The Valiant Hero: Benjamin West and Grand-style History Painting

Smithsonian Institution Press (New Directions in American Art Series) [Published date: 1985]. Soft cover, 254 pp. Contents include: A Hero for His Time; John Gait and the Legendary Origins of Benjamin West; The Birth of American History Painting; Apprentice in Arcadia; The Choice of Hercules; Color Plates;Drama, Politics, and Evolution of the Neoclassical Grand Style;The Road to Royal Patronage; The Apotheosis of General Wolfe;Epitaph; Notes; Comments on Sources; List of Illustrations;Index. Black and white illustrations throughout with 7 full color plates. [from rear cover] Art scholarship in the United States is increasingly concerned with the rich heritage of the arts in America over the past two hundred years. In a new publishing venture, the Smithsonian is extending its mandate as the nation's leading cultural institution to bring to public attention the provocative works of art historians who are developing fresh conceptions of artists and art movements.The Valiant Hero is the first book in "New Directions in American Art," a series that presents innovative studies of the forces that have guided all manner of artists throughout our evolution as a nation. Many scholars are approaching their subjects from an interdisciplinary viewpoint, and it is this focus that characterizes "New Directions."