1 comments about Fables of Aesop According to Sir Roger L'Estrange, with Fifty Drawings by Alexander Calder.

1. 
   This was a fun little book. I bought it for the Calder drawings and was not disappointed.

1 comments about Street Renegades: New Underground Art.

1. A brilliant book, full of good ideas for those of us that live in cold, impersonal urban environment and want to reclaim the streets to create something beautiful, shocking or simply something witty. Highly recommended.

No comments about Archetype: The Art of Timothy Bradstreet.

5 comments about Total Tattoo Book.

1. This book will be ok if you know nothing about the tattoo world and are interested in it. Just scratches the surface of everything about tattooing. Fast easy read but don't buy it for pictures. I agree with "not to sure" post.



2. This book is extremely informative, eye-opening & interesting for someone thinking about getting a tattoo. I was very happy with my purchase of this title and have such a more indepth & greater understanding of what is involved with tattooing.
   
   Great buy!



3. this book is very very fundamental. the black and white photos are small and pretty useless and the color shots could be better.
   better books are available



4. im a big fan of body art. i read and research alot about it. i also have four tattoos of my own and plan on getting more. i even dated a tattoo artist for a short period of time. i hung out at the tattoo shop every day and was around 5-10 artists at a time every day. i know my stuff. but by no means am i out writing a book on tattoos.

   with that said.

   this book was not the "total tattoo book" i expected. it mostly told me stuff i already knew, had bad pictures, and talked way to much about her personal experiences. i was bored and even skipped sentences at times just to finish it. but i did finish it out of respect for the author and give her two stars.

   1 star for her efforts
   1 star because its about tattoos




5. This book was hard to put down, even though I had homework to do. It has a wide variety of categories explained in plain english for newbies w/ pics. The center has a nice layout of color and b/w photos. It also has a partial directory of tattoo artists in each state (where legal or not).

No comments about Ma'claim: Finest Photorealistic Graffiti.

No comments about The Architecture of Image: Existential Space in Cinema.

5 comments about In the Traces: Railroad Paintings of Ted Rose (Railroads Past and Present).

1. I'm not typically a fan of watercolor paintings, but I have to admit that Ted Rose is a master at his craft. His depictions of railroad scenes capture the very mood of this vanishing scene in American life. "In The Traces" presents 61 of Ted Rose's watercolors with commentary by the artist. Some of the paintings, like "Springtime in New Jersey," are absolutely stunning in their presentation of mood and setting. Print quality, paper and binding are first rate. If you've never experienced Mr. Rose's work, and are a fan of railroad art, this book will be a joy to own. Highly recommended!



2. Buy this book - you will not be disappointed. It is a work to look at again and again whether you are a railfan, traveler, or an artist. Some of Rose's paintings are romantic evocations of times and places that were found throughout the country not so long ago. Other pictures in the book have an edgier quality to them. In either case he captures the mood, light, and geographical setting of the never-ending drama of the American railroad. Rose was a painter who had a technical grasp of the nuts and bolts aspects of his subjects. He also had good artistic technique - I have found myself coming back to this book repeatedly and asking "how did he do that?" The quality of printing and binding is excellent and the introductory essay helps to place the paintings in the context of Ted Rose's life. I have bought several copies of this work as gifts for people and they have all been pleased with it.



3. This is a wonderful book you can read straight through. The life of the author and his relationship to the railroads of the USA is fascinating and the text about the evolution of his art is appealing. The photography is exceptional. This book is a must buy for fanciers of railroads and art. Highly recommended.



4. A terrific selection of paintings by marvelous railroad artist. Many of Rose's paintings are not on public view, having been done for private commission. So far he markets no prints or lithographs, so either you buy an original or you buy this book. Typical fine job of printing and binding. High value book, likely to be worth lots more when out of print.



5. My son is an avid train fan. Ted Rose is an exceptional watercolor artist and in this volume has compiled an excellent collection of watercolors depicting trains from the history of railroading. He has coupled these wonderful watercolors with an anthology of trains over a period of 50 years based on his own personal experiences. The blending of the stories with his paintings makes you feel like you can step into the picture and relive the moment. You may be familiar with his art through a recent issue of postage stamps depicting five locomotives from different era. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone that likes railroads and also has an appreciation for fine art. This will be a timeless volume that you and future generations will enjoy.

1 comments about Graphic Designer's Print and Color Handbook: All You Need to Know about Color and Print from Concept to Final Output.

1. THIS TEXT WAS REQUIRED FOR OUR SON IN COLLEGE. HE HAS FOUND IT TO BE EXACTLY WHAT HE NEEDED FOR GRAPICS DESIGN COURSE IN UPSTATE NY COLLEGE. DELIVERY WAS TIMELY AS USUAL.

3 comments about What Is Graphic Design? (Essential Design Handbooks).

1. As a graphic designer, this is a recent discovery (and a very welcome addition) to my collection. Quentin Newark is a member of Atelier Works, one of the leading design studios in the UK. I haven't heard of it/him before, but i gladly found that he took a big gamble writing a book with the "definitive" title "What is graphic design" and won.
   
   Newark's writings are sincere, humorous and concrete. This is a very intelligent and complex reading. Much more complex than it seems. The book shows that Newark did a lot of research since he mentions a lot of books and author's, putting design in an anthropological, ethical and cultural context(mentioning for example works by Rand, Sagmeister, Sontag, Lupton, Miller, McLuhan, Poynor -I guess that if you don't know who they are, you may not enjoy this book properly, so go back to your Macromedia Freehand!!-).
   
   It doesn't matter if you are beginning your career as a student, or if you are a seasoned designer... "What is graphic design" will definitely contribute in a form or another to increase your overall perception about graphic design as a profession, a social medium or even a way of life. Highly recommended. I read it again, and again, and again... and again. If you like intelligent reading about graphic design (not the "How-to-make-a-80-layer-photoshop-composition" book)I'm sure you WILL enjoy it. Trust me.



2. The first thing I'll say is that if you want to learn techniques, look for books that expressly teach you techniques, usually specializing on how to do graphic design in Quark or Photoshop. If you want to know how to interpose photos X, Y, and Z with a semi-translucent orange overlay in the shape of a kitten... this is not your book.

   This book answers the question "What is Graphic Design?" I'd always had this grandiose notion that it was billboards, posters, web sites... complex things. But it's as simple as the business cards and stationery for a two-person start-up who need a professional look. It's the side of a cereal box. It's the traffic signs at the airport. It's the tray-liner at McDonalds.

   I didn't learn all that much about how to do graphic design, but I learned more about what it is and how much more often I did it, and encountered it, than I thought.

   As I went on to other books, I could better identify what I did and did not like about certain designs and why I didn't like it. Nothing so powerful as Harry S. Truman's (attributed) "if that's art, I'm a Hottentot," but enough to make me able to look at what I do with a more educated eye.

   In essence, if I had to sum up what I learned from the book. The answer to "What Is Graphic Design" is: "understanding how type, colors, lines, shapes, images, and empty space interact, then imposing some sort of order upon all that to create an effect and/or a message."

   Will it help me with my ultimate goal making my web designs slicker and cooler? A little. I'll have a better critical eye. I'm following up with books on technique that might help a little more.

   All in all, I walked away with four product/design ideas and I like the way it built a foundation for me. In my opinion, the book was very worthwhile.




3. if you enjoy reading, then re-reading paragraphs and then entire books, by all mean buy this. At times the author is quite insightful, though mostly seems to be voicing (in language no longer used) an external opinion on what the graphic design world is about. I wish I had done more research about this book and it's author before shelling out for it.

2 comments about Figure Drawing: The Structure, Anatomy, and Expressive Design of Human Form (5th Edition).

1. Online I did some research to see what books art schools and classes are using this one as well as a few others kept coming up! I am self taught due to time constraints, but I feel that though I didn't have a professor standing over me giving me advice, I could still gain a decent amount of information just by reading and applying the things learned in my drawing. The suggested exercises are invaluable and will take a while if properly done. I suggest using this book only after getting a basic understanding of anatomy, even though this book covers anatomy. Get a strictly anatomy book like Peck's, Richer's, or Goldfinger.



2. Recommended text for any figure drawing class, ages 14 to adult. Gives the artist many excellent samples of all mediums. The chapters devoted to basic anatomy are easy to understand and a pleasure to tackle for any ability level. Drawing is broken down into Four well illustrated categories : Structure, Anatomy(skeletal and muscular), Design, and Expression. A "best buy"!