American Vernacular: New Discoveries in Folk, Self-Taught, and Outsider Sculpture.

Frank Maresca, Roger Ricco, and Margit Rowell. New York, NY: Bullfinch Press/Little, Brown and Company, 2002. Illus., hardcover, 304 pp., $75.00.

As part of the art education profession, it can be expected that we advocate extensive schooling in the making and appreciating of art. What, then, is to be gained by buying and perusing this publication showcasing art expressions by individuals who are seldom schooled, and who march to their own drummer? Perhaps because this ground-breaking book brings hundreds of imaginative, expressive, and authentic sculptural forms--powerful visual statements--into our consciousness, expanding our conceptions of what art might be and become. Drawing on a host of critical perspectives including anthropology, psychology, deconstruction theory, and contemporary art, this book is a treasure chest of artful forms and ideas. Outsider art, a spontaneous art-making activity practiced outside the perimeters of the mainstream art world, incorporates form, function, purpose and, surprisingly often, beauty and aesthetic considerations. Several informative essays accompany the more than 450 objects reproduced in full color. These include decoys, circus figures, animals, jugs, puppets, dolls, trade signs, weather vanes, whirligigs, shaker boxes, and much more. All illustrations are accompanied by informative text. Viewers will note valid connections between vernacular art and the art of children, adolescents, and even contemporary art.

While somewhat costly, this book aids our understanding and appreciation of an overlooked and vital niche in the art universe.