1 comments about Treasures Of Gilcrease.

1. The Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma houses one of the best, if not the pre-iminent, collections of Western American art in the world. Of the half million or so items in the museum, some 200 have selected by the museum's curators for photographing and presentation in this large format book.
   
   Included are paintings by Catlin, Russell, Moran, and Remington. The front cover of the book is Moran's "Tower Falls" perhaps the single thing that caused the Congress to set aside Yellowstone National Park.
   
   While the subject of the American West may be thought of by some as not suitable for serious work, some of the painting, such as the night time scene of the Pony Express (Frank Tenney Johnson) are of as high a technical quality as can be found anywhere.
   
   A mere book is not the same as visiting the museum, but is about as close as most of us can come.
   
   Beautiful Book!

1 comments about Faberge Treasures Jigsaw Puzzle Book (The Forbes Collection).

1. The creative genius of Faberge is brought to life in this exciting hands on book. Eight jigsaw puzzles intrigue the senses into the complexities of these designs. Assembling the puzzles, increases the awareness of magnintude of Faberge's artistic accomplishments. They bring to life the opulence and grandeur of the Russian Tzars!

4 comments about Found Object Art (Schiffer Art Book).

1. Few books on Assemblage Art begin to encompass the scope and quality of the work in Dorothy Spencer's 'Found Object Art'. It features the wonderful and inspiring creations of 85 artists, and their work is beautifully photographed. From jewellery to furniture, sculpture to art cars, and every medium known to mankind, this collection does justice to the talented array of eccentrics and story tellers that use the worlds cast offs as their raw materials. While each artists profile includes a small statement of inspiration or intent, the focus of this book is its richly detailed and clearly presented photographs.
   
   The only aspect that keeps this book from being 5 Star in my opinion is a poorly defined layout. Many artists get two or three pages of images devoted to their work, yet the very nature of assemblage often means that if one artists work ends on a left hand page, it is occasionally very difficult to establish that the right hand page is now a new artist. Photos are captioned by Title, Size, Materials, Date etc, but not the Artist; this leads to confusion (in my mind) more often than should be the case, for such a rich and important overview of this art form. Despite that, whether you're an artist or collector, you want this book.



2. Page after page of wonderful artists (one behind bars!) that found something considered old and worthless and turned it into a piece that inspires, amuses, teaches, and leaves me in awe. It's creativity at its best. Wish there were a dozen more books like this in print! Must have book for collage, outsider art, and mixed media artists.....throw away those Somerset Magazines and think different like these people did...



3. It may be a matter of personal taste, but I felt the book was a jumble of mostly overdone product without a sense of relationship between materials that were chosen for the finished piece. It is possible that the photography played a part in this - was color accurate? I have used a lot of found materials - many discarded and worn with much more subtle results. Where is the mystery?



4. The breadth of artists, materials and objects featured in this book is impressive. Ms. Spencer knows her stuff and this book can be considered a primer on "Found Object" art.

1 comments about Pictorial Price Guide to American Antiques 06-07: And Objects Made for the American Market 2006-2007 (Pictorial Price Guide to American Antiques and Objects Made for the American Market).

1. I bought the Pictorial Price Guide to American Antiques as a gift for my mother, who is a collector. I don't know much about antiques, but this book appears to be comprehensive. An reference book for antiques needs pictures to help the user identify the items, and this book has plenty of pictures. Mom seemed to like the book.

1 comments about Decorative Painting With Gretchen Cagle (Decorative Painting).

1. I found this book wonderful! It's at the top of my list of all time favorites! The projects much fun to do. I have learned more from this book than any others, Thank you Gretchen! I have since become a teacher myself, with much thanks, Lana.

5 comments about A Guide to Zuni Fetishes & Carvings, Volume I: The Animals & The Carvers.

1. This is a must have book for beginner or established Fetish collectors. It is a great, quick resource. I did not get as much out of the second volume, but this one is a must have.



2. This book, together with its successor volume, is the ultimate reference guide for the beginning or experienced collector. The author, who is probably the pre-eminent authority on the subject, provides clear, valuable information encompassing various segments of this remarkable art and contemporary artists. If you own or are considering purchasing these intriguing carvings, this little book (and the accompanying Volume II) should be your bible.



3. This little book (together with Volume II) is the most valuable reference guide on the market today for either the beginning or experienced collector. The author, probably the leading authority on the subject, provides clear, useful information, encompassing various segments of the art and artists, necessary for the understanding and purchase of these remarkable objects. The two books are a joy to read and own.



4. An excellent guidebook of the wide variety of Zuni fetishes carvings available today. McManis goes into some painstaking detail of Zuni cosmology in the introduction, then gives details on each of the animals that are frequently carved now in Zuni, and finishes the silm volume with a discussion of four Zuni carving families accompanied by genealogical tables and a list of active carvers as of 1998. Photographs are extremely well done, however, there are no close up details of fetishes, given that there are families like the Cheamas and the Kaamasees now producing extraordinarily detailed and lifelike "non-traditional" fetishes. A must have reference for anyone beginning or enhancing a collection of these fascinating carvings. Volume #2 covers the extensive range of materials used and details additional family groupings.



5. I'm a very, very new collector, so I don't know how applicable my comments would be for experienced collectors. But from the perspective of someone fairly new to, but interested in, Zuni fetishes, this is a marvelous little book. It's full of crystal clear, gorgeous, detailed photos on wonderful paper and just the right amount and variety (for me) of well-written information to whet one's appetite for this fascinating topic.

No comments about John Rogers Statuary: Paul and Meta Bleier (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

No comments about Tomart's Value Guide to Disney Animation Art: An Easy-To-Use Compilation of over 40 Animation Art Auctions Organzied by Film, Character and Art Type.

No comments about Fakebusters II: Scientific Detection Of Fakery In Art And Philately (Series in Popular Science).

2 comments about Art Deco Sculpture and Metalwares.

1. Disappointing book. The title should be Germanic influenced metalwork from 1910 through 1935 to be more realistic. Does not cover the wide spectrum of Art Deco sculpture in Western Europe, deals mainly with European sculpture and metalwork east of the Rhine river.



2. The chryselephantine sculpture is disappointingly covered both in content (just worth a couple of lines) and pictures (awful, tasteless and neglected duotone photos). Clearly, the author focuses just on arty sculpture rather than serial manufacture, missing the point of art deco sculpture, a blend of art and craftmanship.