Painting-the

This is a great little book that is smaller than the size of an average persons hand. The paintings come from the National Gallery in London and include masterpieces from such notables as Botticelli, Poussin, Baocci and Carravaggio. The literature used comes from masters of prose as well including such diverse writers as Edgar Allan Poe, St Augustine, Tolstoy, Mark Twain, Dylan Thomas and Dante to name a few. The paintings selected are divided into four sections basically, angels, Jesus, Mary and the saints. The book is printed and bound in Italy and is of good thick stock and very sturdy. The color is very good and the detail is exquisite. This book is a perfect companion for those moments alone when contemplation takes one beyond the mundane ordinary existence. The beauty of this book is the matching of poetry with a painting. Every painting is matched up with a piece of writting. Each painting is shot from various angles, often for dramatic effect, getting extreme closeups of the expressions on the subjects. The details of the individual paintings are brought to full light. The paintings are all magnificent representaions of inspired art that has withstood the test of time, through wars, plagues and famines and the inherent beauty of the art comes to life anew in this marvelous little paperback. At just over 140 pages this book can be read in one sitting but it is one that deserves to be kept handy to reflect upon often. A great book for those interested in the works of the masters ala carte.

This book is my ideal in an art book - it provides the paintings without discussion, allowing the viewer to response naturally, then it provides a number of details from the painting much in the manner one focuses one's attention in a gallery.

The paintings are well paired with poetry - poetry that in some manner touches the same theme as the painting but in a separate media.

Example pairings: Sandro Botticelli's "Mystic Nativity" with the traditional English carol "Angels we have heard on high"; Duccio's "The Annunciation" with Edwin Muir's "The Annunciation"; an associate of Leonardo da Vinci's "An Angel in Red with Lute" with an extract of Edgar Allan Poe's "Israfel"; ...

This is an excellent meditational art and literature book.

By far this is my most prized possession in the field of Henna History and Research, and I've only just gotten it! Written by an herbalist as well as a free thinker rather than head nodder, her book turned everything I thought I knew about the plant commonly called 'Henna' upside-down. Taking nothing for 'granted' she takes an entirely refreshing approach to researching the use of this herb, not just as a skin dye, but the entire plant as well as the linguistic archeology that so very precisely traces the plant's roots. With a never ending search for the 'why' she has summarily presented the evidence rather than drawing the conclusions for you! Definitely not for the Hard of Thinking, this book is by far the best piece of research on the subject I have seen to date!!!! A real TREASURE!!!!!

I was very impressed with this work in that the references were well researched and verified. As a college professor, these are the sorts of course texts that we employ in our studies of pharmacognosy or the study of medicines made from plants & natural sources.

"Henna's Secret History" is just the type of manual I would choose to explain the chemical compounds and medicinal properties of Henna to both the neophyte as well as the advanced student. Excellent work, well founded in clinical study and complete in every way. I highly recommend it.

Henry Sugimoto: Painting An American Experience is the companion volume to a major exhibit of a remarkable Japanese-American artist. Henry Sugimoto (1900-1999) had an art career that spanned the 20th century and whose work reveals a talented, gifted, complex, and engaging painter. From his early work (influenced by European impressionism and then the post-impressionists) to his painted documentation to the Japanese-American experiences of World War II era Arkansas-based internment camps, to his later efforts in New York City, this superbly presented, full-color survey of his life and work is a fitting testament to a great artist.

Whether your interest is in art or in history, you definitely will find pleasure here! Regardless of where your interest may lay, this book is a highly accessible one. Sugimoto's art is accessible to non-artistics (if there's such a word ;-) and Kristine Kim's narrative is accessible to non-academics. As an American of Japanese ancestry, I find that our history is depicted in a way that satisfies both the eye and the intellect.

An immigrant from Japan and an impressionist artist whose work later reflected his exposure to the Mexican muralists, Sugimoto's work documented the Japanese-American experience. Drawing on his unpublished autobiography, as well as other source documents, Kristine Kim appropriately delivers Sugimoto's art within the historical context that so strongly influenced his style and subject matter. Each chapter in Sugimoto's life is followed by the artwork created in that period. The most significant period being World War II.

WWII was a dark time for Japanese-Americans (and for US citizens, as a whole). Sugimoto was incarcerated: first at the Fresno Assembly Center and later at concentration camps in Arkansas. While in the camps, where cameras were forbidden, Sugimoto used his brushes and canvas to document the existence of persons imprisoned solely for their ethnicity. His work is filled with the emotions of that time - hope for the future, sorrow at injustice, longing for freedom, pride in country, sadness at the thought of sons fighting far away. On the surface, many of the paintings seem to show "normal" everyday life but subtle signs (pink ration book, guard towers, mess hall) hint at the fact that the people in the paintings are incarcerated.

Having seen several times the Sugimoto exhibit at the Japanese American National Museum, I have seen many of the paintings included in this book. The panels of those works represent them well. Be sure to check out his painting titled "When Can We Go Home?" It is remarkable in that it's startling, emotional and bold and subtle at once. It struck my heart in a way that's difficult to put into words.

Never one to cease growing in his art, in the 1960's Sugimoto experimented with woodblock prints. They are amazing! Beautiful, detailed, with depth of feelings.

Henry Sugimoto was a talented artist whose work reflects not only his experiences but his wondrous humanity and compassion. He is not well known. Hopefully the current exhibit and this book will rectify that!

Becky Kelly's 2004 calendar is the best one I've seen in a long, long time. When I am looking for a calendar (my annual search begins in late summer)one of my prerequisites is that the monthly pictures relate to an event which occurs during that month. Not only do Ms. Kelly's illustrations fill the bill, each picture is charming beyond description. I would be hard pressed to choose a favorite from the 12 artworks as each one is special in its own way. The illustrations are not the only thing that sets this calendar apart from all the others--the format is different and imaginative and the quality of the materials used is excellent. The calendar pages, which are held together with a wired ribbon, are made from thick, glossy paper and on the back of each removable page is a larger more detailed version of that month's illustration. Becky Kelly and Andrews & McMeel have together created a winning combination with "Hopscotch Days and Firefly Nights". Summer is not even over, but I am already itching to hang my 2004 Becky Kelly calendar!

This 2004 calendar is extra special. The format is a VERY welcome change from the usual, but it is Becky Kelly's artwork that really sets this calendar apart. The illustrations for each month are not only charming they are also seasonal, which is a "must" when I'm calendar shopping. The monthly pictures are full of detail and there are additional coordinating touches on each page which add to the calendar's charm. The pages are held together with a removable ribbon which doubles as a hanger and on the back of each page there is a larger version of that month's illustration which is suitable for framing--this is a calendar that "keeps on giving" long after its original purpose has been fulfilled. There are thousands of calendars out there, but creative ones like this are few and far between. Becky Kelly and Andrews & McMeel have come up with a real winner and I am hoping that this calendar will not be their last. I hate to wish my life away, but I really WILL be itching for 2004 to get here so I can hang my Hopscotch Days and Firefly Nights calendar.

In his delightful send-up of the art world, museums, their trustees, and conservators, author Giles Waterfield recreates one tumultuous day in the life of the BRIT, the Museum of British History, as it prepares for a major exhibition, the centerpiece of which is an almost unknown painting by Gainsborough, owned by the Chairman of the BRIT Board of Trustees. The painting, "Lady St. John Impersonating Puck," sets the tone for the novel, loosely based on Shakespeare's comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream. Oberon and Titania, the King and Queen of Fairies, become Auberon Booth, the Director of the museum, and his girlfriend, Tanya. Helena and Hermia in Shakespeare's play are loosely represented here by Helen Lawless, the Asst. Curator of Art, and Hermia Bianchini, the Exhibitions Assistant. Bottom, the leader of the "rude mechanicals," is echoed in John Winterbotham, the Head of Security, who is trying to protect the Gainsborough.

The novel opens "on the morning of Midsummer's Day of 2001," as Helen Lawless, in charge of the exhibition, manages to sneak a peak at the Gainsborough, previously kept hidden, and leaves with some questions about the dog in the left-hand corner. Jane Vaughn, the Chief Curator, also develops questions. She has discovered a significant difference in the appearance of the dog between the current painting and an early photograph. Eventually, Diana, Jane, and the head of the Conservation Department plot to view the painting without Security present so they can shine a UV light on it to examine the surface.

As other characters become involved in the action, the reader soon realizes that this is a study of egos and ambition as reflected in the clash between the trustees of the museum and the "worker bees" who run it. Several "thwarted in love" scenarios add intrigue and color to the narrative, with the plot coming to a climax at the banquet celebrating the exhibition, when the Trustees' far too ambitious menu creates havoc among the catering staff (which has no kitchen in which to prepare four hundred meals), and a slapstick scene, worthy of Monty Python, results.

Beautifully executed and great fun to read, the novel does not require any familiarity with Shakespeare or with museums to appreciate the broad comedy, the farce-like disasters which befall the prideful trustees and administrators, and the author's gentle satire of pretension. Wakefield, who has experience in the art world, chooses to walk the fine line between trenchant observation and biting satire. Ultimately, he presents a warm and rather gentle spoof of a world usually hidden from the public. Mary Whipple

26 February, 2004
Reviewer: Ronald Haak from Cork, Ireland
I'm grateful to Mary Whipple's analysis (below) for exposing the Shakesperian depths that will add to my enjoyment of this book when I reread it. I admit my own reading was far more superficial and I enjoyed it none the less for that. I found it simply ravishing on its simplest level and revelled in its unmasking of the pretensions of so many varieties of political correctness. ("You have to hand it to him. He took his wife's name on marrying. A very effective move.") The book is replete with gambits like this, oozing in PC-one upmanship, but these are shown to be affectations. For all their fashionable utterances of making musuems more nitwit, more accessible, less elitist, less historical, less scholarship-and-research oriented, the big musuem banquet at the book's climax is as snobbish and haughty as any GENUINE aristo banquet of the 18th century (the theme of of the banquet is "elegance"). The politically correct staff are positively reeking with status envy and the chapter on these people getting dressed for the royal bash shows them trying to alleviate their status-anxiety by designer gowns, lavish jewellry and order of precedence to the extent they are almost literally sick at the thought of being humiliated by the absence of some bauble or the lack of a trendy remark. To me, these insecurities and hypocritical maneuveurings were THE deliciously major, wicked theme of the book and I had one whale of a ride, demanding of it no more than that. The treatment is wonderfully multi-faceted and witty, and readers will engage it on many levels, with no single monolithic interpretation of the book possible. Definitely the product of a wicked and perceptive intelligence.

That want to be able to sell their work. Innis lays down a lot of information, and he has some strong opinions. While you might not agree with all he has to say, he offers straight forward advice and no holds barred points of fact.

Besides all that, it is just an interesting book to read and fun too. He offers some tips on how not to be a "pigeon" (fat lazy birds that beg and simply follow the crowd) that are just good advice and can be applied to endeavors other than painting. His writing is humorous and often blasts certain types of thinking and institutions.

He gives advice on what kind of materials he feels are best, plus tips on how to arrange certain things in you life to be able to paint.
His plan on how to launch your career is straight forward, simple to understand and seems very realistic. The hard part is the work. This is no "pie in the sky" method, Innis insists that a painter have 2 or 3 hundred paintings under their belt before presenting work to the buying public. He wants the artist to be a good draftsman before trying to paint. He wants the artist to use a professional writer and a professional photographer to create a catalog of work. He doesn't offer any "secret" tricks here, just a solid method to becoming a professional well paid artist.

The one area of disagreement I have is that he is a little to emphatic when it comes to certain materials. He advocates using acrylics on inexpensive canvas with large brushes. While that is fine for many types of work, it simply doesn't cut it with others such as the seascapes I tend to paint. I use fine linen (yes it is 200 bucks a roll but it feels so nice) and I use expensive oil paints (the colors and the strengths of pigments make it worth it). I also use many small brushes for detail work. But these differences don't really effect the reading of the book, he just gives his reasons why he uses and prefers the types of materials he uses. He does make a really good point about staying away from watercolor and I have to agree 100 per cent on this.

All in all, for any one that is seriously considering trying to launch a career in painting, a career --not a weekend at the park selling 25 dollar paintings-- then this book is a must read and I highly recommend it.

One of those gotta-have books for the artist. I laughed my way silly as I read through this book and pestered my friends with quotes from it for months! Unless you're married to an abstract expressionist who makes their living with grant money, you'll think it's funny and right-on too. He's sarcastic, biting and not a little cranky when it comes to Academic, Museum and Gallery commentaries. But hey - my experience as an artist has been pretty much the same, so I can't fault him for tellin' it like it is. And he does it with buckets of humor.

I guess you would call Joe a modern impressionist painter - if you want a classification for him. So he comes from a realist point of view rather than an abstract one. However, Joe is certainly not anti-abstract, he's just anti-pretensiousness (I made that word up I think?). Joe's been there and done that. He spills his guts and lets us know what works and what doesn't on the way to becoming a well-known and successful artist. I have no doubt, if you have talent and the guts to follow his program you can make a very nice living as an artist.

Highly recommended.

Linda Birch's How To Draw And Paint Animals tells how to draw animals using pencil, charcoal, line and watercolor, with color photos and drawings of both finished and half-complete subjects making for an excellent guide.

This book's modest title fauils to describe its full worth. It is full of good sense, sound technical information and really excellent drawing. Linda Birch has a mastery of all media,and her writing displays the confidence of a gifted teacher. Her authority stems partly from her own obvious love of animals and her careful observation of them. She faces the question "Oh dear, I shall never be able to do that" with an encouraging "Yes you can, and I will show you how". Everything is here - texture, movement, anatomy, all brought together through many years of experience of teaching. Linda offers regular painting courses in Durham, and in other parts of England. Her students will be very fortunate, having the benefit of the fluency and wit which shines from these pages. A book to treasure.

This book was an invaluable tool to my mother when she was painting. I learnt to paint from the advice given in this book as a child and coveted it. It describes in detail techniques and materials. It also shows step by step examples of how a painting is constructed. I wish I had a copy.

This book is one of the most useful books on drawing and painting I have come across. Not only does it discuss the different techniques of painting and drawing, it is a good source for information about the media- art materials, color characteristics and so on.

I have been an avid Crafter for years. In fact I thought I had seen it all. I was watching a T.V. Crafting Show (Aleene's) and was captured by a lady effortlessly painting beautiful designs on glass windows with sponges. It looked so easy and turned out so beautiful. I bought the Christmas Book and the Kit that went with it in Sept. What a pleasant surprise. Not only did the Book show and tell you EXACTLY how to do the Designs with full-color examples, but also provided extensive information on Window Painting as a Business. I tried out some of the Designs on my own windows and they turned out beautiful. Before I knew it, I had neighbors and friends asking me to paint their windows. I actually made over $500.00 and only had to spend $45.00 to do it. I will definitely be buying Cindy's All Occasion Book as well. Candice

I originally bought the Book out of curiosity, liked it so much, my daughter has decided to Window Paint for part time income. The Book gives simple, easy to follow directions, and great advice on how to get started in the Business. I love the full color Illustrations which demonstrate just how the Designs will look. Can't wait for the upcoming Video. Donna Grier

A workshop guided by a master painter of portraits. Robert Carter Clark sets out here to teach you thoroughly from her professional experience, without cutting corners or resorting to caricature. Fully one-half of this fine book is given to draftsmanship. She begins with proportions of the head (male, female & infant) in Chapter One, then moves on to drawing features -- with special attention given to the windows of the soul, the eyes. Chapter Three is dedicated to drawing the body. In Chapter Four, Ms. Clark presents the difficult skill of capturing fabric folds. Chapter Five covers lighting for four different views. Charcoal portraiture comes next, then using color, stepping through hue, value, intensity, & flesh & hair tones.

Finally, she devotes chapters to painting portraits from life in oils & in watercolors. Oil techniques include wet-into-wet, monotone, & glazing.

"How to Paint Living Portraits" is a standout, user-friendly instructional book within a genre glutted with volumes that can be too light or too dense, or promise too much, too quickly. Roberta Carter Clark cooked this one right. She's an excellent teacher.

Bob Rixon, Pearl Art & Crafts

Great for anyone that has some experience in painting but is just beginning portraits. Detailed step-by-step instructions work you through the process. Lots of illistrations and color pictures.