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This beautiful book explores the cave of Altamira in Spain, called "The Sistine Chapel of Quaternary Art" for the splendour of its drawings, engravings and paintings. The cave was first occupied 18 450 years ago and its early history ended about 13 000 years ago when the entrance vault collapsed. It was discovered again in 1879.

The text comprises an introduction by Antonio Beltrán and various articles: The Cave And Surroundings by José Lasheras Corruchaga; Altamira: Art, Artists And Times by Federico de Quirós; Techniques Individual Artists And Artistic Concepts by Matilde Pérez-Seoane; Photographing Altamira by Pedro Ramos; Conservation Problems by Corruchaga and a Conclusion: The Future by Beltrán.

This great monument to prehistoric art is documented by impressive color and black and white photographs of the area, the artworks and the tools found in the caves, including a portrait of the discoverer Sautuola. There are maps of the cave, a bibliography, notes and an index.

This magnificent book offers an exhaustive study of the wonderful and mysterious cave complex of Altamira and also deals with a number of theories about cave art around the world that casts some light on our ancient ancestors.

THE CAVE OF ALTAMIRA, edited by Antonio Beltran, tells the story of the famous paintings found in a cave in Spain in 1879. The book indicates the Altamira paintings date from the Solutrean period of the Paleolithic. Recent radiocarbon dating shows art in the Polychrome Chamber to be between 18,000 and 19,000 years old, placing it around 16,500 B.C. Pedro Saura Ramos, the photographer has a distinguished reputation. A number of prominent art historians have contributed interesting essays.

From the high elevation of the Altamira cave, one can see the 'Picos de Europa' - a range of mountain peaks which must have appeared awesome to Paleolithic humans. Judging by the remains of creatures found in pits in the cave chambers as well as portraits of animals on cave walls, the countryside around Altamira must have been a virtual Eden. Evidence shows that great park-like settings near the cave held deer, roebuck, and wild boar, while open areas favored large bovines like horses and bison, rocky areas provided shelter for goats and chamois, and the nearby sea and fresh water lakes and streams were filled with shellfish and other marine life. Charcoal used in the wall paintings and found around the hearths reveal a coastal ecology where willow, juniper, chestnut and pine grew. The discarded bones indicate the cave was probably used as a gathering place for a relatively large number of people.

Pedro Sauro Ramos says it is impossible to convey the impression one receives standing on the cave floor looking up at the wall and it's illustrations. His photos are unusual in that he has held the camera in non-conventional ways and shot angles not normally seen in print. He provides wide-angled, then close-up shots of many of the animals so the reader can see detail revealed at close range. He notes that artists often took advantage surface features when creating an animal. Natural bosses were used to round out forms. A ledge provided the line of a deer jaw. Cracks and crevices highlighted horns and hinds.

As is the case with Lascaux, many of the paintings have been damaged by exposure to human bacteria and some of the photographs reveal black fungus. In addition, ceilings and walls have been reinforced to support badly damaged sections of the cave. In some cases the human supports interfere with the lighting or alter the appearance. For example, natural lighting from the cave entrance that once illuminated the numerous bovines of the famous "Great Panel" and that would have been seen on entering the chamber have been blocked by a concrete wall. For his photographs, Saura Ramos provided natural lighting to show how the painting would have appeared to Paleolithic humans.

The text includes reasonably good essays by a number of noted experts. My favorite is entitled, "Techniques, Individual Artists, and Artistic Concepts in the Painting of Altamira", by Matilda Muzquiz Perez-Seoane. In this essay, Perez-Seoane explains how bone marrow was used to illuminate the areas of the wall the artist painted in the dark interior recesses. Apparently, animal knee caps were filled with marrow which was lighted and provided a flame which illuminated without filling the chamber with smoke and choking the artist and/or blackening the ceiling or walls.

Prior to Darwin, there was relatively little interest in prehistoric art. Then the theory of evolution and the discovery of many wonderful caves jammed with art, almost like museums, conspired to change all of that. Altamira's art dates back around 15,500 years (due to radioactive dating techniques), but it originally drew little attention because it was too wonderful to be real. The psychology of disbelief stall led all but a few scholars to dismiss this gem. It took almost 20 years for its authenticity to be established, and subsequent evidence has only strengthened its claims. Many people feel that Altamira is the most wonderful collection of prehistoric art in existence. The other famous cave is Lescaux in France. In between these caves geographically, many other caves with drawings have been found.

After being initially ignored after its discovery in 1879, it soon experienced a crush of visitors (eventually approaching 200,000 in a single year). But cave art isn't going to last with that much extra heat and humidity, so the caves have now been closed except to the occasional scholar. The good news is that this cave (located near the seacoast in Spain) is being reproduced so that one can visit and get a sense of the place without harming the art.

Altamira is an extensive series of caves (about 270 yards long) with many different sections. The entrances and exits have mysterious masks. In one section with a low-hung ceiling are many wonderful large paintings of bison (many of these you will recognize). Another area features engravings in the soft stone that are remarkable in their detail and delicacy. Yet other areas have different features. The photographs are magnificent and capture both the beauty of the individual images as well as giving a sense of the part of the cave they are in.

The essays in the book are remarkably complete. They describe the history of the cave, the evolution of theories about what the art means, descriptions of how the art was probably created, and the difficulties of preserving and recording the cave's contents. The only drawback was that the discussions of the theories were somewhat redundant, and would have benefited from a stronger editorial hand or more preplanning.

Anyone who loves art, is interested in prehistoric life, or is fascinated by cave art would love this book. Anyone who loves a good mystery will, too.

Open your mind to the possibilities that exist, and use this book as an excellent example of how often we underestimate the potential of what is in front of us.

What sets this book apart from the usual book of beautiful paintings is the text. Every painting is accompanied by a statement from the artist addressing some aspect of the creative process, ranging from why the scene was chosen to difficulties encountered in executing it. In addition there is a statement by a professional naturalist giving interesting natural history information about each location. You would expect a book of paintings to be a pleasure to view, and this one is. But it is also a pleasure to read.

Door County, Wisconsin, combines the natural beauty of bluff-defined shorelines, northern forests, quiet meadows, secluded wetlands, and an astonishing array of wildflowers. This coffee table book features the work of 70 artists who set out to capture the wildplaces of Door County. Most of the paintings were selected by a nationally-known jury. Some invited works are by well-known artists such as Charles Peterson, Karsten and Ellen Topelmann, James Ingwerson, and Gerhard Miller. Paintings represent the artist's impressions of the special wildplaces of the peninsula, and there's not a painting in the book that I wouldn't wish to frame and display in my home. A truly special book for a special place.

An outstanding variety of fantastic work. Any Door County fan will appreciate the true beauty of Door County and the incredible talent of the artists in the area. Charles Peterson, Bridget Austin, Jack Anderson, and other talented artists contributed to this awesome book. Worth double the price and for a great cause...

Rebeccasreads recommends CHICANO VISIONS as a glorious feast for the eyes, containing the inevitable hair-raising violence, pulsing cityscapes & sun bleached field labors, as well as the beauty that is before us. There are ethereal visions of heaven & hell, of blood hot nights as well as rich family life.

There are visions wrought in "primitive" styles, in sleek "photorealism" & in vibrant complex iconography -- giving us insights into the Chicano experience, both female & male.

We can spend hours discussing the merits of each painting: their composition, impact & style, whether they are "good art", however, as Cheech Marin writes in his Introduction "...it is the lone art lover standing in front of a great painting with his jaw dropped, transported to a place both timeless and immediate, that provides the ultimate validation..."

Worth every cent of the price of admission.

Though not as extensive as "Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Art" from Bilingual Press, Cheech Marin's "Chicano Visions" is a vibrant, lusty and masterful introduction to Chicano art. If you're Chicano, you might recognize many of the faces and images represented here by such fine artists as John Valadez, Frank Romero, Ester Hernandez, and many others. If you're not a member of the Chicano community, you will nonetheless be dazzled by the powerful images and colors of the culture. The introductory essays by Max Benavidez, Constance Cortez and Tere Romo assist us in contextualizing the art that is often, but not always, steeped in the socio-political rumblings of el movimiento. Hats off to Cheech Marin for sharing these fine works with the world.

Hats off to Cheech Marin for curating from his own collection, as well as museum and private and the artists' collections, a body of work that is one of the most interesting and challenging definitions of Chicano Art in the USA today. Not only is the book well designed and lavishly illlustrated with superb
paintings, the accompanying essays by Marin, Max Benevidez, Constance Cortez, and Tere Romo are enlightening, thought provoking, and serve to answer many of the questions as to why Chicano art is so unique a contribution to the art world, not only here in Los Angeles but across the country.

The paintings by such luminaries as Frank Romero, John Valadez, Margaret Garcia, Gronk, Eloy Torrez, and the late and much missed Carlos Almaraz only hint at what treasures are in store for the aficionado as well as the novice. The quality of color reproductions is good and the placement of the works in context with brief statements about the artist or the subject makes turning each page an adventure.

Chicano Art is recognized by the knowledgeable art critics as probably the most important single school of art to blossom in Los Angeles in the past 50 years. These artists express the heritage of the Hispanic (if that word may be used...) population - the struggle of the dream of El Norte, the magical realism of folklore, the passionate use of color and light, the incomparably complex compositions that layer not only images but experiential feelings on a single canvas, the joy for living, the response to music. Whether in the hands of photorealist John Valadez or the explosive expressionism of Carlos Almaraz or the grand scale and imagination of Frank Romero (whether dealing with his much collected Still Lifes or his panoramas of East LA past and present), these paintings leap of the page, involve us and demand attention.

This is an excellent homage to this excitingly rich art movement. It deserves to be in the collection of everyone who longs for validation of life as a reason for making and collecting art. Bravo to all concerned!

I would like to say that I don't usually gush. In fact I'm generally pretty critical in my reviews. That said, this book is beautiful, and more than I could have hoped for. Beyond the basics kit as listed above, there is a booklet that is thirty-two pages long. It has fifteen projects in it that are described stroke by stroke. When I was a kid I had an drawing book that walked the reader through drawing a picture by starting with a rectangle, then you drew a circle on one corner, etc., until you have an elephant or whatever. This is sort of on those lines, but the elegance and simplicity of the finished picture is beyond my ability to describe. Lucy Wang does exactly the style of Chinese watercolor that I most admire, where with a few simple brush strokes she captures life, movement, expression and character. Of course, I can't begin to replicate her paintings, but by mimicking her strokes, I can get the idea of the repetoire of brushstrokes available to me. I'm going to keep practicing until my practice pictures look recognizable and then I feel I will have enough technique to try to develop my own style. All this from a 32 page booklet! Yes, either I am delusional, or this is a really good book. The kit is simple, but everything is good quality. Only five sheets of watercolor paper didn't last vey long, but it's the standard stuff you can get at any art store, or even Fred Meyers (is F.M. a national chain? -- sorry, I don't know.) I am grateful to the earlier reviewer who suggested gettting newsprint paper to practice on. It doesn't absorb the same as watercolor paper, but it's just fine for early doodles. The paints are just standard watercolors, but the brushes are good quality, or better than good enough for me, anyway.

Lucy Wang, through Walter Foster books, has put together, as it states, a complete painting kit for beginners of Chinese Brush. Although the ink stick,ink dish and water dish are small, it gives the beginner enough to get started. The brushes are of fine quality and her book is fantastic! I bought it for a grand-daughter, and I know she is going to love it. Having taken Chinese Brush for a few years now, I love Lucy's additions to her book ... especially the siamese cat!

This is a great purchase for a beginner to the art of brush painting. It has everything you need to get started (although I would recommend getting a tablet of newsprint for practice work), and the book has a lot of terrific projects, with step by step instructions. A lot of fun, and makes a great art seem less intimidating for the uninstructed.

A few of my favorite painters are contemporaries of Still, so I saw it as my duty to see the Hirschhorn exhibition. Well, I picked a dead day and had the show to myself and simply put I am now a fan. The book is great and David Anfam's addition to the book is especially enlightening about the work of Still.

I am a painter who has largely avoided Clifford Still but this book has turned me into a great admirer. Particulary influential was the contribution by David Anfam, the art historian who was responsible for the magnificent, award-winning Mark Rothko catalogue raisonne. Anfam's essay is insightful, far-reaching, beautifully written with poetic underpinnings, a pleasure to read. All you'll ever need to know about Clifford Still, his work, and his place in art history is covered in this essay. The color plates are also wonderful and, even as reproductions, offer a great chance to appreciate the paintings.

Clyfford Still is one of the giant figures of the art world and this book puts his paintings in a proper perspective. The book contains many color reproductions of his large non-objective canvases. Still himself wrote the book and gives us a very good insight into his life and thinking process. He discusses what went into his paintings and how his unique canvas numbering system worked absent dates and titles to identify his work. It is also a journey through his body of work. His paintings were skillfully balanced with positive and negative spaces and his unparalleled use of color is well documented. This book is a must for any art lover in general and for students of American art in particular. I liked this book not only for the well reproduced paintings in color but also because it let's us into the painter's mind to get a glimps of his true genius.

Catherine Daly-Weir has done an excellent job of presenting a general and yet fairly complete introduction to Heraldry. The illustrations are beautiful and attractive. Obviusly written for the younger reader, adults will enjoy just as well. If you are working on a club/class project and need to creat a Coat of Arms, this book and Rosemary Chorzempa's "Design Your Own Coat of Arms" are all you need! You will have no trouble creating your own Coat of Arms expecially with the plastic stencil which is included in the book. A must have!

This book is written for a younger audience than, say Rosemary Chorzempa's Design Your Own Coat of Arms. While there might not be as much information included, what is included is presented very well. There are full-color drawings that will appeal to kids (and adults, for that matter!) and the explanations are clear and understandable. But truly the best thing about the book is the stencil. It includes many of the common images found on historical Coat of Arms. More importantly, the stencil is made from plastic, so it will withstand many tracings. Many times a stencil included with a book is made of heavy-duty paper or cardstock, but those just don't hold up to repeated use. This stencil is made of see-through green-tinted plastic, so it is easy to see exactly where to place the image you are tracing.

This is a wonderful educational book, where the child can actually create his/her own coat of arms using the stencils in the back. The illustrations are also vibrant and beautiful!

I just received this book for Christmas 2002 and I have read it and re-read it! It has a wealth of information and is even a good reminder for those who might not have painted in a while. It helps you attain effects that you want and gives some step-by-step descriptions to help you understand what the author is talking about. I find that the information on casting shadows and the information on focal points most helpful. Helen Van Wyk also helps you to dimensionalize your art. Once you have read this book you will not look at colors in the same way. "The 4 Questions" will have you looking at art completely different. Don't paint without it!

This is a great manual for beginning and intermediate painters. It is arranged in a rather unusual way: by paint color. Within each chapter there are step-by-step paintings showing the color's usage. While I found the the organization odd at first, I quickly grew to appreciate it. There are colors I never would have thought to put in my palate, but seeing them in action was very valuable. Likewise, having a blended value scale for each paint was wonderful!

What I found most valuable as an beginner/ interm. painter was being able to see a variety of paintings in stages. And not just "one, two, three, boom its done" like many books, but really layer by layer. She touches on a couple of different styles, discussing glazing as well as her painterly approach.

This book also has valuable reference pages discussing (and displaying) color scales, color temperatures, earth tones, blending tricks, etc. It touches on portraits, backgrounds, and a variety of other related topics. I have read a number of other basic painting books, and this is my favorite. I have also seen (and own) other of Helen van Wyk's books, and while they are nice, this is by far the most valuable (and it includes some paintings and sections repeated in other books, i.e. portrait painting and color mixing bits).

This is a very practical reference book on oil colors, as I see it. The author covers briefly materials in oil painting, then goes straight to discussing colors on her palette, including (but not limited to) Thalo Yellow Green, Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Red, Burnt Umber, Sienna, etc... For each color, the author expresses her points using a step-by-step demo of painting subject matter. In addition, the author also throws in discussions on drapery, flesh colors, themes, colors of metals, etc... What a treat!

This is how I vision readers can benefit from this book:

1) For those who'd like to get their feet wet with certain colors, step-by-step demos will guide them through important steps to create realist excercise painting in the book.

2) For those who'd like to "break the rules" (if any), this book serves as excellent examples of what colors can be used for what materials (metals, earth, wood, etc...). Knowing all these, breaking the rules is even more fun and unique.

3) For the rest, it is a very practical reference on oil colors in terms of knowing what the "final colors" may look like in the context of a painting, even without getting "down and dirty" to try and mix them.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

As this book points out, Vincent van Gogh's individualized style was defined by expressive brushwork, an intense emotionality, and the heightened use of color. The 30 Van Gogh masterpieces rendered by Marty Noble in this Color Your Own Art Masterpieces coloring book obviously lose out on the expressive brushwork, but you have your own chance to add the other two qualities when your color these yourself. You can either copy the originals that are shown in color on the back cover or you can pick your own palette. My preference is for the latter, not only because I do not think they make a collection of crayons big enough to really do justice to the originals, but also because these are IMPRESSIONIST paintings and I ascribe to the idea that your impressions are just as valid as van Gogh in this regard. Noble's renderings are okay (I think there are inherent limitations to line drawings of these works), which means they look more like standard coloring book drawings than black and white reproductions of van Gogh's masterpieces, which includes "Sunflowers," "Starry Night," "The Church at Awers," and even "Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Pipe." But they are just so much fun to color and there is still something to be said for doing such things by hand instead of using your computer. I would look elsewhere to provide youngsters with an introduction to Vincent van Gogh's life and art, but "Color Your Own Van Gogh Paintings" is a nice little way of letting them explore impressionist art.

I was looking for a good "adult therapy" style coloring book, and this is exactly what I was hoping for. Since I can't draw, I satisfy my creative yearning with coloring. The pictures have a enough detail to be absorbing, but not so much detail as to be tedious. The paper and granularity of the drawings are perfect for crayons, which I prefer over markers or pencil. My husband still teases me for playing with crayons, but at least my subjects are adult now.

"Color Your Own VAN GOGH Paintings" is a great way to introduce children to a famous painter. As an elementary art teacher (grades K-6), I'm always looking for creative ways to introduce famous painters and techniques to students. This book will be a great asset to the Van Gogh study I introduce to the kindergarten class. We currently read "Camille and the Sunflowers", a book about Van Gogh, and then do a Van Gogh-like sunflower painting. This book will give them another look at Van Gogh's work... and THEY get to give his pictures life by coloring them in! There are 30 meticulously rendered black-and-white drawings of some of his masterpieces. (Also included are the 30 accompanying full-color illustrations depicted on the covers!)

88 spectacular works of art tell the story that haunts us still of the Confederate States of America: its leaders & commoners, its determination & spirit, its pride & romance with a lyrical supporting text that explains historical details.

The Civil War was not what either side expected or wanted. A few hotheads - militant abolitionists from the North & secessionists from the South - fed the flames while the majority of Americans stared on in bewilderment as the Union disintegrated.

In The High Command Mort Kunstler gives us glimpses of the movers & shakers of the battles to come; fresh in their uniforms, devout in their cause & James Robertson's narrative keeps pace with this artist's energy & insights.

Through heat of summer & cold of winter, over trackless hillsides & through mud- coated towns, Mort Kunstler keeps us going; from bloody battle fields in the mists of morning to cavalry charges into the smoke of cannon fire; from sunbaked drummer boys to bone-weary marchers; from cheering infantrymen as their leaders ride by to face-to-face gun fights in wooded ravines; from heartbreaking bad news to new babies born; from dazzling balls to heroic stands in broad daylight to dismal retreats in the dark of night.

A wonder-filled pictorial history book, rich in the details of the life & times of the people of the Confederacy with fascinating stories. A must for any reader of American history. Do visit my site for my full review of this & many more books on history & art.

Having taken a Civil War class from James I. Robertson at Virginia Tech, I can tell you that this man is a poet. When reading this book you can actually feel yourself in the shoes of these brave men. Most people can speak or write, but Robertson can do both. He paints a picture with his moving words. Even if you aren't a Civil War fan, this book will open your mind to a side of the Civil War rarely seen.

This book is a must have for any follower of Mort Kunstler's work. It is packed with 88 of his Confederate based works, including 30 not before found in any book. A true gem. These works are complemented by the text of Civil War historian, James Roberston Jr. I highly recommend it to any collector of Civil War books.

I love flowers and keep a journal myself, so it was a nice treat to find this book. The artist and domestic poet was Fanny Robinson, and her book reminds us all of how shallow modern life can be. Oh, we can make fun of these Victorian domestic ladies, sitting alone, doing their watercolors and romantic verse, but when you think about it seriously, it was active and not passive as many of our feminist lives are now. We work and struggle for power, recognition, and money. But we never slow down to take in life's simple pleasures, to stop and just be.

This book is an inspiration to me in many ways. It has taught me to sit alone again, to write real letters, and to paint the flowers that I grow in my garden. It has inspired me to slow down, to not analyze everything, to turn off the TV, and be more at one with my community, my own neighbors, and yes, my garden.
My world has become small in its largeness.

Fanny Robinson's paintings are beautiful. Her scroll work a delight, and her poems heartfelt. If you think her trite, then try to do the work she did yourself. You will find it a difficult task for our modern hands.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. A lovely book for all fans of flowers and Victoriana.

"Country Flowers of a Victorian Lady" is a wonderful book of botanical watercolors made as a personal album by Fanny Robinson in the latter half of the 1800's. Watercolor painting at that time was considered an acceptable and edifying pastime for women both young and old, and this grouping of flower portraits is superb. The comentaries on the facing pages offer quality insight into the hidden meanings of the flower groupings and educated speculation on the unknown aspects surrounding each picture.
I highly recommend this book for flower lovers, watercolor painting enthusiasts, and students of victorian culture. I participate in historic role acting, and this is one book I will request be added to the library of training materials for the program.

"Exqusite" is one of the many words I could use to describe this book. The most beautiful collection of Victorian watercolors one will ever see. The images were taken directly from an album that was created by Fanny Robinson (1802-1872) entitled "The Book of Memory". The author wove a mystery throughout her album. Each gorgeous watercolor is accompanied by a handwritten poem, which leaves the reader musing as to whom, or what, the verses were written. Was it a lost love...? a faded youth....?

She added a phrase on the front of her "Book of Memory" that is so very true "O, like a book of sport thou'lt read me o're ! but theres more in me than thou'lt understand". The Language of Flowers has never been more beautifully...or dramatically, illustrated. I will treasure this book, and a copy for my daughter is inevitible. I wish I could rate it more than five stars...