Covering 825,000 acres in the Coastal Plain and Brush Country of South Texas, King Ranch, established in 1853, looms large in Texas and American history. Its place in the popular imagination shows through Edna Ferber's epic 1952 novel Giant, said to be based on the story of the Kings, the Klebergs, and other founding families of the famous ranching dynasty, and the subsequent Hollywood blockbuster starring Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean, and Rock Hudson.In King Ranch: A Legacy in Art, editors William E. Reaves and Linda J. Reaves have assembled a team of collaborators to present a beautiful, informative account of the ranch, its human and animal inhabitants, and its place in the artistic heritage of the region. Pairing original paintings by artist Noe Perez with insightful essays from curators and historians Bruce Shackelford and Ron Tyler, this book is a visual and narrative celebration of the many ways in which 'King Ranch culture' has enriched and, in some cases, fostered appreciation for the decorative, practical, and fine arts in Texas and the greater American West. Opening with a foreword by Jamey Clement, current chair of the board for King Ranch, Inc., and continuing with a survey by ranch historian Robert Kinnan, King Ranch: A Legacy in Art affords readers a unique appreciation of the natural beauty and artistic influence of this legendary place.

A significant collection of Texas paintings and prints hangs humbly and inconspicuously throughout the offices, conference rooms, and hallways of Texas A&M University Press. These works comprise the Frank H. Wardlaw Collection of Texas Art, named in honor of the Press's founding director, who was one of the genuine publishing icons of his day. Established in 1983 at the dedication of the new headquarters of Texas A&M University Press on the campus of Texas A&M, the collection began with twenty inaugural contributions that came as gifts from respected Texas artists whose art appeared in the books Wardlaw had shepherded to publication at the Press. Since then, the collection-which continues to be linked to artists published by the Press-has grown to house more than one hundred paintings, photographs, and illustrations. Among the noted artists featured in the collection are E. M. (Buck) Schiwetz, Otis Dozier, Michael Frary, Everett Spruce, Emily Guthrie Smith, Jerry Bywaters, and, among more recent additions, Dorothy Hood and Richard Stout. Through interviews with longtime staff and research into the Press's book files and correspondence, William and Linda Reaves have uncovered the captivating history of this unlikely collection. In A Book Maker's Art, they present the freshly assembled story of the Wardlaw collection, from its modest yet unique beginning to its present-day status as one of the university's excellent collections of Texas art, reflecting the exceptional bond of arts and letters that has come to distinguish Texas A&M University Press.

Richard Stout's legacy as an artist is broad, deep, and firmly moored to his Texas Gulf Coast origins. Born in Beaumont in 1934, he has been painting, sculpting, and teaching in Houston since 1957, in the process creating both an influential body of work and a committed national and international following among artists and collectors. Stout's expressionist oeuvre, possessing architectural structuralism with geometric precision, has found its place in prominent museum and private collections not only in Texas, but also nationally and internationally. His works have appeared in most major American exhibitions and have traveled to Europe, Australia, and Asia. In this, the first retrospective study of a career spanning one of the most tumultuous and formative periods in Texas art, the editors have gathered a critical examination and meticulously researched assessment of the evolution in the artist's style and approach. Richly illustrated with representative paintings and sculptures from throughout Stout's career, Sense of Home also provides a comprehensive biographical background, illuminating in multiple dimensions the life and work of one of Texas' most significant contemporary artists.