This is an impressive tome presenting over 250 works from the Saatchi Gallery by forty American artists. Each artist is introduced with a short biography along with lists of exhibitions and a brief bibliography, all of which is contained within one page while the facing page offers a full-page black and white photograph of the artist (one submitted by the artist). This is followed by a selection of works, each caption but without any further commentary, and varying in number from around three and often to up to about ten for each artist.

The book is beautifully presented, the graphic presentation is clear, lively without being intrusive, and the quality of reproduction of the works is of a high standard. The majority are full page in size, sometimes larger. On these points is is hard to fault the book, other than to say I would have liked to have a little more to read about each artist and his/her work.

The works themselves it is harder to be objective about. Firstly, while titled USA Today, rather than an overall view of American art one cannot help but be reminded that this is in fact only that American art that is featured in the Saatchi Gallery - it has already been through a selection process. One is inclined to ask how much is this a true reflection overall of art in the USA today?

The work covers a range of media from the traditional (not a lot), two and three dimensional, and through to photography a DVD; representational, non-representational and abstract. Within the wide range one is bound to find something to interest, but I am still left wondering where art is really going, and worrying about the apparent continued disdain for (or fear of) draughtsmanship and more formal painting. ( )

Published to accompany an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, Oct. 6-Nov. 4, 2006.