The carved bird decoy is the only truly American folk art - for the decoy as an aid to hunting was devised by the American Indians and has grown as a useful art since the days of the colonists. Decoy-carving was developed and refined to such a degree that now early and well-carved birds are prized by collectors. This book, full of stunning photographs, shows the best examples from both public and private collections, and gives the reader an idea of the great range, vigor, and variety of the birds. There are sandpipers, curlews, ducks, geese, swans, gulls, herons, crows, loons, and many others...

Folk Art in America is the story of the roots of America's passion for art that is uniquely its own. Through her text and illustrations, Adele Earnest acquaints the reader with folk art masterpieces and some of the artists who created them. She relates the history of the folk art movement in America and the founding of the Museum of American Folk Art. She reminisces about those early collectors who blazed a place for folk art in the art world: Henry Francis duPont, Electra Havemeyer Webb, Titus Geesey, and the flamboyant Mme.Gamma Walska, to name but a few.