"This volume, published on the occasion of a major exhibition organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, is the first comprehensive study of Westermann's sculptures, which are examined closely in original and lively texts and more than two hundred illustrations. Encompassing the vast range of the artist's work, from his early constructions of the mid-1850s to his final sculptures of the early 1980s, this catalogue places Westermann's art in the context of his wartime service, his personal experiences, and the politics of his time. The resulting portrait reveals as never before the ideas behind Westermann's unique assemblages."--BOOK JACKET.