2 comments about Harter's Picture Archive for Collage and Illustration (Dover Pictorial Archive Series).

1. I've had this book for years and it's provided endless crafting ideas and clip art all this time. Sturdy and well bound just like any Dover edition, plus the images are a refreshing break from the cutsie and poorly drawn stuff you'd get from a program like Publisher. So easy to scan in since the book will lay flat w/o the binding cracking.
   
   The only thing better than this would be an edition that comes with a CD with the images pre-scanned like some of the newer Dover clip art library collections.



2. If you are looking for unusual and striking Victorian clip art, then Jim Harter's picture archive book is it. I am an artist who uses mixed media in collage form and I can't get enough of these illustrations. There is everything from gothic Victorian scenes, to animals of every type and people using unusual objects.

No comments about Perry's Department Store: A Buying Simulation for Juniors, Men's Wear, Children's Wear, and Home Fashion/Giftware.

No comments about The Art of The Saint John's Bible: A Readers Guide to Wisdom Books and Prophets (Volume 2).

4 comments about Business Graphics: 500 Designs that Link Graphic Aesthetic and Business Savvy.

1. Steve Liska has created a gorgeous book - as elegantly designed and rendered as the projects he has chosen to highlight. These carefully selected case studies offer rich examples of the power of design and the importance of aesthetics in developing strong business brands and identntities. This beautifully illustrated book should not only appeal to artists and graphic designers, but to anyone who appreciates the beauty of high quality design. The pages are filled with outstanding examples of design, along with insightful commentary.



2. This book does an extraordinary job of both highlighting and discussing the important subtleties that separate exquisite and effective business graphics from mediocre and unappealing modes of design. The book showcases brilliant work from the portfolios of the best communication design firms out there. Business Graphics is also nicely laid out and employs a clear and insightful writing style.



3. This thing is a freakin' encyclopedia of graphic
   design. I love to run across cool stationery or well
   designed communication stuff. This book is chock full
   of it. I've been going on a bunch of websites that I
   learned about in the book--cool, hip sites I've never
   heard of before. The book itself is beautifully
   designed and it showcases so much good design. If you
   care about this stuff at all, this book is not to be
   missed.



4. I would strongly recommend this book. It's great to see amazing design and understand the thinking behind it. The book is well organized and nicely written.

5 comments about Mecha Mania: How to Draw Warrior Robots, Cool Spaceships, and Military Vehicles (Christopher Hart Titles).

1. I bought a book in the Mecha Mania series on how to draw warrior Robots and spaceships for a grandchild for Christmas.This book is wonderful for either an adult or a child who wants to draw the new anamie cartoons. The step by step drawings showing how to use basic shapes to make incredible robots and spaceships allow anyone to explore their creativity.



2. I BOUGHT SEVERAL OF THESE TYPES OF SKETCH BOOKS FOR MY SON. HE IS TAKING ART IN SCHOOL AND HE LOVES THE HELP THE BOOKS GIVE HIM IN HIS DRAWINGS. HE HAS LEARNED ALOT FROM THE BOOKS ALONE. WE ARE VERY PLEASED!!



3. There are lots of "how-to-draw" robots/mecha books. IMHO this book simply follows the formula of breaking down the title subject into component simple shapes and embellishing with more detail. This is the formula of most how-to-draw books. It's fine to include this if your "mecha how-to" book has more about drawing aspects unique to mecha.
   
   An astute earlier reviewer pointed out that Hart drew none of the examples in the book. How can he discuss a thought and design process that he didn't even contribute to in his own book?!? The art in the book is rarely inspired and in many cases rendered by artists who don't appear particularly interested in mecha.
   
   To its credit, it's fun to read some of the text. Younger readers may enjoy the book as it may be helpful to beginning artists. The best pictures are from the Fasa interview in the back.
   
   For those who want something more advanced, I'd recommend the excellent books by Sherard Jackson of Antarctic Press. He briefly covers the beginning steps of drawing mecha, but gives a meatier discussion on the unique aspects of drawing anime machines. The art definitely has a higher "coolness" quotient and he drew his own pictures!



4. I liked it pretty well. But I think it falls into the category "this is how you draw something. period." books. I think it should show you different kinds of guns for mecha, different joint types, head types, torso types, armor types, leg types, weapons in general types, shield types, jet pack/wing types and stuff. I don't think that there is enough things to inspire the mind for drawing original mecha. Instead, it tells you how to draw some limited robot examples.
   So why did I give it a 4 if I'm being so negative?! Because as soon as I had merely READ it, without drawing any of the examples, was a ton better at drawing mecha. It also has some things to think about while drawing mecha that will help your drawings quit a bit. It has a little about special effects, which was nice. It tells you how to draw female cyborgs, which I thought most of which was garbage. It did have an interview with some guy from the creators of MechWarrior, which was pretty good. The book is worth the money, I think.



5. What is the point of this book? Each of the drawings gives just three steps, and the beginning step is very complex--there is no help in figuring out what basic shapes go into it, and it seems like the only thing you can do is copy exactly what the author has done. I wanted something that would teach me to draw this type of character, and instead I just got a book showing off the author's drawings. If it is supposed to be just a showcase, it should be called that--don't try to fool people into thinking it is a way to learn anything.

No comments about Simply Pattern.

1 comments about Exploring The Basics of Drawing (Design Exploration Series).

1. I teach drawing at the college level and have seen a multitude of drawing books. All though many of them are very nice this is the first one I have ever been compelled to recommend. It may not have all the bells and whistles of costlier books but it explains the basics of observational drawing in a concise way that could be understood by beginning drawing students. The illustrations explain in a visual way what the author explains verbally and are easy to view and understand. This book would be the one to pick if you do not have an instructor and need to teach yourself. If you read the book and work from observation you will improve your drawing skills. I like the book so much I am selecting it for my students as the class text for Basic Drawing I.
   
   If you are advanced drawing student and have the rudimentaries of drawing down then this may not be the book for you.

5 comments about Carnet De Voyage (Travel Journal).

1. With "Blankets", Craig Thompson established what I think will remain as a landmark in the book/comics/cartoon world. With this one, I expected basically just a sketchbook filled with random drawings and what not.
   
   The truth is that the book was a lot more continuous than I expected, and it does read like a story. The best of this is that originally this notebook wasn't supposed to ever see print, it was Craig's private sketchbook, but as it grew, people expressed interest and suggested that he publish it. And thank God that he did!
   
   "Carnet de Voyage" is a fascinating book. It's more raw than "Good-bye, Chunky Rice" and different from "Blankets", but in its very own genre, it definitely achieves something memorable. And the intensity of the emotion is as strong as ever. I found myself laughing here, and being very concerned about Craig there. Indeed, I don't think I was ever made to care so much about someone I never met before Craig Thompson. The man is simply saintly in that sense. He is a mix of gracious humility and honesty, and his truth-like art is just mind-blowing.
   
   So what will you find in there? The telling of his travels through France, Morocco, Spain, Switzerland, and the Alps. Thompson's artistic vision shows through that book and one can sort of get an idea of how he functions. And one certainly gets to see how tortured poor Craig really is. That unpretentious notebook will make you feel closer to him, because he is so genuine in his art, doesn't hide his life from his work, and as a result, you get a window to his soul.



2. and it doesn't pretend to be, but I found it very worthwhile. I like CHUNKY RICE and I think BLANKETS is one of the great American novels, graphic or otherwise. I felt I needed a Thompson fix, and hoped this would help while I wait for the Next Book. Thinking it would be bedside reading, a few pages at a time, I read it in one sitting. His voice is as true as ever and his art is wonderful. You will meet many interesting people and suffer through his mishaps with him. It was just what I had hoped it would be, a good solid Craig Thompson fix.



3. Craig Thompson is fantastic. If you like his work, you'll love this collection of musings, sketches, and stories of life on the road in Europe and Morocco. This book provides insight into Thompson's inner life, what drives him, and what he yearns for. Side by side this there are sketches that are so accurate and evocative that I felt like I was back in Morocco myself. Thompson experiences all the highs and lows of travel on his trip and very openly shares them all. For anyone who's traveled alone, but wished for company this book will ring true. But, Thompson also shares with the reader the exhilaration of new places and new people that can be found out in the world. A fantastic quick read and visual journey.



4. Craig Thompson's epic 600 page graphic novel, BLANKETS is one of the most beautiful comics I've ever read. I was astounded at the breadth and depth of the book and wondered how someone in his mid twenties could have crafted such a massive achievement so early in his career.
   
   With the publication of CARNET DE VOYAGE, I now understand a little bit more about Thompson's work habits... he is a nonstop drawing machine. But no... machine is wrong... there's nothing mechanical about his work. Art flows out of Thompson's brush pens with the organic fluidity of a true master. He may well be the greatest natural cartoonist of his generation... hell, even a handful of others.
   
   CARNET DE VOYAGE wasn't even supposed to be a book. While traveling through France, Barcelona, the Alps and Morocco last Spring to promote BLANKETS, Thompson's omnipresent sketchbook suddenly became his next project. In his introduction, the typically self-effacing artist dismisses it as "a rather self-indulgent side project."
   
   Yes, there's lots of self-indulgence, but no more than any other writer or artist's work is self indulgent. Smarting from a recent breakup, suffering from crippling rheumatoid arthritis exacerbated by nonstop signings, sketches and portraits of locals (many of whom demand money for the privilege of being models), Thompson's travelogue is filled with the kind of subjective experience that's only interesting to others if it's told well.
   
   And in CARNET DE VOYAGE, it's told beautifully. Mixing his two styles, the cartoony whimsy of GOODBYE, CHUNKY RICE with the more naturalistic impressionism of BLANKETS, Thompson allows us to experience everything he does: The homesickness, the culture shock, the thrill of the new and the comfort of other people. His passion for beauty, be it architectural, arboreal, feline, culinary or (often) feminine is all delineated with an artistic embellishment that's more effective than any photograph could be.
   
   That's the power of comics; They can be (in the right hands) surreal and realistic at the same time. Thompson is as much a master of capturing the empirical world as he is conveying his inner demons (and he's got a lot of `em... this boy is one tortured, sensitive artiste). He may dismiss CARNET DE VOYAGE as "not (his) next book," but it's the richest, most rewarding graphic novel I've read since... well, since BLANKETS.



5. This was actually quite good, but it ends way too abruptly, with Thompson informing his audience afew pages before the end that he was only given 231 pages and then stopping right in the middle of his tour. I hope this might mean that there's a second volume, possibly? I was especially affected because I am an Oregonian as well ( though I was born here, as opposed to having moved here like Thompson) and because I lived a year of my life in Montpelier, where he stopped on his tour. It was cool seeing stuff I recognized. I also enjoyed Thompson's whiny, self-pitying and -criticizing tone which reminded me of Crumb or Pekar. It was just good.

1 comments about Fashion (Oxford History of Art).

1. Fashion Primer for the serious student/follower of womens couture, costume design, and ready to wear. Concise and informative.

5 comments about The R. Crumb Handbook.

1. R. Crumb just may well be the most honest observer of the American scene of our generation. Since the mid-60s he's been looking at us and himself and putting his findings on paper. His eye has shifted focus several times over the past 50 years: early, cute satire; greeting card stuff that frequently was too risque to make it into print; the zapped LSD-inspired hippie drawings that made him the "father of underground comix"; the sexual confessions that earned him the hatred of some feminists and got him blacklisted from libraries (see the librarian's review of this book); the social critic who deplores consumerism, agri-industry, mass media, the ratrace, and the worship of the Almighty Buck; the music afficionado who writes incredible stories about his favorite musicians and musical genre; the philosopher who speculates about life, sex, fear, fame, and death; and always the autobiographer, who plumbs and probes and fingers his own psyche.
   
   The R. Crumb Handbook is the latest chronological/autobiographical compilation of his work. It's a good companion volume to The R. Crumb Coffee Table Art Book, which came out a decade ago. Crumb apparently doesn't like putting these things together, and does so only when he needs some cash (the Coffee Table Art Book paid for putting central heating in his French house). But both books are fine introductions to Crumb's work for those who've just discovered him, and nice walks down memory lane for those who are longtime fans. The artwork is punctuated by short Crumb essays, as well as a few appropriate quotes from folks like James Kunstler, C.G. Jung, and Charles Bukowski. The Crumb essays are interesting, but not as detailed as those found in the Coffee Table Art Book. But the Handbook includes the fantastic CD of music recorded over a period of 30 years by Crumb and his music pals
   
   But there are some pleasant surprises in the hefty Handbook. There are several pages, for example, of "The Crumb Family," a strip co-authored by Crumb and Aline Crumb-Kominsky (pp. 218-229). It's absolutely hilarious, and exceedingly clever--which may be why the strip never made it to serialization. There are photos of Crumb-inspired tattoos--including one on a woman's firm tush--is it Aline's?--and of the life size statues of Devil Girl and Vulture Goddess Crumb sculpted in the 1990s. The Handbook also documents several European exhibitions of Crumb's work, including the one at the 1992 Angouleme comics Festival in France which featured a huge walk-in sized Crumb exploding head.
   
   For my money, though, the best of the latest stuff collected in the Handbook are the "philosophical reflections" on knowledge, personal identity, significance, and so on, with which Crumb filled his sketchbooks in the late 90s (pp. 370-390). They suggest a man who's beginning to feel his time running out and who wants to try to figure out a few things before the night closes in.
   
   One of the most touching--and revealing--illustrations in the Handbook is its final illustration in which Crumb lists the cartoonists and illustrators who've influenced him. At the very top of the list is his genius and tragic older brother, Charles Crumb, Jr.



2. A fascinating man talks about his life. Small format means the artwork is a little hard to read, tho.



3. Includes a great CD Sampler with some hard to find Cheap Suit Serenaders songs, along with some of R. Crumb's other bands. Worth the price for the disc alone, and you get a great book as a companion!



4. I'm not vouching for the viewpoints taken or the commentaries on our bizarre human condition and culture necessarily, but this thick book (with a great cd of original and funny music) with its outrageous take on everything sacred is an inspiring dig into an artist's convoluted (but somehow eerily solid) psyche. I first saw many of these strips and characters in underground comics, tabs, independent newspapers, etc. back when I was a teen in the 70's and always was amazed at the hard-hitting art and dialogue. IT IS A TRIP! Sometimes, when the right frame of mind is brought around, this book will have you laughing more than you can barely stand. Just flow with it and forget your rigid alter-ego at the coat check. This is theater for the insane (with strong metaphorical realism). TAKE IT FOR FOR WHAT IT IS! A WINDOW INTO THE MIND OF A TRUE ARTIST. Makes a great gift for the moral majority members of your local PTA.



5. Before I got this a few weeks ago, I didn't think much of Crumb in comparison to the other 60's underground cartoonists that I read of in a book called "rebel visions". But that tome contained skimpy explainations on the featured artists, and really only contained Crumb's more "commercial" (crappy) work. But this handbook, with extensive artwork, photos, and narration by Crumb himself is a different, and oddly uplifting critique of the media illusion, personal failure and triumphs, family values, and of being left handed-I know, I'm one of em'-yes, were all perverts, yes, were all useless people with a knack for genius, and yes, were all attracted to music, concepts, and culture that few people can possibly comprehend or appreciate. Read it for all the gory details! The CD is okay. The cartoons are hilarious.