The Civil War in American Art

Released alongside an extensive exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this latest from Harvey (The Painted Sketch) provides a nuanced, sensitive, and deeply informed accounting of a major period in the history of American art. Harvey sees with fresh attention the "war-infected layer of meaning" that permeates the period around the Civil War, gracefully navigating the political and aesthetic complexities that altered the literal and metaphoric landscapes of the time. She balances the broader world of military campaigns with detailed examinations of prominent artists, turning her attention to topics such as the rumbling skies of landscape artist Frederic Edwin Church and the subtleties of Winslow Homer's attitudes regarding race. Her sustained exploration is accompanied by striking reproductions of the images, with the gruesome photography of ravaged bodies and landscapes affecting enough to invigorate interest in the historical topics. Paired alongside these studies are considerations of popular poetry and journalism, highlighting the ways that visual art both altered the broader culture while remaining inseparable from it. The comprehensive study manages to remain engaging across its redolent academic and historical interests, creating a sincere excitement appropriate to Harvey's always insightful and vital reckoning with America's scarred past. Color illus. (Dec)