by Marion Oettinger Jr., Fatima Bercht, Miguel A. Bretos, Carolyn Kinder Carr et al. (Yale University Press, 2004),
hardcover, 9 ¾ x 12 in.;
304 pp.,
$65.00
The tradition of portraiture in Latin America is astonishingly long and rich. For more than 2,000 years, portraits have been used to preserve the memory of the deceased, bolster the social standing of the aristocracy, mark the deeds of the mighty, advance the careers of politicians, record rites of passage, and mock symbols of the status quo. This beautiful and wide-ranging book–the first to explore the tradition of portraiture in Latin America from pre-Columbian times to the present day–features some 200 works from fifteen countries.
Purchase from Yale University Press.
Gilbert Stuart
by Carrie Rebora Barratt and Ellen G. Miles
(Yale University Press, 2004),
hardcover, 9 x 12 in.;
338 pp.,
$65.00
The most successful and resourceful portraitist of America’s early national period, Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828) possessed enormous natural talent, bringing his witty and irascible manner to bear on each of his works. This handsome book highlights Stuart’s achievements by presenting more than ninety portraits of exceptional quality, ranging from the early works he produced in Newport, Rhode Island, to those he executed just before his death in Boston.
Purchase from Yale University Press.
Women of Our Time
An Album of Twentieth-Century Photographs
by Frederick S. Voss,
with a preface by Cokie Roberts (Merrell, 2002),
hardcover, 9 ¾ x 11 ¼ in.; 176 pp., $35.00
Women of Our Time is a glorious photographic celebration of seventy-five of the most creative, humane, controversial, witty, brave, beautiful, and inspirational women of the twentieth century. These revealing portraits, by an array of distinguished photographers, show women who have reached the summit of achievement in politics, business, art, sports, performance, music, humanitarianism, and science.
Purchase from Merrell Publishers.
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Portrait of the Art World
A Century of ARTnews Photographs
by William F. Stapp, with essays by Pete Hamill and Milton Esterow
(Yale University Press, 2002),
hardcover, 8 ½ x 12 in.;
184 pp., $39.95
ARTnews, the oldest art magazine in America and the most widely circulated art magazine in the world, celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary in 2002. Portrait of the Art World: A Century of ARTnews Photographs commemorates this milestone event, presenting one hundred of the best photographic portraits commissioned by and reproduced in the magazine since its origin. These fascinating photographs chronicle the history of the magazine and present a "who’s who" of people who have shaped the art world over the last century.
Purchase from the National Portrait Gallery.
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George Washington
A National Treasure
by Richard Brookhiser, Margaret C. S. Christman, and Ellen G. Miles (University of Washington Press, 2002), 7 ¾ x 12 in.; 104 pp., hardcover, $28.95; softcover, $14.95
George Washington: A National Treasure celebrates our nation's permanent acquisition of Gilbert Stuart's magnificent "Lansdowne" portrait of George Washington. Commissioned for the Marquis of Lansdowne, a British supporter of American independence, the painting shows Washington in the last year of his presidency, 1796. Here is a George Washington for the ages, resolute in the face of the multiple crises of our nation's beginnings; grand in the tradition not of a king but of democracy's representative; civilian rather than military in his authority; and above all, the embodiment of a nation both stable and free.
Purchase from the University of Washington Press.
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Eye Contact
Modern American Portrait Drawings from the National Portrait Gallery
by Wendy Wick Reaves et al. (University of Washington Press, 2002),
hardcover, 9 ¼ x 12 in.; 256 pp., $60.00
Fifty graphic masterpieces representing the American artistic tradition from 1880 to the present day are showcased in Eye Contact. Reproduced as full-page color images, they range from portraits of Theodore Roosevelt by Charles Dana Gibson and W. C. Fields by Thomas Hart Benton to Robert F. Kennedy by Roy Lichtensetin, and self-portraits by artists Mary Cassatt, Edward Hopper, Joseph Stella, and Jacob Lawrence. Essays discuss the changing nature of portrait drawing in the twentieth century and the intellectual developments that influenced artists' conceptualization of the figure.
Purchase from the University of Washington Press.
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A Brush with History
Paintings from the National Portrait Gallery
by Carolyn Kinder Carr and Ellen G. Miles (University Press of New England, 2001),
9 ¼ x 12 in.; 216 pp., hardcover, $60.00; softcover, $30.00
Portraiture is a unique genre that is common ground for both American art history and history. Offering seventy-six wide-ranging examples from the National Portrait Gallery's incomparable collection, A Brush with History showcases the American portrait tradition from the country's beginnings to the present.
Purchase from the University Press of New England.
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Peace & Friendship
Indian Peace Medals from the Schermer Collection, National Portrait Gallery
by Francis Paul Prucha (National Portrait Gallery, 2001),
softcover, 8 x 11 in.; 40 pp., $3.95
In 2000, Betty and Lloyd Shermer presented a landmark gift of Indian peace medals to the National Portrait Gallery. These medals, produced in silver by the U.S. government for presentation to Indian chiefs and warriors, are a fascinating part of American history, delineating not only the country’s relationships with Indian tribes, but also representing an important segment of the history of American portraiture.
Purchase from the National Portrait Gallery.
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