Amazon.com description: Product Description: A realist not of the New Realist school, nor really of any other school, for that matter, Alan Magee is an artist whose work is stark and innocent, technically astonishing, miraculously perceptive, and ever strange in its conjunctions. Witty, subtle, and informed, shaped by art history and prodded by Surrealism, his work pulls and pushes the mind beyond the mere acknowledgement of his dexterity and precision. This publication is the first to cover the complete range of Magee's oeuvre, including his paintings, sculptures and graphic works. Within are almost 200 color plates of the artist's realist paintings, monotypes, and sculptural assemblages, plus an insightful biographical essay by Pulitzer Prize-recipient Jonathan Weiner, and an in-depth conversation between Magee and American Book Award-recipient Barry Lopez. Lopez and Magee discuss a wide range of subjects pertinent to the culture at large, including the role of literature and art in politics, the nature of work, the education of an artist, and the human quest for spiritual understanding.