Expanding well beyond the Arts and Crafts movement, this volume of essays also contains discussion of fine art, particularly the work of John Singer Sargeant. In their essays on interior decoration, the decorative arts, Gothic Revival church design and decoration, sculpture, and other arts, the contributors focus on the notions of aesthetics as well as their ideas of the movements of Aestheticism and Arts and Crafts, as these were championed by such well-known figures as William Morris. Several of the essays, including that on Sargeant, dwell on themes of queer studies; others examine both representations and activities of femininity. The volume is well-illustrated with b&w plates. Of interest to art historians, this volume will also appeal to anyone whose research concerns literature, culture, and society in Victorian England. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)