1 comments about Fabric Painting with Donna Dewberry: 40 Stylish Projects for Your Home & Wardrobe.

1. Fabric Painting with Donna Dewberry is the most amazing book. It is so detailed that I have absolutely no doubts that I can do this with little or no problems. I've never painted on fabric before, but have always admired products I have seen that have been hand-painted. I'm ready to go and feel assured that this book is my secret to success.

5 comments about Stunning Crystal & Glass: The Watercolorist's Guide to Capturing the Splendor of Light.

1. After watching this artist at a demonstration I was moved to purchase her book. I have not been disappointed. Her book gives clear instructions in how to achieve the look of crystal with watercolor paints just as well as a live demonstration. The pictures she creates are nothing short of amazing.



2. EXCELLENT DESCRIPTIONS OF THE ART OF WATERCOLORS IN ARTFULLY ILLUSTRATING GLASS AND CRYSTAL SUBJECTS. INSTRUCTIONS ARE EASY TO FOLLOW, UNDERSTAND AND EXECUTE. MANY EXAMPLES ARE PROVIDED THAT ARE HELPFUL IN RAISING MY SKILL LEVELS IN THE ART OF WATERCOLORS.



3. This is the best watercolor book on crystal and glass that I have found. I have actually been able to do the exercises and then translate them into my own original watercolor paintings. I cannot say that about a lot of watercolor books because I feel like other books leave out steps. This one does not leave out a thing!!!!!!!!!!!
   
   I liked it so much that I have arranged for Joyce to come to Texas to do a watercolor workshop.



4. This is the first book I've been able to follow easily and actually enjoy the whole process. Joyce has a very colorful way of describing the steps and making you feel like you are getting a one-on-one lesson from her. I was so pleased with my own painting results and look forward to my next painting following Joyce Faulknor's descriptive and fabulous book.



5. The art of painting glass or crystal is a challenge to most watercolorists. The shadow glancing through the crystal is suffused with the colors of the diffracted light and reflected light, making a play of not only dark and light, but of various colors in the shadow tones. Rendering this is not easy. Equally difficult--getting the reflections on facets and surfaces of glass objects and vessels.
   
   Author and painter Faulknor paints with an ultra-realistic style--the shapes and lighting are almost surreal. She shows you how to set up your painting area, choose a palette of colors, photograph your still life or use reference photos and then paint your picture. There is another similar book by another author Painting Crystal and Flowers by Susanna Spann but it is more about flowing color and limited palettes. This book is great if you desire that super-real look with high-key lighting and very dramatic dark-and-light shadow and highlight. It is not easy, but the author makes a heroic effort to take you along with her and the amazing talent she possesses. Not for the faint of heart, but can really make you think about how you are painting still life.

2 comments about Donna Dewberrys Quick & Easy Murals.

1. Very well written and demonstrated. Lots of different projects make the book pretty well rounded and a value



2. A great book for those who want to start painting on the walls. While if doesn't show a beginner color worksheets on every element it is great for the intermediate to advanced beginner. There are hundreds of step-by-step photos. The projects that take the most painting skill are the borders. Donna shows you how to paint six wall borders using photos showing step by steps. The four wall murals give a great effect and are truly quick and easy. And then she shows two wall treatments that will show you that you never need to use wall paper again. It is so much easier to repaint than to strip wallpaper. For the more advanced or highly motivated painter Donna has included a section on starting you own Mural business. This book shows you can be a do it yourself muralist.

2 comments about Classics of Western Literature: Bloom County 1986-1989.

1. This is vintage berkeley. I enjoyed a lot of his stuff from that time period. Many political references that just made fun of the people of the time. Doesn't get more ironic or insulting than that in just a few frames. I liked the read and the way the characters evolved. Yea, Opus! Good stuff.



2. I'd already owned all of the Bloom County and Outland books, this being my last purchase. I had seen it in the bookstore when it was published, but figured I already had the strips contained therein - why spend the extra money? I happened one day to be flipping through the book when I read the introduction, specifically the first page of said intro. There, in color bolder than life, was a painting from, Breathed claims, his early years, entitled Geshundeit. It was precisely this abrupt style of humor that brought me into the BC fold. The golden years of Bloom County, with Breathed's pithy observations of the late 80's, kept me there. If you want to understand the following Breathed has, this volume is the perfect place to start.

2 comments about Reenchantment of Art.

1. The previous review tells you very succinctly what to expect from the contents of the book - this is to say what excellent, speedy accurate service Bradbooks, where my second copy came from, delivered. It said 'minor notes', and they were only on 2 pages; and "minor cover wear" - which turned out to be the sort of erosion on the lower front corner that just comes from putting books on shelves ! And it took 4 days,from ordering to delivery, so it was also very resonably priced for the quality, and accurate adherrence to amazon.com's guidelines.



2. The Reenchantment of Art is a passionate plea for artists to reacess the thought and practice of a century of modernism. Gablick`s earlier book, 'Conversations before the end of time' was a collection on interviews and discussions with critical thinkers on environmental issues. The Reenchantment of Art refines the issues raised in the interviews of the earlier book toward a contemporary art focus. It speaks against individualist thought in art making, pointing artists toward new possibilties in art practice.

   Using examples of environmental artists, Gablick provides insights into new working methods of important contemporary artists. These artists are using their creative abilty to ammend the destruction of modern society by engaging in art practices that give 'something worthwhile' back to the earth and its people.

   Environmental art is of critical importance in this next century. Gablick`s book shapes the foundation of perhaps the most important movement in contemporary art theory.

2 comments about Ascending Chaos: The Art of Masami Teraoka 1966-2006.

1. Absolutely brilliant. Three erudite essays and a full showcase of reproductions of all Teraoka's work.



2. If you've followed the career of Masami Teraoka and love his work you will also love this book. There are plenty of his earlier works all the way up to the present. The text adds insight into the mind of the artist and his complicated and original process.
   The reproductions of his artwork are of good quality. It is truly a collector's item.

3 comments about Herzog & de Meuron: Natural History (Herzog & de Meuron).

1. H & DeM have always been influenced by art & you can even argue that their body of work could be an entire exhibiton. This book follows up some of their selected projects with interviews of the architects themselves as well as the collaborative artists. It does well to probe into theie unique process of design & actualization of their work. Jaques Herzog says that Art is roughly 20 years ahead of architecture. This vivid book clearly shows the great accomplishments by two men who are constantly trying to even up the odds between art & architecture through inspirations from the natural world.



2. I don't think this is an "object book" but a book in which herzog & de meuron want readers to understand their work like an archaelogical history. you cannot flip through it like an photographic architectural essay, but you really have to sit down, have a cup of coffee/tea, and really read the book, think about what they are saying, how other ideas such as art, history, materials, cultural, industrial changes, and etc. are interacting to their architectural process. certainly, they have the depth in their thoughts to publish a book that doesn't depend on photographs/architectural drawings. quite refreshing.



3. Another object book with content that matches the originality of the design. Herzog & De Meuron, the Basel-based architects, are best known for their art museums, but also for creating buildings that are works of art--even when the program is as mundane as a railroad signal box. This companion to the recent CCA exhibition is an anthology of interviews, stimulating essays by artists and clients, and pictures of objects that have inspired them, in addition to an illustrated catalogue of their 200 buildings and projects. (Michael Webb is the book reviewer for LA Architect magazine.)

5 comments about The Technical Pen.

1. i am a pen & ink artist and although my talent - for the most part - has come naturally to me all my life, i love to learn techniques from artists whose work i truly admire. gary simmons is one of the BEST pen & ink artists in the world...his artwork is detailed and precise which is my favorite way to work. i also use koh-i-noor rapidograph pens exclusively, which are the main drawing instruments in this book. if you want to be proficient at this medium, this is the book to get you started. Also, for pen & ink artists and especially for those wishing to learn this form of art, I suggest another great artist, Claudia Nice, who has many books on pen & ink drawing for everyone and on almost every subject. BUY THIS BOOK & check out some books by Claudia Nice :))



2. This book does not yet have a rival. That is, if you are working with lines that are unvariable.



3. Of the 15 or so art instruction books I've bought over the last few months, this is one of my favorites. This is ironic, since I originally was turned off somewhat by the subject matter and/or style of many of the works inside (nothing wrong with it, just not my particular cup-o-tea).
   
   However, on deeper consideration I realized that Simmons offers really great instruction on the use of technical pen, so who cares whether one likes the artwork itself. Take for example the "monk" drawing that is depicted on the cover. I don't care for the drawing at all, no matter how it's rendered. However, this drawing is used to demonstrate a couple dozen rendering options, and these renderings are a great teaching tool.
   
   Simmons spends plenty of time on the technical details of using a technical pen for both tight and loose rendering, and that's what makes this book great.



4. Excellent to see a good variety of different techniques. Great step-by-step tutorial. I found new ways to render lots of different textures. A must-have!



5. The book is just plain awesome. Besides taking the time to explain how to care for the technical pen, how to do the different strokes, and what type of beginner mistakes to be aware of, the artwork is the best pen work I've ever seen. If you work with pen and ink, or even if you don't, you will love this book!

5 comments about Stars in My Eyes.

1. This book showcases Bachardy drawings and his journal account of the sittings with. primarily, aging movie stars he admired as an adolescent in the late-1940s along with some later stars (Jack Nicholson, Charlotte Rampling, Mia Farrow, Maggie Smith), the official portrait of Jerry Brown for the California state capitol, and some other artists (Robert Mapplethorpe, Aaron Copland, Iris Murdoch, Julian Schnabel, James Merrill) and directors Vincente Minnelli and William Wyler. The responses of the subjects to the drawings are usually very interesting, with greater paranoia on the part of other visual artists than of the aging movie stars.

   The best stories are in the sittings with Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Jack Nicholson, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Louise Brooks. The accounts of those "stars" in whom I have no particular interest (Alice Faye, Ruby Keeler, Helmut Newton) contained insights (both from sitter and portraitist) and Bachardy's prose shows the admirable qualities of those whom I hoped would display them (Ingrid Bergman, Myrna Loy, Maggie Smith, Iris Murdoch, Louise Brooks, Henry Fonda, James Merrill, Barbara Stanwyck, Olivia de Havilland, Alec Guiness, Laurence Olivier). The only one whom he comes to despise in the course of the interactions of drawing a portrait is Joan Fontaine. He remains a fan of most and gives even the devil (Miss Fontaine) her due.

   The drawings are never flattering and the artist does not flatter himself either, but I find it interesting to read about a professional doing his or her job professionally. The reader gets a very good idea of what it is like to try to portray honestly movie stars and other cultural icons, as well as getting the portraits. Most of his subjects are interesting (not least in their insecurities) people and I look forward to the eventual publication of his diaries from half a century at the edges of Hollywood ) encountering a stream of writers, artists, and film stars.




2. This book showcases Bachardy drawings and his journal account of the sittings with. primarily, aging movie stars he admired as an adolescent in the late-1940s along with some later stars (Jack Nicholson, Charlotte Rampling, Mia Farrow, Maggie Smith), the official portrait of Jerry Brown for the California state capitol, and some other artists (Robert Mapplethorpe, Aaron Copland, Iris Murdoch, Julian Schnabel, James Merrill) and directors Vincente Minnelli and William Wyler. The responses of the subjects to the drawings are usually very interesting, with greater paranoia on the part of other visual artists than of the aging movie stars.

   The best stories are in the sittings with Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Jack Nicholson, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Louise Brooks. The accounts of those "stars" in whom I have no particular interest (Alice Faye, Ruby Keeler, Helmut Newton) contained insights (both from sitter and portraitist) and Bachardy's prose shows the admirable qualities of those whom I hoped would display them (Ingrid Bergman, Myrna Loy, Maggie Smith, Iris Murdoch, Louise Brooks, Henry Fonda, James Merrill, Barbara Stanwyck, Olivia de Havilland, Alec Guiness, Laurence Olivier). The only one whom he comes to despise in the course of the interactions of drawing a portrait is Joan Fontaine. He remains a fan of most and gives even the devil (Miss Fontaine) her due.

   The drawings are never flattering and the artist does not flatter himself either, but I find it interesting to read about a professional doing his or her job professionally. The reader gets a very good idea of what it is like to try to portray honestly movie stars and other cultural icons, as well as getting the portraits. Most of his subjects are interesting (not least in their insecurities) people and I look forward to the eventual publication of his diaries from half a century at the edges of Hollywood ) encountering a stream of writers, artists, and film stars.




3. Bachardy's skill as an artist is evident. The book demonstrates that with his recognizably stylish renderings of celebrities who have subjected themselves to a sitting. Most of his subjects must be very sorry they did! The portraits are never flattering although always interesting. The basis for the book is not the art, but Mr. Bachardy's tattle-tale telling of the circumstances of the sitting. He may visually nail his subjects with the portraits, but he crucifies them with the stories he tells. He may have stars in his eyes (accessible to him through his lifelong connection with Isherwood, of course), but he has poison in his pen and no love for his subjects in his heart.



4. Don Bachardy's stature as a gifted draughtsman continues to grow. And now with the current growing respect and exposure of his beloved Christopher Isherwood vis a vis the posthumous Diaries and the notes and essays recently published, Bachardy's gifts as a writer are keeping pace with his important drawings, documenting the art culture of the past century. This beautifully designed book shares the wholeness of his craft: not only do we see important drawings of important people, we also hear the secrets of the encounter that resulted in the drawings. Sitting for Don Bachardy is tough - a joy, but hard work. To read how his silent sessions are processed in his mind and subsequently in his notes written concurently with his drawings opens an important door, not only for understanding Bachardy's keen observations but for the entire genre of portrait making. This is a delightful read and visual excursion....and contains secrets about famous prople we all thought we knew well!



5. I have been familiar with the superb drawings of Don Bachardy for many years, but had no idea how well he wrote. Insightful, clear, and sometimes waspish, the various pieces accompanying the drawings deflate the pompous and offer an original and unique view of the famous made vulnerable. Reading this book is like dipping into a delicious box of chocolates.

1 comments about Design for Special Events: 500 of the Best Logos, Invitations, and Graphics.

1. Comprei este livro, na intenção de visualizar "idéias" novas, produtos diferenciados, mas encontrei convites, selos, e cartazes nada fora do normal.