Perl introduces the sidelights of the art world, the people who like Bob Fraser in Swinging Sixties London were the nexus of so many people and happenings, so is Hans Hofmann in the opening chapters of New Art City. I've always been taken by these sort of accidental 'salonistas,' people who gather talent around them whether by charisma or sheer inspiration. Hofmann's art itself is something I'm undecided about. His Academy, however, was a live wire of the arts. So few places are really like that, it should be celebrated. Here is Hofmann's 1964 painting entitled Rising Moon.