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Maynard Dixon's landscape paintings of the American West are distinctive and instantly recognisable: the bold and rugged terrain below stylised clouds and often rich colours; but there is much more to his work. As a youngster he was enthralled by the work of Charles Russell, so it is not surprising that is interests developed as they did. Dixon, a solitary man, was very taken with the open space of the West, and in turn by the indigenous peoples he found there. His interest in what he found went beyond trying to capture it on canvas, it influenced how he dressed, how he lived; he would live alongside the Native Indians while working.

This book was published to accompany the exhibition of the title held in Brigham Young University's new exhibition facilities in November 2000.

The account opens with the origin and history of the University's collection. This is followed by an essay which looks at Dixon's choice of career to paint the West at the time when the "frontier" had been declared officially closed. A discussion of Dixon's claim that he painted the real West forms a major part of the book; the final essay considers the influence between Dixon and his second wife, photographer Dorothea Lange. The book concludes with an Epilogue, a Catalogue of the Exhibition and a Selected Bibliography.

A large, square format book, it contains in excess of 110 full colour images and more the 60 black and white, the latter being almost entirely period photographs. The illustrations run with the text, and are mostly within a page or so of their mention in the text. The reproductions range from a few double page spreads and a number of full-page images to the postcard size, with just one or two very small images. The paintings encompass Dixon's Western landscapes, Native American Indians, and images of the Depression; the photographs include a number by Lange. It is an appealing book, well laid-out; the full page images are particularly striking. ( )