Lessons in Likeness

November 15, 2010

Roaming the frontiers in the beginnings of the 19th century were many itinerant artists--principally portraitists--struggling to make a living. They unknowingly provided a lasting visual record of the personalities and families working to bring a new society to the American landscape. An especially fecund area of activity by these mostly self-taught painters was the Ohio River Valley and Kentucky Bluegrass Region, where the lore of Daniel Boone and pride in the antebellum arcadia fueled popular demand for family portraits. John James Audubon and George Caleb Bingham were among the more notable individuals working in a tradition extending through the 20th century. Drawing on Louisville's Filson Historical Society's large collections, Pennington (William Edward West, 1788-1857: Kentucky Painter) has compiled a valuable record of artist biographies and artworks, covering the long century from the nation's beginnings through the Great War. VERDICT Because Pennington recounts how this more esoteric aspect of art history took place within a historical backdrop of extraordinary political, social, and economic upheaval, he makes something recondite far more accessible and engrossing. Useful to readers interested in 19th-century Americana and Kentucky history.--Douglas F. Smith, Berkeley P.L., CA

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