3 comments about Artist's Photo Reference: Water & Skies.

1. I love the Artist's Photo Reference series. Water and Skies by Bart Rulon was the last one that I bought, because it's out of print and the price of used copies has been soaring. I kept putting it off in favor of less expensive used copies of other books in the series, even though Water and Skies covers a subject I love to paint. Finally the price dipped under $30 again and I ordered immediately.
   
   From the photos on the cover, I thought most of it would be clouds and open water without land, but there are some gems in this volume that I know I'm going to use to create spectacular landscapes. I liked the swamp section a lot. I finally found a reference for cypresses in standing water for a traditional New Orleans style Swamp Scene and I found egrets on another page -- both elements I needed for this planned work right in the same volume. The photos in this book range through a wide variety of subjects and the text is fine. The lessons are interesting and as with all the Artist's Photo Reference series, are each in different mediums by different artists to give any reader ideas for new techniques and mediums.
   
   I enjoyed it so much, and have the pure satisfaction of seeing the stack of Artist's Photo Reference books get as complete as possible. I hope that North Light Books continues the series and would really like one that took the artist under the water to see tropical reefs, fish and animals under the water.
   
   Any of this series are immensely useful for an artist. The title says it all. That is what it is -- a hardback book full of photo references to use for painting and drawing. The text itself is relatively short, the lessons are interesting but the meat of the book is the hundreds of excellent photographs of different weather, different climates, water in all its states. You can find what you need in this one for any landscape you'd like to draw -- including that traditional Swamp Painting that I know I'm going to do.



2. I just absolutely love this book. I bought this with the Landscape part of the series, with the hope to get more water. This book has it. It has a wonderful selection of snow scenes and even frost!!! It then has several different types of beach and ocean scenes. The one thing that I was really looking for that this book didn't have, which is why I gave it a 4, was that there was no rain. There were plenty of fog and mist, which were wonderful, but not a single rain picture. They had a few rainbows, but no rain. I thought it was interesting, but perhaps its just really that hard to take a picture of rain. So if your looking for a book with rain, I would suggest looking elsewere. If your just looking for a great book with lots of water and sky, this would be my pick!!



3. What a fantastic book! The photos and the art are all Breathtaking. Its a must for any landscape artist's book shelf. I've used it time and time again.

2 comments about Dream Worlds: Architecture And Entertainment.

1. Prestel book are always excellent. DREAM WORLDS continues that trajectory. Herwig and Hoizherr, both based in Munich FRG, know their material and have provided the insightful text with very appropriate illustrations. I like their academic lite touch with useful definitions and data as well as some fascinating new historical information gathered from their worldwide sources. For the parts examing the USA, I would suggest a supplemental reading (DESERT AMERICA: TERRITORY OF PARADOX).



2. Oliver Herwig and Florian Helzherr's DREAM WORLDS: ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENT offers up the concept of architecture as entertainment within itself, surveying a history of such architectural entertainments from ancient Rome to future visions. From entertainment-housing structures and malls to entire entertainment cities such as Las Vegas, chapters cover resorts, theme parks, amusement centers and more.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

5 comments about The Baltimore Rowhouse.

1. only wished it had more photos... great research for design ideas and historical renovation... chock full of information.



2. It's true, those from cities with rowhouses will find this book most interesting, but so will all interested in the history and geography of urban development and how land development, new building technologies, and individuals' working and family lives are interwoven with this development. By referring back to a single family and its trajectory within the city throughout the book, the author makes some of these larger-scale trends much more personal, and by following the paths of a few major developers within the city, you get a sense both of how the city and its hot neighborhoods shift over time, and of how literally a very small group of people can shape the physical space in which thousands live and work. Students of rowhouses or of Baltimore will be better able to see the continuities and the changes in rowhouses-- such as how the technology to make larger panes of glass changed the front facade, and how a simple setback from the sidewalk of 10 feet or so alters the feel of the buildings and the neighborhood by adding a little green. Formstone is also explained (to the extent that's possible...). Specialized, yes, but exceptionally well crafted. Architectural, urban, and social history and their intermingled best.



3. I enjoyed the pictures of these houses, and thought the book was especially well written. It's impossible to separate the evolution of these houses from the changes in the city itself, so some history is inevitable; there is also a great amount of detail involving the lives of the owners and developers. If you are not overwhelmed by all this, you will uncover some interesting bits: the ads for Formstone, the fact that basements were hand-dug by a crew of nine in two days, the tales of the "night soil" removers. Really concentrates on the local history, though, so it may not of interest to others.



4. The rowhouse is far more common in Baltimore than other US cities, and these authors have documented its history and development up to the present day. Every nuance of design change is thoroughly discussed, and the amount of detail allows a street-by-street discussion at times. We're told about the various developers who, parcel by parcel, converted old elite estates into street grids covered with rowhouses of varying quality. The book ends as an advertisement for new urbanism, in which dilapidated old rowhouses are renovated and run-down neighborhoods undergo renewal.

   The quality of writing is particularly high. There are approximately 140 b&w photos, which for the most part are grouped together so they can be printed on high-gloss paper. This is an awkward arrangement that requires the reader to flip back and forth to the glossy photo pages. There are approximately ten cross-sections and floor plans. There are very few maps, and a detailed knowledge of Baltimore geography is assumed. Because of the highly specialized nature of this book, it is unlikely to appeal to anyone outside Baltimore, but it would probably be a delight to architectural enthusiasts within the city.




5. ...and the time to read 'The Baltimore Rowhouse' is now! I'm telling you'se- this book has it all. ; )

   You not only get the expected descriptions of the architectural styles of rowhouses, and a historical review of the development of this style of housing, but the author weaves in the chronological social climb of an immigrant family throughout the book. Following the family's real estate history gives the book a story-like, biographical feel; unusual for non-fiction of this nature. It is in a sense, a well documented account of one way the "American Dream" has been realized.

   From a social/cultural perspective, the 'Baltimore Rowhouse' is a social commentary on Baltimorean (and American) housing development past, present and future from visionary authors who love the City of Baltimore.

   I received the book as a Christmas gift and read it in about 3 days. I couldn't put it down and was a little saddened that it had to end. I say this rarely- IT IS A MUST READ.

4 comments about Great Houses Of Texas.

1. Beautifully photographed with interesting history on the diversity of Texas homes, this book details the unique blend of European sophistication and "homegrown" design that combined to create a truly unique architecture. This book makes a wonderful gift for any favorite Texan.



2. Great Houses of Texas would be appreciated by anyone with an interest in great architecture as exhibited in this book. Many of the houses included are well known, but some are hardly known at all. O'Neill Ford's house for the Steves family should have been included, in San Antonio. Its omission is my only disappointment in the book. The text is adequate though not extensive and the photographs, alone, are worth the price of the book. I know of only one other book on this subject, and that was written years ago, so such a book is long past due! Lee Govatos



3. Though some readers may quibble over the title of this book, it is clear that the book is focussed on the greatest houses still occupied in Texas. This is a subtle but important distinction. The houses shown are not dead great houses, of which there are many in Texas and many of which are greatly admired; Germany instead has focussed on private homes occupied by individuals. With that in mind, it is a fascinating read.



4. There are many things to admire about this book, the images are well presented, the text is informative and overall I liked it, but WHO selected these houses. The book should have been titled, some great and not so great houses in Texas. How could you write a book about Great Houses in Texas and not include the Sealy House in Galveston, the only McKim Mead and White house in the South, or the most famous house in the state, the Bishops Palace in Galveston, or not include Bayou Bend!!! or the McFaddin Mansion in Beaumont, a house that is considered by architecture scholars to be the best example in Colonial Beaux Art in America..it's just incredulous. Many of the houses selected were great, such as the mansion at Kings Ranch which graces the cover and leads you to believe all the houses in the book will be to this standard and they unforunitely are not...the Crespi House in dallas by Maurice Fatio is great as well as is the Bass House in Ft. Worth, as well as the Pease House in Austin, but many just leave you thinking..WHAT!..Im from Texas and am very familar with the grand houses in the state, so I shocked to see some of the most famous houses in the state not present in this book. This is not a bad book, I give it four stars, but it could have been great..too bad whomever selected the houses for this book, was not as thorough as they should have been, nice book, but a disappointment to those of us familiar with the truely great houses of this singular state.

No comments about Empire Splendor: French Taste in the Age of Napoleon.

1 comments about The National Trust Guide to Savannah.

1. This book is full of interesting information on this uniquely southern city. The text is scholarly and indepth and many entries are accompanied with an image. If you are going to Savannah or have ever been interested in this singular city then I highly recommend this book to you and by all means bring it with you on your trip.

No comments about Stanford White, Architect.

5 comments about The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion, Revised Edition.

1. Excellent reference for all things Wright. Well organized and complete, contains many details about each home & traces Wright's evolution in his approach to design. Includes floor plans for many projects, as well as photographs for both existing & demolished works.



2. This is the finest compendium of all built Frank Lloyd Wright Buildings and is a top ten book for any Frank Lloyd Wright Enthusiast. This wonderful book documents all of standing buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright with excellent photographs, floor plans, and well written commentary. As a Frank Lloyd Wright homeowner and architect I enjoy looking up the less well known Wright buildings. The author, William Storer, is a highly respected Wright scholar. This book is highly recommended for its breadth, accuracy, and scholarship on the work of America's Greatest Architect.



3. I found a lot of errors in the floor plans in the first edition of this book (which may have been corrected this time around). Also, I really object to the use of contemporary photos of buildings which have been heavily altered over the years. Other than that, this book is highly recommended and, in fact, essential.



4. If you want a complete overview and Wright reference, get this. I have a growing large FLLW library and this is a great compliment to every book I have.



5. Covering the almost 80-year career from his Unity Chapel in Wisconsin in 1886 to the Lykes house built in Phoenix in 1966, seven years after his death, this book contains floorplans and textual desciptions for all FLW-designed structures as well as black-and-white pictures for almost all of them, except for a small handful which have been demolished and for which no pictures exist.
   The clear, readable floorplans which are given for every structure is possibly the biggest selling point of this book.
   I should add that an excellent addition to this book is Thomas Heinz' _The Vision Of Frank Lloyd Wright_ which, although not as complete, features large color pictures of many of the buildings.

5 comments about Mongolian Cloud Houses: How to Make a Yurt and Live Comfortably.

1. Mongolian Cloud Houses: How to Make a Yurt and Live Comfortably If you're into simplicity in dwelling and have a piece of land (your own, or unhindered use of some other property) then Mongolian Cloud Houses by Dan Frank Kuehn may be for you. But please note, if you wish to build a yurt similar to Kuehn's specifications, you will also need to glean a fair amount of natural raw materials from that land, as well as have ample time if you intend to build according to the author's specifications. Although not terribly labor intensive in sheer physical construction, building yurts as Kuehn does requires a fair amount of determined patience (a notion of building that is almost heretical in today's culture of "instant gratification" but was widely accepted practice for centuries and firmly reconstituted by many a counter-cultural self-builder of the 1960's and 70's.) In short, this is not the book for you, if you're seeking to get a yurt erected overnight. (If that's the case, pony-up some hard earned dough and go buy a commercially manufactured yurt. Then also hire/recruit a bunch of warm bodies to assist you. Maybe you'll get the thing up in a week, maybe you won't. This IS the book for you, if 1). You are basically building alone or maybe with some help from a friend. 2). You are short of, or very economical with money. 3). You have abundant free time. 4). You want to live simply in the round and wish to work mostly with materials you can gather or scrounge. And finally, 5) You need to have something warm and comfortable yet nomadic (Because a nylon camping tent as your base camp/wilderness home/extra dwelling space just won't cut it.) As a micro building enthusiast, I admire anyone who creates useful organic dwellings and then shares what they know with others. Especially when that knowledge is shared at a most affordable price. As with all Shelter Publications, this book is chockful of useful information. Kuehn's own hand drawn ilustrations are fabulous. The pics of his yurts and his self-evolution from 1976-2006 are delightful. And Jim Macey's b&w photos of Mongolia are a nice addition. It is a valued addition to my homestead and architectural bookshelf.



2. Both the book and the transaction were great. A perfect step by step guide.



3. The author provides excellent resources and instruction on building Mongolian style yurts. Though the text is somewhat dated many of the principles are still applicable today. I recommend this book to any beginner interested in constructing this type of nomadic dwelling.



4. Nomadic living in the 21st century can be achieved if your house is flexible and even portable - and MONGOLIAN CLOUD HOUSES: HOW TO MAKE A YURT AND LIVE COMFORTABLE advocates and shows how to construct a yurt using low-cost, natural materials available in either a backyard or wilderness. Step-by-step black and white drawings accompany a yurt history and includes construction alternatives and tips and tricks. A rare 'must' for any interested in alternative do-it-yourself construction.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



5. This book covers all the bases for homemade yurt living. History, how-to construction manual, reference guide, state-of-the-art catalog for all things in world of yurts (ger). Great pictures and graphics; the original nomadic living bible.

No comments about Ideas That Shaped Buildings.