Art beyond the gallery

Early 20th-century English art saw an innovative move away from the limits of traditional exhibition areas toward the concept of art made for a specific space, an extension of art’s social boundaries. This selective study of those considered by Cork to be worthy of detailed inquiry covers Epstein’s sculptural programs, the influential work of Wyndham Lewis, the Vorticists, and the Omega Workshops of Roger Fry. Competition and cooperation are examined in both artistic and social worlds, as well as the cross-connections in concept and execution. Public reaction, not usually favorable, is evaluated in terms of the times and reevaluated in current perspective. Profusely illustrated and with a good bibliography, this is a worthwhile book on a very specific aspect of art that has renewed relevance in this decade. Paula Frosch, Metropolitan Museum of Art Lib., New York