1 comments about Greek Gold: Jewelry of the Classical World.

1. This book is great. It shows detailed photographs of many pieces, and the text describes the methods of construction. There is a section showing the tools they used to manufacture the jewelry, and the way the tools were used.

1 comments about Turks: A Journey of a Thousand Years, 600-1600.

1. This book shows the Ottoman Art of more than 1000 years. It is not only the Turkish culture, but the whole Turk culture described by the author.
   
   Various paintings, sculptures, ceramics, etc are also shown in this wonderful book of Turk Art. The emphasis is on Ottoman Art with its heigth of Süleyman the Magnificent in the 17th century.

1 comments about Searching for Ancient Egypt: Art, Architecture, and Artifacts from the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

1. In the first part of the book, David Silverman presents a brief history of the University of Pennsylvania Museum as well as fieldwork and excavations done in Egypt and Nubia; and Donald Redford gives a general overview of Ancient Egyptian history. The second part consists of a catalogue which provides a description of objects, along with a photograph and further reading. Featured objects are those of divine art (essay by Arielle Kozloff), royal art (Edna Russmann), private art (Rita Freed), architecture (David O'Connor), personal and domestic artifacts (Edward Brovarski), funerary arts (William K. Simpson) and Nubian art (Josef W. Wegner). Recommended, this book is for those needing to learn more on Ancient Egyptian art.

2 comments about Pierre-Paul Prud'Hon.

1. If you're a Prud'hon fan, this is a wonderful book that you should add to your collection. I've owned 2 copies of this book for years and find that I pull one out frequently. The visual contents include paintings ranging from his very early works to his final paintings, giving you a good idea of this man's talent. The text is entertaining and enlightening.

   In contrast to the other review written here, I couldn't disagree more with the assessment that if you're interested in his drawings don't buy this book. While it's true that there's more space (text, pictures) dedicated to paintings, there's a wonderful section on his academic drawings, and his other drawings - preparatory, illustrations, and those for engravings - are literally everywhere throughout the book! The other reviewer must have been reviewing a different book or not understood what he/she was seeing; either way the comments are unfortunately misleading.

   Another correction to the first review is that most of Prud'hon's drawings - finished or otherwise - were not executed in charcoal; they were done in black and white chalk. This is an important distinction to artists, which I can only assume the other reviewer is not.

   In summary, this is a beautiful book is one of my favorites and may become one of yours too. I hope that this review corrects some of the misstatements made by the previous reviewer which may have caused interested people not to purchase it. Highly recommended!




2. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has put together a fine and thorough catalog of Prud'hon's studies and finished works of both charcoal drawings and paintings. This book is not only great for visual references but also complete in text explaining the purpose of each work and where Prud'hon was in his life at the time. If however, you are looking for emphasis on his drawings, I wouldn't recommend this book because though the drawings are in it, they are reduced with more emphasis on the text and so make up only a small portion of the entire book.

No comments about Interpreting Objects and Collections (Leicester Readers in Museum Studies).

3 comments about High Tech & Low Life: The Art of Shadowrun.

1. The world of Shadowrun is a unique fusion of science fiction and fantasy - a near future world where dragons run megacorporations and cybernetically enhanced trolls walk the streets. It is a world where magic and science intertwine and the cultural traditions of the past collide with the technological innovations of the future.
   The art of Shadowrun is a reflection of this rich environment - a blend of the ultramodern, near-future imagery of cyberpunk and the more traditional characters and creatures of fantasy. Since the release of the Shadowrun roleplaying game in 1989, thousands of illustrations have been produced for the game and this volume brings together the finest of those images. High Tech and Low Life: The Art of Shadowrun features work by some of the most gifted and imaginative artists working today. This volume should make a welcome addition to the collections of art enthusiasts and science fiction fans alike.



2. Not a bad way to spend $10. Yeah some of the art could be bigger, and there could be more bells and whistles but the book itself is a quality product. Sturdy. All the great Shadowrun art (many of the same artists created for Battletech - there should be a "Art of Battletech book too!!!!) FOr those who still play the game in its new rendition this is a great way to get the feel of the picture that the original Shadowrun creators wanted you to get. It has a great forward and also info on each artist. Good book. I do not game and havent for years, so this is a perfect book to keep a the memory of the Shadowrun world alive.

   And if anyone cares, FASA corp is out of business. Get this book while you can!




3. Nice selection of art, though the obmission of any pieces by Timothy Bradstreet is notable given how popular he is and how prominently his artwork features in some of the sourcebooks. However, the presentation could be much better: It is bland in the extreme. Each image is centred on the middle of a white page. Opposite page is white, with small text indicating the title and artist. Very dry. I suppose this would suffice for a traditional artbook, but this is Shadowrun, people! The cyberpunk theme screams for visual overload. Some visual pizazz would have helped immensely. As would have comments by the artist of each piece. Worse still, the pictures all have a slightly faded quality to them. Indeed, comparing some pieces to the original book covers, the pieces here are noticeably less vibrant, looking rather washed out. Finally, the pieces are all forced to fit into the page with one-inch borders around each image. They'd have looked far better filling up as much page space as possible. It makes you want to scream in fustration. Even 'wide' pieces which you'd think would be presented sideways to maximise the size (such that you'd have to turn the book 90 degrees to view it) are instead presented vertically like all the other pages, thereby shrinking them to less than 1/5th the page size! The only good thing I can say about the presentation is that very glossy oversized thick paper stock has been used. Otherwise, this book is a major disappointment.

No comments about Ron Mueck.

No comments about Villa America: American Moderns, 1900-1950.

2 comments about Micromosaics: The Gilbert Collection.

1. Finally! Finally, there is a book on Micromosaics, and what a wonderful book! Prior to the publication of Jeanette Hanisee Gabriel's masterful research job, there have been no books available to the collector of Micromosaics or for anyone who wants to read about a little-mentioned, and fading art. And who better to write the book then Ms. Gabriel who has been Sir Arthur Gilbert's Private Curator since 1994. Sir Arthur Gilbert's collection which now resides at Somerset House in London can only be equaled by the collections of The Vatican Museum in Rome and the Hermitage in St. Petersburg.

   There are a number of books that cover the vast and impressive Gilbert Collection: "Gold Boxes", "Monumental Silver", "Portrait Miniatures in Enamel," "Gold and Silver," "Hardstones" and now "Micromosaics." As I happily have the other books in my library - I can honestly say that the micromosaic book must have been the most difficult and yet it is extremely comprehensive. Ms. Hanisee's scholarly work on "The Gilbert Collection: Hardstones", must have been a bit easier to write as there is so much information on the art of Pietra Dura and Hardstone. Micromosaics is another ball of wax as so little was written - and I'm sure if it was to be had - Ms. Gabriel uncovered the information.

   The Appendix has a fascinating section written by Professor Massimo Alfieri "New Notes on Giacomo Raffaelli and Michelangelo Barberi" two of the leading Master Mosaicists of the 18th and early 19th century ---- fascinating. It takes you to the time of the workshops, with letters, sales receipts, drawings and the like. Not only revealing, but just plain fun for devotees of the period. One can also find a section on techniques and materials used in the making of these compelling masterful and minutely executed works of art.

   Seeing the fabulous color plates on almost every page, the items in the collection, one finds themselves rubbing their eyes in bewilderment over the artistry of these rare and intricate pieces. The footnotes are so interesting and well-written that they are a book within themselves, and my only wish was for a third hand to mark the place as I turned from text to illustration to footnote and back to text. In many books one tends to skip a lot of the footnotes, unless they pertain to a particular interest -- but Ms. Gabriel has added fascinating information and I told myself it was worth the digital exercise to read each and every one.

   Lastly - Jeanette Gabriel has masterfully included very detailed Biographies of the known artists of the time and the literature connected with these artists; a Glossary - with full descriptions; a seven page Bibliography; Exhibition Histories, and an extremely well-written Index.

   "The Gilbert Collection: Micromosaics" may look like a sumptuous coffee table book of 310 pages (which it is:), but it is definitely not fluff and mirrors -- it is a serious and fascinating work which should included in any library of Decorative Arts.

   Obviously - I think it's just great, I thank Ms. Gabriel, and I give it 5 stars.

   Margot Conte




2. This is a beautiful and informative book with insights into historic and technical aspects of micromosaic provided by the leading authority on this art form. Beautiful close up photographs reveal the intricate details of these little treasures. This book is a must have for micromosaic and decorative arts enthusiasts and a beautiful addition to any library.

No comments about Olympic Sculpture Park for the Seattle Art Museum: The Ninth Veronica Rudge Green Prize in Urban Design (Graduate School of Design Green Prize).