Atlas of World Art

“A new vision of 40,000 years of world art” runs the press release for the Atlas of World Art, a large claim that I think this very large (34×25 cm) and stunningly presented volume manages to justify. The work's innovative approach centres around 300 maps, which attempt to place the entire range of the creative activity of humankind in context of both the natural environment and “political, religious, economic and cultural factors” which have influenced developments. “Art” here is very broadly conceived as “a worldwide human behaviour”. A total of 68 art historians, mainly based at academic institutions in...