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Notorious bad boy of Italian Baroque painting, Caravaggio (1571-1610) is finally getting the recognition he deserves. Though his name may be familiar to all of us, his work has been habitually detested and forced into obscurity. Not only was his theatrical realism unfashionable in his time, but his sacrilegious subject matter and use of lower class models were violently scorned. Caravaggio's great work had the misfortune of enduring centuries of disrepute. It wasn't until the end of the 19th century that he was rediscovered and, quite posthumously, deemed a great master. He is now considered the most important painter of the early Baroque period; without him there would have been no Ribera, Zurburán, Velázquez, Vermeer or Georges de la Tour. Franz Hals, Rembrandt, Delacroix, and Manet would have been different. In this new book you'll find over 50 of Caravaggio's best paintings; we think you'll agree that he was a genius beyond his time.

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This is the best of the 'Carving & Painting' series of books, and should be on the shelf of every serious bird carver. Not only does it cover carving and painting techniques, but it provides some beautiful reference photos of male and female kestrels. It also discusses wood choices, tools, patterns, and design and composition. It's a lot of information at a very reasonable price!

Jim Sprankle, a carver of exceptional caliber, leads the reader through a step-by-step process in transforming a lifeless block of wood into a life-like work of art. No detail is left unmentioned, and the photographs provide a close-up view of the intricate carving and painting that make Sprankle's work highly prized. Every waterfowl carver should have this book in his/her personal library.

This highly illustrative tome includes pencil sketches and tracings showing lines of force for Friedrich's major works. In addition, an in-depth discussion of his life, including cultural and socio-political influences, is discussed concurrent with a review of not only his major masterpieces, but his minor, early works as well. An absolute must for anyone who has become enamored with his work, or the work of other similar sublime, landscape artists of the period.

Stuck for an awesome stocking stuffer this Christmas season? Then check out this compact collection of Christmas themed drawings by Kliban. This just released offering is presented in all it's full color glory. An excellent gift for all Kliban fans or cat lovers.

This is a lavishly illustrated picture book with a gorgeous layout: each 2-page spread features the text of a Christmas carol (with all the verses, not just the familiar ones) with decorative initial letters and a lovely border on the left page; the facing page contains a painting (with matching border) of a cat or cats in a setting that illustrates the carol. Although the settings are fantastical, the paintings are realistic rather than cartoonish or childish in any way, so that the cats look absolutely real. Both adults and childrens can enjoy this beautiful book.

This book show a graphic history of the love of a women for the cat's world. Can you know what the cats think?... Henriette Ronner have the answer whit each one of her paints

Mastandrea's sharp eye for color is matched by her ability to articulate in step-by-step format the techniques for beautiful ceramic pieces. Techniques include how to do sponge painting, plaids, stamp painting, which brushes to use for which effects--enough information for someone who's never painted ceramics before but not so much that an experienced painter might find condescending. The projects included in the book are cheery, bright, and motivational. I highly recommend this book for any painter who has recently discovered paint-your-own ceramics studios but doesn't know where or how to start.

As an art student Paul Cezanne became the paragon upon which I measured all other subsequent painters. The writer that taught me to see him as the North Star in that vast, swirling sky of artists was Meyer Schapiro. Having read the above book literally a dozen or more times I have found that it is an inexhaustible treasure. Mr. Schapiro's insights are both scholarly and poetic. He above all seems to understand that Cezanne, while instrumental as a precursor to cubism, was first and foremost a great individual artist. Going to the Cezanne retrospective in Philadelphia several years ago I remember the first thing that came to my mind was how right Mr. Schapiro had been to avoid all the fussy and downright foolish connections that other critics are constantly making between Cezanne and modern art. What Mr. Schapiro concentrates on rather is Cézannes paintings and not his influence - this is most refreshing. He above all others I have read seems to have an uncanny understanding of Cezanne as both a man and an artist. He writes that Cézanne's; "...detached contemplation of his subjects arises from a passionate aspiring nature that seeks to master its own impulses through an objective attitude to things." I can only think that this must be true of Mr. Schapiro also. Each sentence is laid down with the care that Cezanne put into laying down each stroke of paint and as such his writing possesses a gravity that I have never found in another critic's work with the exception of Roger Fry. The beginning of the book provides a comprehensive overview of Cézanne's work and a brief outline of his life but the final 3/4 quarters of the book is structured as follows: superb color reproduction on the right hand page and a few paragraphs of commentary on the left page. These enables one to simply open it at any given time, find a desirable painting and read the commentary directly next to it. Structure in this way, the book became for me a source to meditate upon the good in art when I was surrounded by the confusion of trying to find myself among other young artists. Not being a scholar I found this book to be accessible and enriching. Mr. Schapiro writes with such sincere warmth and wisdom that when I heard of his death a few years ago I was saddened as if I had lost a friend and mentor. I hope this wonderful book brings as much joy and inspiration to you as it has for me.