{"id":4421768839257,"title":"Rufus Porter’s Curious World: Art and Invention in America, 1815-1860","handle":"rufus-porter-s-curious-world-art-and-invention-in-america-1815-1860","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEdited by Laura Fecych Sprague and Justin Wolff\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce called the “Yankee Da Vinci,” Rufus Porter was an itinerant portrait painter and muralist, a publisher and author, an inventor of mechanical improvements, and an impresario who engineered an airship that promised to fly gold rush prospectors from New York to California in three days. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThrough his diverse interests in painting, mechanics, aeronautics, and publishing, Rufus Porter helped transform art and science in early America—not unlike his more famous peers, Samuel F. B. Morse and Robert Fulton. This nuanced picture of Porter restores him to the pantheon of great American artist-inventors and corrects common misconceptions about his life and work. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeticulous and contemplative, this study presents a moving portrait of an American legend—a remarkable, but unlucky, man who worked across multiple disciplines to envision an interconnected nation. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCopublished by the Bowdoin College Museum of Art and Penn State University Press. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe book accompanies an exhibition \u003cem\u003eRufus Porter’s Curious World Art and Invention in America, 1815-1860\u003c\/em\u003e on view at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art from December 12, 2019 through May 31, 2020.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHardcover, 2019: 152 pages; 87 color\/19 b\u0026amp;w illustrations; 11: × 10”\u003c\/p\u003e","published_at":"2020-01-08T14:20:54-05:00","created_at":"2020-01-08T14:31:05-05:00","vendor":"Bowdoin College Museum of Art","type":"Book","tags":["Catalogs \u0026 Books"],"price":3995,"price_min":3995,"price_max":3995,"available":true,"price_varies":false,"compare_at_price":3995,"compare_at_price_min":3995,"compare_at_price_max":3995,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":31339219779673,"title":"Default Title","option1":"Default Title","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"BCMA-CATPORTER","requires_shipping":true,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"Rufus Porter’s Curious World: Art and Invention in America, 1815-1860","public_title":null,"options":["Default Title"],"price":3995,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":3995,"inventory_quantity":93,"inventory_management":"shopify","inventory_policy":"deny","barcode":"","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]}],"images":["\/\/store.bowdoin.edu\/cdn\/shop\/products\/bcma-cat-porter-20.jpg?v=1578511865"],"featured_image":"\/\/store.bowdoin.edu\/cdn\/shop\/products\/bcma-cat-porter-20.jpg?v=1578511865","options":["Title"],"media":[{"alt":"Rufus Porter's Curious World book cover.","id":5788711747673,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":1.0,"height":550,"width":550,"src":"\/\/store.bowdoin.edu\/cdn\/shop\/products\/bcma-cat-porter-20.jpg?v=1578511865"},"aspect_ratio":1.0,"height":550,"media_type":"image","src":"\/\/store.bowdoin.edu\/cdn\/shop\/products\/bcma-cat-porter-20.jpg?v=1578511865","width":550}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEdited by Laura Fecych Sprague and Justin Wolff\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce called the “Yankee Da Vinci,” Rufus Porter was an itinerant portrait painter and muralist, a publisher and author, an inventor of mechanical improvements, and an impresario who engineered an airship that promised to fly gold rush prospectors from New York to California in three days. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThrough his diverse interests in painting, mechanics, aeronautics, and publishing, Rufus Porter helped transform art and science in early America—not unlike his more famous peers, Samuel F. B. Morse and Robert Fulton. This nuanced picture of Porter restores him to the pantheon of great American artist-inventors and corrects common misconceptions about his life and work. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeticulous and contemplative, this study presents a moving portrait of an American legend—a remarkable, but unlucky, man who worked across multiple disciplines to envision an interconnected nation. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCopublished by the Bowdoin College Museum of Art and Penn State University Press. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe book accompanies an exhibition \u003cem\u003eRufus Porter’s Curious World Art and Invention in America, 1815-1860\u003c\/em\u003e on view at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art from December 12, 2019 through May 31, 2020.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHardcover, 2019: 152 pages; 87 color\/19 b\u0026amp;w illustrations; 11: × 10”\u003c\/p\u003e"}