Booklist
From the very first to the very last of its 850 illustrations, this handsomely produced and meticulously researched volume proves to be an incomparable and invaluable resource. A half dozen scholars provided essays covering the history of art in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Every form of visual art is chronicled with sterling examples, including textiles, ceramics, bronzes, jewelry, paintings, statues of the Buddha on every conceivable scale, and entire temples. Just as various schools and movements associated with each culture are defined and their rise and fall charted over the centuries, the social, religious, and political contexts within which each style and technical innovation emerged are also analyzed, a multifaceted approach that greatly broadens our understanding of the diversity and complexity of the creative life of this enormous region. Donna Seaman
