No comments about Whitney Biennial 2008 (Whitney Biennial).

5 comments about Action! Cartooning.

1. This book is great. With its simple approach it's good for beginners, as well as more seasoned artists--Ben Calwell's style is FANTASTIC. For me this book works as an excellent character design book. Love it, five stars.



2. I very rarely write comments on books, but I had to make an exception for this book because it is far and away so much better than all the other books I own on cartooning. I keep it close by my desk for regular reference. When I teach my children to draw, this is the book we ALWAYS come back to. I'll probably buy a second copy soon because I am wearing my first copy out and I simply can't imagine not having this book around. Unlike other cartooning books that I find to be annoyingly wordy or too simple, this book is PACKED with vital, detailed, HOW-TO instructions on drawing dynamic figures in exciting poses. It gives you a full, easy method on how to draw ANY pose in 3-D, from ANY visual angle. It provides plenty of step-by-step instructions so you can practice this same method over and over until you master it. It provides detailed instructions and examples of important techniques like overlapping and fore-shortening, so your characters have depth, and can appear as if they are jumping off the page right at you. It gives amazing details on basic anatomy - both male and female. It shows how to draw difficult body parts like hands and feet. It also provides valuable information on character design, like explaining facial features that make a character appear young or old; how to make a character look heroic, charming, tough, or mixing these features to suggest hints of various personality traits. For example, you can mix features to create an intelligent looking, tough guy. It explains how to draw various expressions - not from templates - but how you can design your own. Most art books I buy I feel could have been cut down to half their size. But not this book - this book fits everything into only 80 pages, but every page gives you something of real value. It does not discuss color, and I would have like to have seen a section on dealing with hair, but other than that, the book is - far and away - the best value in cartooning that I own. If you want to learn to cartoon action figures - not copy them - but really create your own dynamic and exciting poses from scratch - right out of you own imagination, then buy this book. You won't regret it.



3. This is a pretty good book for the hobbyist who wants to improve his or her drawing skills, but there's no information beyond that. What do professional cartoonists do once they've finished sketching? We're never told. There's nothing about transitioning from pencil to pen, or what kind of pens to use, no mention of light boards or lettering or laying out panels, not one word about color. Do professional cartoonists use computers for any of this? We're not told. Frankly, I was disappointed. (Not to mention a tad turned off by the "Don't worry, guys!" on the back cover. What is this, the fifties?) I was looking specifically for that information, and would have given this book two stars, but you get what you pay for.



4. I have several books on drawing the human figure and this is in the top two. Lots of great ideas and examples, and they're all very carefully drawn to avoid throwing the student off. Some books have vague or confusing examples; the examples here are always clear and straightforward and easy to mimic. Great examples of head poses; over the shoulder, tilted, etc., in relationship to the body.
   
   I bought this used for a pittance and boy, did I ever get a bargain.



5. I stood at the comics and graphic novels section of the bookstore tonight browsing for about an hour looking for an introductory book on drawing characters, looking at guides for everything from how to draw anime to superheroes to fantasy characters before I finally settled on a book.
   
   This was it!
   
   Where the books from other authors and illustrators were noteworthy for each having a couple of really cool moments amidst many many examples, Action! Cartooning basically non-stop coolness. The action starts as soon as you open the cover with neat cartoon sketches and he basically doesn't let up until the book is finished, even when he's sketching right on the index pages at the end of the book!
   
   Ben Caldwell's book is jam packed with cool illustrations and an amazing vibe. It's a happy serendipitous occurence where he not only happens to be talented at what he does, you can also tell he's incredibly enthusiastic about what he does and is also very good at teaching you how to do it.

No comments about Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius; Revised and Expanded Edition.

2 comments about Byzantine Art (Oxford History of Art).

1. I was in search of an affordable book that featured color plates of the greatest art of the Byzantine world, running the gamut from late Roman times through the fall of Constantinople and Robin Cormack's excellent work more than fit the bill. Indeed, this may be the perfect introductory work on Byzantine art. Magnificently produced, the book is positively littered with high-resolution color and black-and-white photos which show amazing amounts of detail. Particularly stunning are the reproductions of the various mosaics from inside the great church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and from San Vitale in Ravenna.
   
   The text of the book is descriptive and analytical. Though somewhat scholarly in content, the writing is clear and the style is brisk. Enough historical background is provided to make the book suitable for a reader with little or no knowledge of Byzantine history. The devotional aspects of Byzantine Art were handled dispassionately with no trace of secular conceit--not always a given these days--and the Iconoclastic controversy was well covered in commendable detail. My only minor quibble was that the endnotes were buried amidst the back-matter and were somewhat difficult to find.
   
   Over all, Cormack's book will make an excellent textbook for courses in Christian and Medieval Art, and a perfect supplemental text for general Byzantine Studies courses. The lovely cover art and stunning interior photos will also make it the kind of book that will be picked up and perused by friends and family if left around the house.



2. Having had the chance to listen to Robin Cormack speak, and always having had an interest in Byzantine art, I look forward to reading this. I was not disappointed in the least. As Cormack rightly points out both in his introduction and his bibliographic essay, the art of Byzantium is presented either in an homongenous manner, linking all stylistic periods and developments into a monolithic, unchanging facade, or as a realm only the specialist would be willing to engage in. Cormack deftly navigates through the subject in such a manner that is both introductary as well as substantial enough for those already familiar with the subject. Where controverserial arguments are needed, Cormack enthusiastically dives in; where basic explanation is necessary, Cormack elucidates without dumbing-down; where a style of writing is called for to atmospherically render the majesty of the art, Cormack's writing never fails.

   For those of us teaching art history classes, finding a textbook devoted to Byzantine art is especially difficult. We now have the classic that will be more than sufficient for years to come.

5 comments about The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher [25th Anniversary Edition].

1. Escher's work is so engaging and interesting. Everyone has seen Escher's work, even if they don't know the name. I've used his work to teach math, graphics, and problem solving. My college students love analyzing his work.
   
   I bought this book as a gift, and it was an excellent choice. There are many example works in the book, plus interesting explanations.



2. 
   I just picked this book up thinking that there has been a "NEW" book published on M.C.Escher's work.When I got it home ,I checked it against other Escher books and was disappointed to find it is the same book published several times before and by different publishers.
   As you can see the ,publication date of this edition is shown as April 6,2007.Therefore, the reviewers here must have been looking at a previous publication,possibly the one also listed here as a paperback in 1987.The copy I had was even earlier,published by Ballantine in 1976.
   The quality of this Taschen Edition is very good, in fact, superior to the paperback editions I have seen; and will be enjoyed by anyone who likes M.C. Esher's work ;but the material included has not changed.
   I believe this is an excellent book ,and agree with the reviews already written on other editions.
   I guess what we have here is A 25 Year Celebration of its first publication.
   This is an excellent chance to obtain this book and will be enjoyed,particularly by people new to Escher's work.The fact that this edition has now come out speaks volumes about what a great book this was,and it's great to see it available again.



3. The work of Escher has captured the imagination of many people and in this book Bruno Ernst (a personal friend of Escher) expands our understanding of the artist. After a brief but concise biography, the author throughly analyses the most important facets of Escher's artistic output: the illusion in drawing, the use of perspective, the creation of impossible realities, simultaneous and contrasting realities, crystals, and the infinite. Escher was an artist who was unique in in his work, he stands by himself, and this book is a helping tool in understanding and appreciating the unparalleled magic of his work.



4. The greatness of this book on the work of M.C. Escher is that it shows how he worked up his ideas for various pieces. It also gives a thorough explanation of his thought and design process. It is truely a shame that this book has gone out of print. I sincerely hope that the publisher brings it back.



5. In The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher, Bruno Ernst, an acquaintance of Escher's until Escher's death in 1972, presents a thorough summary of the life and work of Escher. Ernst devotes a chapter to the life of Escher, and uses the rest of the book to describe his amazing work. He includes the different themes and styles that Escher used, and devotes a good amount of space to each work discussed. The book is extremely thorough and includes large clear illustrations of the works themselves and also of earlier drafts of the works and mathematical descriptions to assist the reader. This is the most concise book of Escher and his work I have ever seen, and Ernst has done a fabulous job on it.

No comments about Studying Horiyoshi III: A Westerner's Journey into Japanese Tattoo.

5 comments about Helvetica: Homage to a Typeface.

1. This makes for a good coffee table book, or perhaps bathroom reading, but as a graphic design reference it falls short. Basically just a picture book. The first half is a compendium of various samples of graphic design, some of them really wonderful, all using Helvetica. The second half is a photographic essay showing the font used in the public domain throughout the world. It would have been nice to include some essays from leading writers in the design world on the history of the font, or it's influence, both good and bad, in the visual vernacular. I was inspired to buy it after seeing the film "Helvetica," and found that film to be a much more rewarding experience.



2. My binding also fell apart the second time I flipped through it. I loved the book, but the binding is just terrible.



3. First the mystery: just why was every alternate page in the book joined together? The reader has to carefully cut the perforations to be able to look at every page. I can't find any reference in the small amount of text about this. My conclusion is that the public use of the type is on the open pages and non-public (or designed) examples are on the perforation joined pages. At least you'll know if you buy a pre-used copy though.
   
   Apart from the perforations I thought this was a handsome little book and homage in the title is very apt. Helvetica is probably the world's number one communication choice, it works just as well on a municipal sign or a new baby announcement. Before it gained a monopoly each nation seemed to have its own jobbing type, Franklin Gothic in America, Gill Sans in England or Antique Olive in France, for instance but the super clean lines of Helvetica (and computer typesetting) meant it was no contest for all the others.
   
   The author mentions the uniqueness of Swiss design in the Fifties partly because the top designers always used the same typeface, the stunning Akzidenz Grotesk, which fitted into their rather austere but elegant graphic solutions even though it only had two weights, Medium and Bold. Who needs italic, extended, condensed, extra black and the other weights to communicate efficiently? The rest of the world for a start. From the late Fifties Swiss designed Helvetica spread across the globe and you'll see from the hundreds of examples in these pages some wonderful design solutions, especially the two hundred plus logos that use the face in all sorts of variations. As a typeface there are probably a few dozen Helvetica weights now available. Incidentally, the author suggests that Arial, the default type used on Outlook Express for most emails is a digital Helvetica, close but no cigar! The most obvious differences are the cap G and the lower case s and t.
   
   'Homage to a typeface' is a lovely book that'll interest most typographers and anyone who is curious about a lettering style that seems to be everywhere.
   
   ***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.



4. It's about what you'd expect. I feel like I got my $20 worth, but as mentioned, it's gonna fall apart before you're halfway into the book. I think if I would have heeded the warnings it may have gone a little farther. Your mileage may vary.



5. I'll start by saying that this is a lovely tribute to the most invisible, versatile and ubiquitous font. It is a full bled chunk of photography and unintentional wit.
   Buuuttt....
   
   The binding is absolutely horrendous. I'm not referring to the imaginative use of perforation, either. The binding completely fell apart after flipping through it once. The pages are not folded and stitched and only held in with apparently inadequate adhesive. I am now the proud owner of a nice stack of loose paper.
   
   Due to the fact that the reader is expected to separate the perforated edges- the book becomes non-refundable.
   
   So, although I wish I could recommend this little book due to content I strongly advise that you not purchase it.

1 comments about Art History: Vol. 1, Second Edition.

1. This book does nothing to distinguish itself from the hundreds of other books which an art history survey course might use.

5 comments about Klimt (Big Art).

1. This is truly a wonderful book. The paintings are beautifully re-produced and printed. The analysis is in depth and fascinating. I would like an index of all the works contained in the book. Perhaps individual critical analysis of each print would be better, but it's difficult to criticize a book selling for 10 dollar!
   This book was originally published in 1990 so it does not have the current developmets of Klimt's art: such as the 2006 auction of Adele Bloch-Bauer I for 135 million dollars - the highest price ever paid for a painting. A B-B I is hardly critiqued in this book. But overall, the book is a must read!



2. My disappointment comes from the printing process rather than the content,
   which is chock full of color plates of Klimt's paintings and some great
   photos of Klimt's life and times.
   All of the color plates and the photos are printed soft-edged and the wonderful vibrant golds are somehow absent. None the less, it is a lovely
   book with a very good text and a marvelous range of his work.



3. First of all, the book is not covered as shown in the amazon photo which shows the famous "kiss" painting. The book, apparently updated in 2006, shows a cover photo of Klimt's famous Danae (1907-8) oil on canvas painting. I think this cover is more provacative and more organic and softer than the famed Kiss painting which reveals a couple entwined in gold looking rather stiff. Danae was certainly a better choice for the cover. The book is definitely not written for the casual art reader. It is written with extreme depth as what I'd expect from a historian of the arts on a university research level. As verbose as it is, it has plenty, if not hundreds of photos of the famous works, including all of Klimt's paintings and lesser known sketches. The author discusses several of Klimt's famous paintings in depth and reviews various critics of Klimt's time period as well as Klimt's personal opinions and struggles. Culture, politics, and various movements in the arts is also discussed at length. This book is too deep for the casual browser or reader but makes a great coffee table book if only for the pictures alone. It is a high quality book and the pages are high quality (acid free) and glossy. The painting photos are rich and fully colored, better than other books I've bought on Klimt (where the precious gold paint is reduced to lousy brownish or greenish prints). The gold tones in this book, so famous in Klimt's work, are reproduced extremely well as well as the other vivid colors so characteristic of Klimt's work. It's a bargain to get this book at the price.



4. Over the years, I've only looked at Klimt from the edges - that is, I was aware only of the more popular poster images you couldn't help seeing here and there. But this book is a big revelation to me. Such genius! He is truly amazing, and I had no idea of the range of his thought or the depth of his talent. He was a superb draftsman, which enabled him to take risks with the figure because he knew exactly what he was doing.
   
   A well-designed book - a complete visual pleasure, and fire to the imagination.



5. Spend more. get a bigger book. the painting are worth it.

4 comments about Don Bluth's Art Of Storyboard.

1. Admittedly, I was drawn to the book (no pun intended) from the many hours I spent as a child playing the animated game, Dragon's Lair. The book is great for the examples that it provides from Bluth's studio animations -video games and feature film animations. It provides great insight into the process, although you can tell that it is a little dated in technique (computer references are a little lean). But the drawings, pages and pages of storyboards, and the transcripts from pre-production conversations are invaluable for providing creative insight. I would highly recommend this book to accompany other materials on the storyboarding process (such as Storyboarding Design Course by Giuseppe Cristiano). This is a great book and a has a wealth of content.Don Bluth's Art Of Storyboard



2. "Don Bluth's Art Of Storyboard" is a great "crash-course" for those interested in storyboarding. I loved the references to musical tempo as well as the commentary on the boards of past Bluth films.
   
   The storyboards for "The Secret Of NIMH" are covered in detail, and are among the most beautifully staged boards I've seen! Bluth (and crew) used pen and grey markers to convincingly portray texture, perspective, and relatively sophisticated lighting (personally, markers and I never got along, so I can appreciate the difficulty level). Many cinematography and acting cues seen in other, more technical books are cleverly and entertainingly utilized in the storyboards of films like "NIMH", "All Dogs Go To Heaven" and "Anastasia".
   
   Overall I'd say this is an excellent tool for beginners. It can also be a great gift for the experienced story artist who just happens to be a Don Bluth fan...



3. Very helpful book on stroyboarding from the master himself Don Bluth. Really enjoyable and fast read.



4. I think this is a decent overview of the storyboarding process. OF course each of his subjects could require a college-level class and large book to seriously cover, but I appreciate Bluth's perspective on what he views as the signficant elements of the workflow and his explanation of why they are important.