ANIMALS OBSERVED

With 70 plus excellent reproductions and an insightful text by an author who combines a substantial knowledge of natural and art history with her love of animals: a provocative look at the many kinds of images created by artists who've delighted in animal form, behavior, and character. After emphasizing the important role of the artists' respect and, especially, empathy for they animals they portray, MacClintock selects contrasting examples for 18 species or groups (``Giraffes and Okapi''; ``Some Small Animals''). Paintings, sculpture, cut paper, prints, drawings, even illustration (Dorothy Lathrop's flying squirrel)- -the art is of top quality and wide-ranging in style, origin (though the southern continents are scanted), and period, from cave paintings to the present. The obvious greats (many British: Stubbs, Landseer) are well represented; there are also imaginative entries (a drawing by sculptor Henry Moore; a splendid woodcut zebra, stylized but ``identifiable to species''). Some of the descriptions of the art are demanding, but they're also rich with fascinating concepts; the more accessible comments on animal behavior and stories about the artists and the animals give a tantalizing taste of information to be explored. A beautiful, stimulating book. Full notes on illustrations; index of artists. (Nonfiction. 4+)