2 comments about Art Nouveau Cut & Use Stencils.

1. This is a really great book if you are looking for art nouveau stencils. The paper that the images are printed on can actually be used as the stencil itself as long as you follow the treatment instructions in the beginning of the book. This is a great book with really great designs!



2. This book has some nice, simple patterns, including those with floral, animal, and geometric designs. They are printed on one side in black on a medium weight, cream colored cardstock. For actually use of these "stencil patterns," I would recommend copying or tracing onto a more durable plastic made for stenciling. Also, some of the stencils patterns are repeated in different sizes throughout the book (they range from 1 1/2 inches up to a full page). All in all, there are some nice designs, and there is a two-page introduction that details what you need to stencil. I think this is good book for a beginner, but too simple for an artist.

2 comments about Robotech Art 3.

1. Seldom does a book tell a story about failure rather than success, and it's even more rare when the book's writer was major player who was involved in the failure. It's something I've almost never seen in my study of documentary literature.

   Set between the original series' first and second acts, and featuring the first act's main characters, ROBOTECH II: THE SENTINELS was an ambitious attempt to further expand the mythos of the Robotech anime series. Art 3, penned by series producer/writer Carl Macek, is a chronicle of what went into the production of this series, as well as the economics, creative differences, and politics that led to its downfall. There's also the story of the salvaging The Sentinels... where the four episodes that were completed were re-worked into a feature-length video release.

   Included are the synopses of the completed episodes, as well as the general story of The Sentinels as it would have unfolded. Although not quite as extensively illustrated as its two predecessors, Art 3 does contain `Bios' and renderings of the characters, as well as general descriptions of the vehicles and equipment seen in the series.

   The Sentinels, however, was not the only aborted attempt to add to the Robotech saga. ART 3 also recounts the making of Robotech: The Untold Story, a feature film that never saw wide theatrical or video release. A synopsis of the film is included.

   Although I highly recommend this book to the many Robotech completists out there, I'd better give you fair warning: Art 3 has long since gone out of print, and is next to impossible to find. If you ever do come across one at a reasonable price and in decent condition, consider yourself very fortunate...




2. The primary focus of this third installment of the Robotech Art books is the art and planned storyline of the failed series, Robotech II: the Sentinels. For an "art" book, this one is rich in text. However, if you are a die hard Robotech fan, this is the only reliable source of information concerning the series and its development (or lack thereof). I for one recommend it if you want to round out your Robotech collection.

No comments about Engineering Drawing: Problem Series 2.

No comments about Linen Crafts: 40 Projects for Home & Body.

5 comments about Anime Mania: How to Draw Characters for Japanese Animation (Manga Mania).

1. I bought this for my daughter and she was so very happy to get it. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. Excellent for anyone who wants to learn how to draw anime.



2. This is a picture book that discusses, in very general terms, anime drawing. It does not teach anything. There are no outlines of how certain anime staples are created, etc, etc. A waste of money.



3. I think the manga mania books are better though because they provide better examples though a little lacking in instruction.
   My chief complaint about this book is the lack of animation instruction I figure since this book is about Anime it would provide some lessons in animation as it's done in Japan.
   
   I do find the the instruction in character design and drawing to be average at best. This book gives you some examples and some useful advice for entering the animation industry but so very lacking when it comes to the imparting of useful information of the animation process that the title Anime mania is a misnomer. Most people buy how to Animation books to learn animation techniques and I for one as an aspiring animator don't want to see more animation outsourced to foreign countries seeing as animation is declining in quality in this country I see outsourcing to foreign nations as a primary culprit in that respect second only to cheap producers and uncreative executives!
   
   Anime mania is however a nice book to have as a collector's keepsake and the illustrations are quite inspiring one of the few reasons that makes this book worth buying.



4. dont buy this book. buy a book from someone who actually draws manga or animates for a living. worst anime style ever!!!!



5. Yes millions of anime fans hate his Manga Mania because he can't do the art right and they hate his books because he hires people to do the art for him but........THIS IS THE WORST YET! Last year one of my friends showed me this book. I felt like laughing Chistopher Hart really doesn't know what anime is! He hired the worst people yet! There is like only two or three good artist (one was the one the one that did the front)and the rest of them were terrible.Most of the book is terrible mabye like ten pages are good but the rest how sad! Even if this books cover looks good don't judge a book by its cover.

1 comments about Havana Style (Icon (Taschen)).

1. I have always been a fan of Cuban culture and this book gives you the Cuban color palate to enjoy!

5 comments about The Wondrous Strange: The Wyeth Tradition.

1. N.C. Wyeth is the top of the heap when it comes to illustrators. A visit to his Brandywine museum reveals his work to be even more stunning in real life. There is not a good retrospective collection of his work--even in the Brandywine bookstore--and I was hoping this book would be one.
   
   I was sorely disappointed.
   
   Having Pyle in the book, and seeing the work of the student compared to his master is really great. It offers important insight into the development of N.C. as an artist.
   
   The inclusion of Andrew can't be too criticized, his work is fantastic. I have been a fan of his for a long time. However, as an illustrator, I was looking more for the other commercial illustrators who worked in the "Wyeth Tradition."
   
   I revile James's work. The fact that any pages of this book were wasted with his paintings made this book repugnant to me.
   
   So, for me, the book doesn't make sense.
   
   Pyle, to N.C., professional illustrators.
   
   N.C. to his son and grandson, we veer of that path. As an illustrator and one who worships at the feet of N.C. Wyeth, I wanted to stay on it. (The argument could be made, and probably has, that all are a descendant artistically of Pyle, and while there is some merit, sure, I say--for the most part--balderdash!!!)
   
   This is not a comprehensive N.C. Wyeth, nor illustrators of his time, book.
   
   BAH!



2. For many years it has been the practice of critics and art aficionados to relegate "popular artists" the likes of Norman Rockwell and the Wyeth clan to the bin of kitsch. Time heals and alters and distance is kind as the current resurgence of appreciation of these and other artists of the land testifies. Norman Rockwell now is considered an important American artist, sensitive to basic issues of what makes America the land of the common man's dream. With this beautifully designed and written tome the same adulation should follow for the Wyeth clan. The authors (Betsy Wyeth among them) had the good idea to show the seeds of the very familiar Wyeth imagery in the work of Howard Pyle, an artist known primarily as an illustrator along the lines of over the edge fantasy adventure books. His pupil N.C. Wyeth took up the torch, primarily emulating Pyle's style but taking it to a new level. His works of isolation, thwarted desire, and simple American traditions are absorbed by his son Andrew Wyeth who won favor among collectors of realist art during the time the country was running after Modernism, Expresionism, Abstraction. And finally Jaime Wyeth, son of Andrew, has been a constant presence with his quasi-surreal take on many of the same subjects as his progenitors. The circle comes round with Pyle and Jaime Wyeth embracing the more perverse subjects - an interesting century wheel turning round and round.

   The color reproductions are generous and well selected. Many of the well know Wyeth images are excluded, but in their place we are treated to images we have never seen. This is a beautiful volume and a tender one, a memento of what our childhood in the 20th Century was like before the madness currently painted hit.




3. The images floor me. If a picture is worth a thousand words.... then this collection speaks incalculable volumes.



4. For the non-art initiated, the book is a feast for the imagination as well as the eyes. I bought the book because I come from the mid-coast of Maine, like the Wyeths. But when I took the time to look at the book on a night we lost power due to a snow storm, I found the views conjured stories up in my mind to match the Wondrously Strange images. I've driven by the Wyeth Center a thousand times, but made a point to visit to see for my self. I'm also fortunate to have a copy signed by Jamie Wyeth, and hope to keep as a treasure for a long time.



5. We saw the exhibit in September and I bought the book as a reminder of the awe and joy I felt looking at the originals. The book lives up to the exhibit. A feast for the eyes, the book captures well the power and talent of Pyle and the Wyeths.

No comments about Confessions, Romances, Secrets, & Temp.

2 comments about Gibson Girl Illustrations CD-ROM and Book (Dover Electronic Clip Art).

1. Just got my copy yesterday. What a disappointment! I bought this, thinking that it was, well, all Gibson GIRL artwork, but it's not - there's children, and men also, which would have been fine, but it seems the majority of the women included can also be found in Women: A Pictorial Archive from Nineteenth-Century Sources (Dover Pictorial Archives), which I already own. However, that book (which is lovely) doesn't have a CD with it.



2. "Gibson Girl Illustrations: 200 Royalty-Free Designs" showcases the turn-of-the-century illustrations of Charles Dana Gibson who became renowned for his ability to capture the style and spirit of the American woman in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth society. Drawn from period advertising, catalogs, posters, newsletters and other Gibson projects, this is a 'must' for students of American art history as well as costume designers and students of American women's fashions.

No comments about Modern Masters Volume 16: Mike Allred (Modern Masters) (Modern Masters).