2 comments about Sigmund Simon Stinkbug: The Great Big Bear Incident.

1. Sigmund Simon Stinkbug has a classical storyline for teaching elmentary aged children about self-concept and bullying. This would be a great addition to any school counselors library.



2. Sigmund Simon Stinkbug, a really cute book with a moral message for children. Easy to understand. I really loved the pictures, very soft with a lot expression. Waiting for the next book. Hope to see many more

1 comments about The Persistence Of Memory: A Biography Of Dali.

1. Surrealists said that someone who came up with something out of the ordinary must have been in love with Gala Eluard: her husband Salvador Dali's unforgettable imagery, from early autobiographical works through Surrealist dream symbols to metaphysical and religious themes, drew into the art world people who had been uninterested in painting. Perhaps he revealed the secret of his appeal when he said that he drew just one picture, mixing what happened to him and in the world with eternal themes from his childhood, such as the threatening father in "The old age of William Tell." Some childhood memories found expression in Hieronymus Bosch-styled decaying soft objects, as in "The persistence of memory." With "Cenicitas" and "La miel es mas dulce que la sangre," he launched his psychoanalytically symbolic art by following the Surrealist ideal of uncensored and uncontrolled imagery, knowing what to apply from Sigmund Freud's "The interpretation of dreams," and using sleepwalking shadows, Joaquin Sorolla-type light, and jewel-like clear colors. One of his hallmarks became pictures with multiple images: "The endless enigma" double, triple and quadruple imaging into such disturbing visions as a fish skeleton balanced on top of a stick and Gala's eyes staring cruelly out at viewers; "The image disappears" double imaging a Jan Vermeer-styled girl into a bearded man; "The metamorphosis of Narcissus" double imaging Narcissus into a petrified hand holding an egg cracking into a narcissus, with Sandro Botticelli-type dancing figures and Umbrian school-like golden glowing background; his metaphysical "Dali a six ans soulevant avec precaution la peau de l'eau pour observer un chien dormir a l'ombre de la mer" covering a dog with atomic reactor-type, mirrorlike heavy water and reflecting granite cliffs, in a Piero di Cosimo-styled seascape; one of his nuclear fission series, "The three sphinxes of Bikini," double imaging the atomic explosion into three heads, with one turning into two trees. Later, one of the high points in his religious paintings was floating a foreshortened "Christ of St John of the cross" over an early evening sky and above the rocks of the painter's homeland. From his fascination with three-dimensional art and as an exercise in the stereoscopy that he saw in Gerard Dou's art, he painted "Dali from the back painting Gala from the back externalized by six virtual corneas, provisionally reflected by six mirrors." And his final masterpiece Teatro museo Gala-Dali was a three-dimensional autobiography of all his ideas and images. Author Meredith Etherington-Smith reads magnificently with DALI'S OPTICAL ILLUSIONS edited by Dawn Ades and Robert Radford's DALI. Readers might want to look into Ruth Brandon's SURREAL LIVES, Sharon Fermor's PIERO DI COSIMO, Carl Linfert's BOSCH, Bruno Santi's BOTTICELLI, and Arthur K. Wheelock's JAN VERMEER.

No comments about Art: A History of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, Volume 1, REPRINT (4th Edition).

No comments about American Museum of Natural History: The Official Guide.

No comments about Clay Cures.

3 comments about Baghdad Journal: An Artist in Occupied Iraq.

1. Steve Mumford, Baghdad Journal: An Artist in Occupied Iraq (Drawn and Quarterly, 2005)
   
   "Unusual." On page 157, Steve Mumford uses this word to describe getting ready for a firefight. And his use of this word, the naturalness of it, and the fact that by page 157 the reader fully believes it, is what makes Steve Mumford's Baghdad Journal such an interesting book. For what Mumford gives us is an entirely different outlook on occupied Iraq than we in America get from the majority of the American media-- one of day-to-day life that is full of conflict, but is mostly civilians and the American armed forces going about their everyday lives, dealing with the quotidian worries that one might expect in a country trying to rebuild after a devastating conflict. And the key term in that sentence is "after."
   
   Baghdad Journal is exactly what it purports to be-- it's a guy with a press pass, a pad, and some colors wandering around and describing what he sees. Mumford is an engaging writer, though his prose often tends toward the journalistic (a charge I have often wished I could level at most of the reporters over there); this is more than made up for by the drawings, which present a world unlike that we've been given to believe exists in Iraq at present.
   
   A good book, and an important one. Worth your time. *** ½



2. Beautiful artwork, which not only let me see where no photographers seem to be able to go, but also, as only art can do, these pictures communicated the feel of the scenes.
   I am haunted by this book and greatful to the Artist.



3. How wonderful to see a book that has a personal artistic view.
   This is a compelling, unique and personal view of war torn Iraq. After the TV cameras are shut off and the photogs have gone we see a very different view......thanks to Mumford.
   His artwork has a great range as does his subject matter.

No comments about Georgian London (Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in Britis).

No comments about Maria Making Pottery: The Story Of Famous American Indian Potter Maria Martinez.

5 comments about The Intimate Eye: The Drawings of Burton Silverman.

1. This book is a fine collection of drawings by an artist in the classic tradition, and yet, they have an added vision in the way Silverman chooses his poses and drops edges. A lovely work.



2. this is exactly the kind of book i like..beautiful drawings and, just as important for a working artist, a real discussion of why he makes certain choices and how he mentally handles tricky technical issues (such as: for the drawings, he used an actual book but as it had different kinds of paper on each page, sometimes the surface didn't necessarily fit the image or media he wanted to use and he discusses how he handled this).
   much better than the usual 'how-to' or one of those coffee table art books which either focus solely on technique or just present the images - here is a rare book which shows beautiful images and also reveals the decisions involved in creating them...(there is a book of interviews with Wyeth which is similar)...like having a heart to heart with a master painter...this is a real chance to hear and reflect on issues we all face as we draw and paint.



3. This book is incredible. I've shared it with fellow artist and everyone is impressed with its pictures and its commentary.



4. What is interesting about this book is the view you get of the artist and his thinking. The forward and introduction were well written. The plates are wonderful. Kudo's to the publisher.
   
   But alas, the drawings are basically rough sketches of life studies. Nothing is finish. If you enjoy seeing unfinished work that emphasizes style and impression more than realism and technical skill, this is your book. But I honestly expected something more. The book is very pricey but the content is not all that well executed, IMHO. But it's worth a look if you are a serious draftsman in training.



5. Draftsmanship is at the core of artistic expression, and these drawings are an exquisite evocation of the artist's mastery. Mr. Silverman shows such acuity of vision, sureness of hand, and a sensitivity to his subject, all while probing their forms with such grace. These facsimiles, coupled with his words, are a revelation and a delight to any artist and lover of the art of drawing.

1 comments about American Art: A Cultural History.

1. The first and last chapters of this book make me wonder why the author actually decided to cover the subject. They show an increadible bias against the early colonists, Christianity, and western society in general. It makes me wonder why he wished to cover the topic of American Art History in the first place if he hates it so much. I also found his interpretations inaccurate on several occasions as he used scientific knowledge that would not have been known at the time the artwork was made.
   He does, however have a very good selection of rare artwork and shows the mixing of diferent styles very well.