Painting-the

Sir Hickman Bacon was a man ahead of his time as is reflected in his magnificent collection of British landscape drawings and watercolors. It is now the largest collection of English watercolors still in private ownership.

As an accompaniment to a London exhibit The Golden Age Of Watercolours presents the best of this collection - works by artists who painted during the mid nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century.

We find J. M. W. Turner, premier watercolorist, who, it is said, painted with his doors locked so as not to risk anyone discovering the secrets of how he obtained the effects of depth and breadth in his paintings.

Thomas Girtin, a rambunctious artist who was imprisoned for defaulting on his apprenticeship, was also favored by Bacon. While incarcerated Girtin amused himself by covering the walls of his cell with landscapes. A guard was astonished to see this artwork, and played a part in Girtin's eventual release.

The inventiveness of John Sell Cotman was recognized by Bacon long before Cotman won popular approval, as was the work of Richard Parks Bonington.

Art historian Eric Shanes has penned an essay recounting the making of this collection which accompanies the glorious illustrations.

- Gail Cooke

Sir Hickman Bacon was a man ahead of his time as is reflected in his magnificent collection of British landscape drawings and watercolors. It is now the largest collection of English watercolors still in private ownership.

As an accompaniment to a London exhibit The Golden Age Of Watercolours presents the best of this collection - works by artists who painted during the mid nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century.

We find J. M. W. Turner, premier watercolorist, who, it is said, painted with his doors locked so as not to risk anyone discovering the secrets of how he obtained the effects of depth and breadth in his paintings.

Thomas Girtin, a rambunctious artist who was imprisoned for defaulting on his apprenticeship, was also favored by Bacon. While incarcerated Girtin amused himself by covering the walls of his cell with landscapes. A guard was astonished to see this artwork, and played a part in Girtin's eventual release.

The inventiveness of John Sell Cotman was recognized by Bacon long before Cotman won popular approval, as was the work of Richard Parks Bonington.

Art historian Eric Shanes has penned an essay recounting the making of this collection which accompanies the glorious illustrations.

- Gail Cooke

This is a great book if you enjoy gourds. If you don't know anything about gourds or don't know anything about painting, it is still a good book, as there are enough instructions to get anyone started. The author presents some of the most creative gourd designs I have ever encountered. The book was well worth the money to me.

Anyone who enjoys working with gourds will truely appreciate the effort that has gone into the making of this book. I especially appreciated the very detailed photographs that accompany each project in the book. Everyone, from novice to expert will find something of interest. The book is written in an easy to understand format and everything needed to complete each project is listed. An excellent addition to any collection of "gourd" books, exactly what I was looking for.

Matt- What a great surprise! Congratulations! mao98mao@hotmail.com

pls. give me a list of different types of flooring tiles suitable for each areas of a terrace house. as well as the prices.

A must for anybody who loves great cats and art: a book full of stories and especially awesome photos, sketches and paintings of these wonderful creatures. The paintings are so incredibly realistic that at times one has to look closely to make sure it is not just a photo. A definite winner !

They say never judge a book by its cover,well friends you can in this case.A beautiful oil painting of a jaguar on its cover says it all, this is a must have book for any animal lovers specially wild cats, art students and even professional artists. Book is loaded incredible stories and killer artworks of Simon Combes.I enjoyed it every single page and I did not realize that I end up reading the entire book in one sitting.I was so captivated by the stories, and I enjoyed the art work of Simon Combes, well worth the money.

Parents hoping to introduce their children to modern American art could do worse than to buy this edition reproducing 60 paintings by Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000), one of the finest African American artists in U.S. history.

First published for children in a 1993 limited edition, with a poem by Walter Dean Myers, this volume reproduces the Great Migration series that Lawrence created in 1940 and 1941 to tell the story of the African American migration north, from the plantations and cotton fields of the antebellum era.

Begun within a year after Lawrence completed a magnificent Harriet Tubman series, these tempura colored, poster paint works made Jacob Lawrence's career. It's easy to see why. Bold and unforgiving, these vibrant works grew from Lawrence's own childhood migration--from Atlantic City, New Jersey to Easton, Pennsylvania, to Philadelphia and finally, at 13, to Harlem--his exposure to African-American culture and his intensive training in the Utopia Children's House and New Deal-sponsored Harlem Art Workshop of the 1930s.

At that time, the WPA was still funding public art murals, but Lawrence was too young to gain a commission. Instead, he determined to show the African-American struggle for freedom in real-life stories that would tie the past to the present.

From 1938 to 1941, he used the New York public library for research, creating in swift succession five series of paintings telling the stories of Toussaint L'Ouverture, Tubman, Frederick Douglass, John Brown, and The Migration of the Negro.

In the last of these, Lawrence hoped to speak artistically of a mass escape from the rural, discriminatory and unjust South--a region of poverty and illiteracy--into an anxious era of hope and expectation in the North. The paintings depicted passage, with railways, train cars, suitcases, and hordes of people constantly in motion. Their visages and body language spoke in terms of expectation and fear. Lawrence wove bold colors and themes throughout the series, thereby joining the paintings into a unit.

In a documentary shown in a museum tour of Lawrence's work, the artist said he "didn't think in terms of history in that series. ...It was like I was doing a portrait of something." Portraits were "a portrait of myself, a portrait of my family, a portrait of my peers."

Lawrence's extraordinary talent was recognized when he was only 24, with the 1941 exhibition of these paintings in the downtown gallery of art dealer Edith Halpert, who had beforehand exclusively shown the work of white artists. So breathtaking were the paintings (as they remain), they instantly transported Lawrence across the U.S. racial divide of that era, making him deservedly famous. The Philips Gallery in Washington D.C. purchased the odd-numbered paintings; the Museum of Modern Art in New York took the even ones.

Treat your kids to this triumph of the human spirit, and to the fine accompanying Myers poem. These paintings make children into art-lovers, for life. Alyssa A. Lappen

I checked this book out from the library over a year ago and knew from the illustration that Jacob Lawrence was a special person. I was drawn to the illustration because it is soothing. His illustration style is flat, yet there is a world of depth. It is the kind of art that I could have on my wall and never tire of. I remember more the art than the story. The art told a story. This book is as much for adults as it is for children. Since hearing that Jacob Lawrence died...I instantly felt the need to get one of his books for my home library.

If you love Chicago, and/or went to a Chicago Public School, you will love this book.

Not only is this catalog of Chicago's murals enormously useful for the casual reader/visitor, but its style is elegant and restrained, its color illustrations clear and gorgeous, its scholarship impeccable and useful, and quite simply a pleasure to study and own. We are fortunate to have such a comprehensive book.

This book cuts through the clutter of previous rock art meanings and uses the wisdom of the native americans to describe these symbols. I enjoyed reviewing his descriptions of the sites I have already visited and learned the locations of many more. Complete directions, maps, and contacts for each site are included. This is an excellent resource for people who love rock art!

An excellent survey of rock art that fits the pictographs and petroglyphs into a social and psychological model based on native american interpretations of meaning. Detailed listings and directions to more familiar sites will no doubt increase visitation but the presence of people interested in preservation will hopefully deter those only motive is to deface places of beauty and wonder. Whitley's academic background enhances the book and it has appeal to informed readers and those just discovering rock art.

Normally on the 26th of October, I view the 1957 movie
"Gunfight at the O. K. Corral" with Burt Lancaster and
Kirt Douglas. I know exactly what I am getting which is
entertainment.

This year I flipped through the Thom Ross book by the
same title and again I was entertained. The Preface said
History but my gut reaction said entertainment. The
history here is fast and loose. Like the movie this book
is FICTION and should be accepted as such.

Enjoy the exquisite paintings. but ignore the connection
between the paintings and the text. And between the text
and History because it isn't here. In fact ignore the text
altogether. Buy this book for the paintings.
and you have a bargain

I do not wish to list the many historical errors of the Ross
and Hutton book here. That might ruin your enjoyment of the
paintings. On this the 120th anniversary of the gunfight
between good and evil, stay focused on the main event.
Don't worry about desecration. Think consecration. History
can wait. this is the age of art and entertainment. If you
have to blame anyone, blame the proofreader. What does he
know?

Thom Ross knows his O.K. Corral history -- there's no doubt about that -- but it is the O.K. Corral myth that he really seeks to translate into the painting contained in this book. Whereas most Western American art is firmly realistic, often almost photographic in intent, Ross's art dares to venture into the realm of the abstract to better capture those elements of myth. In nearly fifty paintings, accompanied by his own text, Thom Ross tells the story of this most famous gunfight in history. I cannot think of another book which has ever sought to achieve such an end, so I believe that Ross deserves double praise for his creativity. If you don't know much about this event, then "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" is not at all a bad place to begin learning. But even if you have read a dozen books about that day in Tombstone, Ross's book will still have a powerful impact. And after you close the covers of this slender volume, those images remain in your vision, haunting and somehow very alive.

Happy Dog is a great book. The illustrations and story line work wonderfully together. My kids not only love to have me read it to them at bedtime but I have found them looking at it on their own (very unusual for them). It has become my favorite gift to give at birthdays (3-4 yrs old)

I had to pick up this book based on the cover alone! The bright red with fun looking dog caught my eye. Then, when I opened the book and saw all the lively colors on each page I just started smiling! This is such a happy book. My daughter was giggling, pointing and was so animated when I read it to her. She was saying Happy Dog the rest of the day and wanted me to read it to her again!
I think the artist has done a fabulous job. It's nice to see that someone still paints with bright, thick colors as opposed to computer art that so many books now have.
I'm going to buy this book for all my friends and for presents. It's wonderful and has a nice, fun message too!

Heaven Bound represents what all true art forms are---they entertain yet make us think. We agree with your view of heaven.

Interesting interaction between the artist and the poet. Paintings are well reproduced. Poems pithy and to the point, quirky and fun. I would recommend this one to any one interested in both poetry and the fine arts.