James Prosek: Art, Artifact, Artifice

The artist and author James Prosek, who is already justly recognized for his artwork of nature, has now produced a volume of great wisdom and beauty on the relationship between nature, art, and artifacts.The book is a companion work to his exhibition at the Yale University Art Gallery which includes many of his drawings, paintings, sculptures and other works cleverly joined with treasures from the Yale Art Gallery and the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the relationship between art and nature, which is explored so eloquently through the art and artifacts in the exhibition and through Prosek's wonderful prose. Taking us on a journey of the natural world through the prism of art and representation, throughout the book Prosek projects a sense of curiosity and wonder about what Darwin called nature's production of "endless forms most beautiful."You may already be familiar with Prosek's body of artwork related to fish, birds and other wildlife, but this book will also introduce you to his compelling thoughts about how we perceive, represent, name and classify everything in the natural world, sometimes to our detriment.Each of the chapters in the book provides both a textual and visual guide to such topics as: Naming Nature, The Color Spectrum, Mark Making, Hybridity, Representation and Artifice, The Myth of Order, Nature as Tool, etc.The text cleverly summarizes centuries of erudition in thinking about art and nature, while employing the objects in the exhibition to demonstrate the deeper meaning of how we relate to the natural world.Even if you do not buy traditional heavy art books, you will enjoy this one if you have always wondered about how everything in art, science and the natural world is interconnected in the most amazing ways. The color reproduction of the artwork is stunning and the design and layout are simply outstanding, making the book at once both very readable and browseable.What a shame that this exhibition opened in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, but what a gift to be blessed with such a true work of art to savor during the lockdown, when we are all craving more connection to the natural world.

Fascinating study and unique perspectives. A very gifted and talented artist.