an understanding of art history. How many of us are aware of the pageants and celebrations designed by Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance artists?

Movements such as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism and Pop are assessed in terms of their contribution to the 'total art' tradition. Individual artists include Malevich, Duchamp, Ernst, Warhol, Oldenburg, Kaprow, Kienholz, Klein and Beuys. Through their efforts, Henri contends, the visual arts have been pushed to wider experiential limits.

After a brief discussion relating to what constitutes 'total art', the author elaborates on the notion of art as environment. Specific attention is given to Pop. Pieces by Smithson, Haacke and others are brought in; yet Conceptual art is not. We feel that there should have been a clearer differentiation here between those who deliberately produce artistic environments, as in Pop art, and those, like the conceptualists, who may take a given environment and use it as a medium. Next, happenings are given concise historical coverage. The link to other media, in particular, theater, is carefully noted. The last chapter is devoted to the artist as performer. The work of Klein and Beuys is cited with reference to the intense demands they have made on themselves in merging visual works with physical performance.

Total Art is well documented and amply illustrated. Henri does not limit his survey to the more notorious manifestations but brings to light a number of lesser known equally significant examples. Nevertheless, we also feel that there is some incongruity. Should works whose range represents phantasma- goria of absurd fantasies, the link between art and technology and the exploration of natural and/or cultural processes, be lumped in one tradition? Also, at times the artistic validity of some of the representations ought to be challenged. Perhaps we are being mediated by taste and should not let it color our evaluation of the author, who on the whole has done a very commendable job. The art he discusses, as is well known, contains something to offend everyone.

Sculpture from Found Objects. Carl Reed and Burt Towne. Davis, Worcester, Mass., 1974, 96 pp., illus. $8.95. Reviewed by Lucia Beier}

This book consists largely of illustrations of 'art objects' made from cast-off materials from a consumer society-for example, automobile mufflers and camshafts; plastic, metal and glass containers; egg cartons, etc., etc., and occasionally from natural materials like sand and driftwood. While this may be ecologically interesting and while there are some modest artistic possibilities in found objects, this book is insipid, due to the inanity of the final products shown. Although they were done mainly by secondary school students, the authors should have exercised some aesthetic judgment in making their selection. As it is, I winced at each page, anticipating yet another horror like a folded rubber beach sandal replete with six forks for legs to form a 'flip- flop monster' or 'a box, a berry basket, lace and parts of a doll made this sophisticated lady'. The text accompanying the gruesome objects is repetitive and irrelevant. Anyone contemplating teaching sculpture from found objects should avoid this book.

*5105 St. Catherine St. East, Apt. 1, Montreal, Quebec H1V

style one has learned to dread, and with none of the conventional scholarly niceties of accurate and intelligent research, of acknowledgment of ideas from other sources and of aids to further study in the forms of references and bibliography.

Total Art: Environments, Happenings and Performance. Adrian Henri. Praeger, New York, 1974. 216 pp., illus. $10.00. Reviewed by Paul Heyer* and William Vazan**

It is good to see a book devoted to environmental-performance art finally appear in Praeger's popular series. Henri makes a strong case that works of this kind are as important as painting or sculpture to an understanding of art history. How many of us are aware of the pageants and celebrations designed by Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance artists?

Movements such as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism and Pop are assessed in terms of their contribution to the 'total art' tradition. Individual artists include Malevich, Duchamp, Ernst, Warhol, Oldenburg, Kaprow, Kienholz, Klein and Beuys. Through their efforts, Henri contends, the visual arts have been pushed to wider experiential limits.

After a brief discussion relating to what constitutes 'total art', the author elaborates on the notion of art as environment. Specific attention is given to Pop. Pieces by Smithson, Haacke and others are brought in; yet Conceptual art is not. We feel that there should have been a clearer differentiation here between those who deliberately produce artistic environments, as in Pop art, and those, like the conceptualists, who may take a given environment and use it as a medium. Next, happenings are given concise historical coverage. The link to other media, in particular, theater, is carefully noted. The last chapter is devoted to the artist as performer. The work of Klein and Beuys is cited with reference to the intense demands they have made on themselves in merging visual works with physical performance.

Total Art is well documented and amply illustrated. Henri does not limit his survey to the more notorious manifestations but brings to light a number of lesser known equally significant examples. Nevertheless, we also feel that there is some incongruity. Should works whose range represents phantasma- goria of absurd fantasies, the link between art and technology and the exploration of natural and/or cultural processes, be lumped in one tradition? Also, at times the artistic validity of some of the representations ought to be challenged. Perhaps we are being mediated by taste and should not let it color our evaluation of the author, who on the whole has done a very commendable job. The art he discusses, as is well known, contains something to offend everyone.

Sculpture from Found Objects. Carl Reed and Burt Towne. Davis, Worcester, Mass., 1974, 96 pp., illus. $8.95. Reviewed by Lucia Beier}

This book consists largely of illustrations of 'art objects' made from cast-off materials from a consumer society-for example, automobile mufflers and camshafts; plastic, metal and glass containers; egg cartons, etc., etc., and occasionally from natural materials like sand and driftwood. While this may be ecologically interesting and while there are some modest artistic possibilities in found objects, this book is insipid, due to the inanity of the final products shown. Although they were done mainly by secondary school students, the authors should have exercised some aesthetic judgment in making their selection. As it is, I winced at each page, anticipating yet another horror like a folded rubber beach sandal replete with six forks for legs to form a 'flip- flop monster' or 'a box, a berry basket, lace and parts of a doll made this sophisticated lady'. The text accompanying the gruesome objects is repetitive and irrelevant. Anyone contemplating teaching sculpture from found objects should avoid this book.

*5105 St. Catherine St. East, Apt. 1, Montreal, Quebec H1V

style one has learned to dread, and with none of the conventional scholarly niceties of accurate and intelligent research, of acknowledgment of ideas from other sources and of aids to further study in the forms of references and bibliography.

Total Art: Environments, Happenings and Performance. Adrian Henri. Praeger, New York, 1974. 216 pp., illus. $10.00. Reviewed by Paul Heyer* and William Vazan**

It is good to see a book devoted to environmental-performance art finally appear in Praeger's popular series. Henri makes a strong case that works of this kind are as important as painting or sculpture to an understanding of art history. How many of us are aware of the pageants and celebrations designed by Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance artists?

Movements such as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism and Pop are assessed in terms of their contribution to the 'total art' tradition. Individual artists include Malevich, Duchamp, Ernst, Warhol, Oldenburg, Kaprow, Kienholz, Klein and Beuys. Through their efforts, Henri contends, the visual arts have been pushed to wider experiential limits.

After a brief discussion relating to what constitutes 'total art', the author elaborates on the notion of art as environment. Specific attention is given to Pop. Pieces by Smithson, Haacke and others are brought in; yet Conceptual art is not. We feel that there should have been a clearer differentiation here between those who deliberately produce artistic environments, as in Pop art, and those, like the conceptualists, who may take a given environment and use it as a medium. Next, happenings are given concise historical coverage. The link to other media, in particular, theater, is carefully noted. The last chapter is devoted to the artist as performer. The work of Klein and Beuys is cited with reference to the intense demands they have made on themselves in merging visual works with physical performance.

Total Art is well documented and amply illustrated. Henri does not limit his survey to the more notorious manifestations but brings to light a number of lesser known equally significant examples. Nevertheless, we also feel that there is some incongruity. Should works whose range represents phantasma- goria of absurd fantasies, the link between art and technology and the exploration of natural and/or cultural processes, be lumped in one tradition? Also, at times the artistic validity of some of the representations ought to be challenged. Perhaps we are being mediated by taste and should not let it color our evaluation of the author, who on the whole has done a very commendable job. The art he discusses, as is well known, contains something to offend everyone.

Sculpture from Found Objects. Carl Reed and Burt Towne. Davis, Worcester, Mass., 1974, 96 pp., illus. $8.95. Reviewed by Lucia Beier}

This book consists largely of illustrations of 'art objects' made from cast-off materials from a consumer society-for example, automobile mufflers and camshafts; plastic, metal and glass containers; egg cartons, etc., etc., and occasionally from natural materials like sand and driftwood. While this may be ecologically interesting and while there are some modest artistic possibilities in found objects, this book is insipid, due to the inanity of the final products shown. Although they were done mainly by secondary school students, the authors should have exercised some aesthetic judgment in making their selection. As it is, I winced at each page, anticipating yet another horror like a folded rubber beach sandal replete with six forks for legs to form a 'flip- flop monster' or 'a box, a berry basket, lace and parts of a doll made this sophisticated lady'. The text accompanying the gruesome objects is repetitive and irrelevant. Anyone contemplating teaching sculpture from found objects should avoid this book.

*5105 St. Catherine St. East, Apt. 1, Montreal, Quebec H1V

style one has learned to dread, and with none of the conventional scholarly niceties of accurate and intelligent research, of acknowledgment of ideas from other sources and of aids to further study in the forms of references and bibliography.

Total Art: Environments, Happenings and Performance. Adrian Henri. Praeger, New York, 1974. 216 pp., illus. $10.00. Reviewed by Paul Heyer* and William Vazan**

It is good to see a book devoted to environmental-performance art finally appear in Praeger's popular series. Henri makes a strong case that works of this kind are as important as painting or sculpture to an understanding of art history. How many of us are aware of the pageants and celebrations designed by Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance artists?

Movements such as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism and Pop are assessed in terms of their contribution to the 'total art' tradition. Individual artists include Malevich, Duchamp, Ernst, Warhol, Oldenburg, Kaprow, Kienholz, Klein and Beuys. Through their efforts, Henri contends, the visual arts have been pushed to wider experiential limits.

After a brief discussion relating to what constitutes 'total art', the author elaborates on the notion of art as environment. Specific attention is given to Pop. Pieces by Smithson, Haacke and others are brought in; yet Conceptual art is not. We feel that there should have been a clearer differentiation here between those who deliberately produce artistic environments, as in Pop art, and those, like the conceptualists, who may take a given environment and use it as a medium. Next, happenings are given concise historical coverage. The link to other media, in particular, theater, is carefully noted. The last chapter is devoted to the artist as performer. The work of Klein and Beuys is cited with reference to the intense demands they have made on themselves in merging visual works with physical performance.

Total Art is well documented and amply illustrated. Henri does not limit his survey to the more notorious manifestations but brings to light a number of lesser known equally significant examples. Nevertheless, we also feel that there is some incongruity. Should works whose range represents phantasma- goria of absurd fantasies, the link between art and technology and the exploration of natural and/or cultural processes, be lumped in one tradition? Also, at times the artistic validity of some of the representations ought to be challenged. Perhaps we are being mediated by taste and should not let it color our evaluation of the author, who on the whole has done a very commendable job. The art he discusses, as is well known, contains something to offend everyone.

Sculpture from Found Objects. Carl Reed and Burt Towne. Davis, Worcester, Mass., 1974, 96 pp., illus. $8.95. Reviewed by Lucia Beier}

This book consists largely of illustrations of 'art objects' made from cast-off materials from a consumer society-for example, automobile mufflers and camshafts; plastic, metal and glass containers; egg cartons, etc., etc., and occasionally from natural materials like sand and driftwood. While this may be ecologically interesting and while there are some modest artistic possibilities in found objects, this book is insipid, due to the inanity of the final products shown. Although they were done mainly by secondary school students, the authors should have exercised some aesthetic judgment in making their selection. As it is, I winced at each page, anticipating yet another horror like a folded rubber beach sandal replete with six forks for legs to form a 'flip- flop monster' or 'a box, a berry basket, lace and parts of a doll made this sophisticated lady'. The text accompanying the gruesome objects is repetitive and irrelevant. Anyone contemplating teaching sculpture from found objects should avoid this book.

*5105 St. Catherine St. East, Apt. 1, Montreal, Quebec H1V

style one has learned to dread, and with none of the conventional scholarly niceties of accurate and intelligent research, of acknowledgment of ideas from other sources and of aids to further study in the forms of references and bibliography.

Total Art: Environments, Happenings and Performance. Adrian Henri. Praeger, New York, 1974. 216 pp., illus. $10.00. Reviewed by Paul Heyer* and William Vazan**

It is good to see a book devoted to environmental-performance art finally appear in Praeger's popular series. Henri makes a strong case that works of this kind are as important as painting or sculpture to an understanding of art history. How many of us are aware of the pageants and celebrations designed by Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance artists?

Movements such as Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism and Pop are assessed in terms of their contribution to the 'total art' tradition. Individual artists include Malevich, Duchamp, Ernst, Warhol, Oldenburg, Kaprow, Kienholz, Klein and Beuys. Through their efforts, Henri contends, the visual arts have been pushed to wider experiential limits.

After a brief discussion relating to what constitutes 'total art', the author elaborates on the notion of art as environment. Specific attention is given to Pop. Pieces by Smithson, Haacke and others are brought in; yet Conceptual art is not. We feel that there should have been a clearer differentiation here between those who deliberately produce artistic environments, as in Pop art, and those, like the conceptualists, who may take a given environment and use it as a medium. Next, happenings are given concise historical coverage. The link to other media, in particular, theater, is carefully noted. The last chapter is devoted to the artist as performer. The work of Klein and Beuys is cited with reference to the intense demands they have made on themselves in merging visual works with physical performance.

Total Art is well documented and amply illustrated. Henri does not limit his survey to the more notorious manifestations but brings to light a number of lesser known equally significant examples. Nevertheless, we also feel that there is some incongruity. Should works whose range represents phantasma- goria of absurd fantasies, the link between art and technology and the exploration of natural and/or cultural processes, be lumped in one tradition? Also, at times the artistic validity of some of the representations ought to be challenged. Perhaps we are being mediated by taste and should not let it color our evaluation of the author, who on the whole has done a very commendable job. The art he discusses, as is well known, contains something to offend everyone.

Sculpture from Found Objects. Carl Reed and Burt Towne. Davis, Worcester, Mass., 1974, 96 pp., illus. $8.95. Reviewed by Lucia Beier}

This book consists largely of illustrations of 'art objects' made from cast-off materials from a consumer society-for example, automobile mufflers and camshafts; plastic, metal and glass containers; egg cartons, etc., etc., and occasionally from natural materials like sand and driftwood. While this may be ecologically interesting and while there are some modest artistic possibilities in found objects, this book is insipid, due to the inanity of the final products shown. Although they were done mainly by secondary school students, the authors should have exercised some aesthetic judgment in making their selection. As it is, I winced at each page, anticipating yet another horror like a folded rubber beach sandal replete with six forks for legs to form a 'flip- flop monster' or 'a box, a berry basket, lace and parts of a doll made this sophisticated lady'. The text accompanying the gruesome objects is repetitive and irrelevant. Anyone contemplating teaching sculpture from found objects should avoid this book.

*5105 St. Catherine St. East, Apt. 1, Montreal, Quebec H1V 2A5, Canada.

**6245 de Carignan St., Montreal, Quebec HIM 2H9, Canada. t15 Borrowdale Rd., Lancaster LA1 3HF, England.

2A5, Canada.

**6245 de Carignan St., Montreal, Quebec HIM 2H9, Canada. t15 Borrowdale Rd., Lancaster LA1 3HF, England.

2A5, Canada.

**6245 de Carignan St., Montreal, Quebec HIM 2H9, Canada. t15 Borrowdale Rd., Lancaster LA1 3HF, England.

2A5, Canada.

**6245 de Carignan St., Montreal, Quebec HIM 2H9, Canada. t15 Borrowdale Rd., Lancaster LA1 3HF, England.

2A5, Canada.

**6245 de Carignan St., Montreal, Quebec HIM 2H9, Canada. t15 Borrowdale Rd., Lancaster LA1 3HF, England.

?Psychology Dept., Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.

??Dept. of Visual and Environmental Studies, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

?Psychology Dept., Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.

??Dept. of Visual and Environmental Studies, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

?Psychology Dept., Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.

??Dept. of Visual and Environmental Studies, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

?Psychology Dept., Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.

??Dept. of Visual and Environmental Studies, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

?Psychology Dept., Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.

??Dept. of Visual and Environmental Studies, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

Books Books Books Books Books 169 169 169 169 169

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