FINE ART OF THE WEST

The silver saddle on the cover announces that this book will be unapologetic in presenting "Stock Saddles and Gun Leather," "Artistry with Hide and Hair" and "Boots and Hats" as works of art—and, it turns out, rightly so. Price is the director of the University of Oklahoma's Russell Center for the Study of Art of the American West, and he is even-voiced and convincing in relating the "specialized gear" of American cowboys to the armor and saddlery of horse and herding cultures throughout the ages, showing their detail and artistry to be as distinct of that of any other medium. Of 270 or so illustrations, 235 are in full color, and many are crisp and exquisite, with holsters that radiate color, power and speed; a four-color coil of rope that will move several sorts of fetishists; and saddles with tooling delicate enough to rival the most intricate rugs or fabrics. Price's explanations of modes and forgotten styles ("[e]xcept for their hair coverings, woolies did not differ much in construction from other chaps") will be more essential for some readers than others. His careful attention to the economics of the work and its Spanish-American origins gives the book real depth and makes for a fully satisfying account of an undersung set of arts that, Price shows, continue to flourish. (Nov.)