Reviews

Gr 10 Up-Onians has undertaken the gargantuan task of organizing the global range of artistic expression from 40,000 B.C. to the present. Using maps as his primary visual tool, the author divides the book into seven chronological periods. Within these epochs, sections focus on broad landmasses, which are further partitioned into entries about a region or country during a shorter unit of time. An introduction describes the challenges of this approach, particularly the "inherent unevenness" that results from limited knowledge when art was made of "impermanent materials" in "hostile" climates. Thus North and Sub-Saharan Africa are each afforded only two pages for the period A.D. 1500 to 1800, but Italy receives four. Due to the constraints of the single-volume format, the information is idiosyncratic and superficial. Nonetheless, the maps are notable for their clarity and pull together a staggering amount of detail, from the names of artists and the locations of raw materials to trade routes and the political, social, and religious influences on the art of a region. Readers can trace the output of a broad period or area, although the disparity of objects and the paucity of images make comparisons across cultures challenging. One section may depict a necklace, while another highlights a cathedral, a coin, or a site. A thorough index enhances the volume's utility; however, small print, sophisticated writing, and density of detail require that users have prior knowledge of the subject. For specialized collections.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

"Archaeologists are experts in the earliest art, anthropologists in the art of modern pre-literate peoples, and art historians in the art of literate peoples," art historian Onians says in his introduction, and as such, the study of art history has been correspondingly divided, preventing "the study of art as a worldwide phenomenon" and inhibiting "the study of the nature and origins of human artistic behaviour." More than 300 full-color maps comprise this unorthodox 9-1/2" x 13-3/8" rectificatory survey. The book starts at 40,000 B.C. and ends at A.D. 2000, with the maps stuffed with depictions of trade routes, migrations, borders, natural resources and human settlements. Accompanying text provides plenty of detail on how the art of particular geographical regions or cultural groups changed with economic, ecological and political situations. Unfortunately, the sparse and undersized reproductions of art often fail to adequately illustrate the text and maps. A student, after reading the survey cover to cover, would be hard-pressed to visually distinguish a Roman fresco from a Piero Della Francesca, or a Maori sculpture from an Inuit carving. But she or he would certainly know how each culture's art was limited by the natural materials available to them, how the rise of hierarchies within societies led to more extravagant projects (a tendency that becomes depressingly and obviously repetitive) or by which route the Visigoths invaded Rome. (July) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Onians (Univ. of East Anglia), the author of several books on classical influences in art, has assembled the contributions of 68 British and North American specialists into a unique publication. The more than 300 full-color maps illustrate the geographical, environmental, and political factors that have influenced the evolution of art as an expression of human culture, tracing the migrations of artists and art movements across the planet. Divided into seven historical sections, each introduced by the editor, the book is written in an accessible language and enriched with color reproductions of works of art and architecture exemplifying each topic. The broad scope of coverage and the clear attempt to avoid Eurocentricism result in a general overview of art currents by geographical region or country. One occasionally longs for more examples of art, but that would not be possible in the context of an atlas of world art, not a history of art. Bottom Line Groundbreaking and handsomely produced, this is a welcome addition to any reference collection.-Edward K. Werner, St. Lucie Cty. Lib. Syst., Ft. Pierce, FL Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.