1 comments about Tracey Emin.

1. If we can assume for the moment that one of the most daunting enemies of art is fear, then Tracey Emin is contributing to the art world in ways that are anything but obvious. If art causes one to think, to wonder, and to move the artist's images in and out of one's own life, just to see how it fits, like furniture seeking its rightful position in the room, then the business of art is really all about seeding the imagination. Seeds must be honest, and honest art must be fearless. The art in this book is not always pretty and comfortable, but it is always thoughtful and honest and fearless. In the effort to appreciate art, people have cautioned that one should view the art - not the artist. That isn't possible in the case of Tracey Emin, because the art and the artist are inseparable entities. She is the art, and her honesty shines through like a diamond in a mud pie. I don't know Tracey Emin, but I do know that if I ever met her, I'd never forget her. This book might be most readily appreciated by artists who will not just find inspiration in images that haven't already been thought about as much as the ones thought about but supressed. If you're an artist, I can't promise that you'll feel good about the way Emin approches her art, but I'm reasonably sure that you'll feel good about the way you'll begin to approch yours.

3 comments about The Art of Rockefeller Center.

1. Rockefeller Center is one of the great Art Deco set pieces. It was conceived and built at the depths of the Great Depression, at the height of Art Deco and it's importance to the nation at the time is impossible to quantify. The art of the complex is arguably the most important assemblage of Art Deco artwork in the world. This book is a fantastic tribute to Rockefeller Center and all the artists and craftsman that built it. The text is highly informative, without feeling like an academic dissertation and the images are very well presented, though frankly there could have been more. I highly recommend this book to anyone with any interest in Rockefeller Center or Art Deco.



2. The publishers, in a neat marketing move, issued this book in two editions. The 320 page version and a much smaller pocket-sized paperback that was invaluable when I visited the Center in 2006. Without it I don't think it would have been possible to find all the exterior treasures on the twenty-two acre site or read Roussel's text about them.
   
   This Art book is a vastly expanded comprehensive look at all the exterior and interior public art contained in the fourteen buildings and spaces. It originated with Christine Roussel when her company was commissioned by the Rockefeller Center to restore all the artwork and the excellent contemporary color photos (after any restoration) are by Christine or her designer daughter Dianne. What I particularly like about the book are the historic photos of artists creating the works that you can see today. There are so many of these that I assume the Rockefeller's saw the PR potential of Fine Art in progress and arranged for as much of this as possible to be photographed.
   
   There are more than a hundred pieces of art from forty artists presented in color and the very comprehensive text puts their work in context and in case you are wondering there is a full explanation about the destruction of Diego Rivera's fresco: Man at the Crossroads, which was to be in a prominent place on the main lobby wall of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Lee Lawrie contributed most to the Center with fourteen pieces and his Wisdom (Rockefeller Plaza) and Atlas (International Building) are now world famous. There are seven interesting historical photos about the making and positioning of Atlas in the book. Missing, I thought (and maybe as an Appendix) were a few photos showing the various stages of construction of the Center, it take nine years after all and a page or two, with photos, of the various roof gardens.
   
   Rousell's book celebrates the public art of these remarkable New York buildings which are now registered as a National Historic Landmark. The book's production is first class (though unfortunately not sumptuous) with the photos in 175dpi on reasonable art paper. There is a slight editorial annoyance with a back page listing of the artists and technical details of their work, these really should have been presented on the relevant pages so the reader could avoid having to keep flipping back and forth to find out a bit of information.
   
   The perfect complement to this book is Daniel Okrent's Great Fortune: The Epic of Rockefeller Center telling in great detail how the Rockefeller Center was built.
   
   ***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.



3. Built in the middle of the depression, Rockefeller Center became a part of and a symbol of America. The buildings of Rockefeller Center were not designed as the steel and glass monoliths of today. Art from some of the best artists of the day was incorporated into virtually all aspects of the building. The most famous is the statue of Prometheus delivering fire to the mortals of the earth amidst the waters of the Plaza. But there is much much more. There are the bas-relief stone carvings on the facade, there are murals, statues, even specially designed patterns for the carpets.
   
   This book is the first comprehensive study of the art in the center. It is a large format, beautifully printed edition of the art as it is now, and in many cases historical photographs of the artists as it was being produced in the 1930's.
   
   Ms. Roussel is the Archivist of Rockefeller center. To produce the book she had unprecedented access to the records and files of the center.

No comments about Art Museum Libraries and Librarianship.

5 comments about Unexpected Journeys.

1. My first encounter with the work of Remedios Varo made me hungry for more, so I eagerly ordered this book. And I wasn't disappointed -- Janet Kaplan gives us a thorough, insightful look into the life & work of this amazing painter, as well as an informative overview of her times & artistic circles. The biography alone is fascinating, the stuff of a rich novel! But it's the art that brings us back to these pages over & over again, so that we can savor its intricate detail & dense symbolic power. Varo achieves a dreamlike quality of vivid clarity, as if painting with a single-haired brush of golden light. The recurring images & themes have a strong cumulative effect, taking us into a deeply personal vision. While Varo certainly falls within the penumbra of the Surrealists, she travels to a place that's exclusively her own in these paintings. A volume to treasure, highly recommended!



2. Remedios Varo is simply a wonderful painter with a very interesting life that you will discover in these easy to read pages... If you are interested in her art and want to go deeper to understand "hows" and "whys" of Remedio's... then this book is for you.



3. One of my favorite books. The visuals are unmatched and the thoroughness of her research really gives you an understanding of Varo both as an artist and a women. Will treasure it always.



4. I go to Moore College of Art and Design in Pliladelphia and Janet Kaplan is a teacher there so needless to say i read this book and Remedios Varo is ALWAYS taught in art history classes in my school. But the book is amazing. I love the artist and if you like surrealism I would highly recomend it.



5. If you have stumbled upon this wonderful book, then I congratulate you. The next step is to buy it, because it is the only comprehensive book on Remedios Varo I know of. If you are not familiar with the work of Varo, she was a Surrealist painter and a contemporary of such artists as Dali, Magritte, and Leonora Carrington (to whom she is frequently compared, though in my humble opinion Varo's work is much more fantastic and delicate). Her work, though shamefully underrated, establishes her as an extremely talented artist with an eye for incredible detail and an imagination that rivals that of Bosch and Dali. As for the book itself, Janet Kaplan has done an incredible amount of research (she actually had to travel to Spain and Mexico to get the information) for this book, which offers Varo's biography and some excellent interpretations of her paintings, which are reproduced on the pages in gorgeous, large color plates and even more black and white sketches and prints. Please buy this book and familiarize yourself with Remedios Varo, despite the brow-raising price: to allow her to remain unnoticed would be a travesty.

4 comments about Charles M. Russell: A Catalog Raisonne (The Charles M. Russell Center Series on Art and Photography of the American West).

1. This is a superb volume for Russell fans and most others who appreciate the art of the late West. The writing about his oils, sketches, wax figurines and bronzes is well illustrated with appropriate art work in each section. There are many clues as to where you can find his life efforts today. The Fred Renner chapter was a delightful surprise. Wife Nancy's contributions are detailed. It is a good read without the snob verbage more typical in the art world of the elite. I believe Charlie Russell would have liked it this way.



2. Deftly compiled and edited by B. Byron Price (Director of the University of Oklahoma Press, as well as Director of the Charles M. Russell Center and Charles Marion Russell Chair of Art History, University of Oklahoma), "Charles M. Russell: A Catalogue Raisonne" is a superb collection of paintings, sketches, sculptures, illustrated letters, and stories by one of the finest artists ever to record images of the American West. Featuring more than 200 color and black-and-white reproductions of Russell's most famous works, "Charles M. Russell: A Catalogue Raisonne" includes informed and informative essays by Brian W. Dippie (Professor of History, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada); Peter H. Hassrick (Director o the Institute of Western American Art, Denver Museum of Art); Rick Stewart (Senior Curator of Western Paintings and Sculpture, The Amon Carter Museum, Forth Worth, Texas); historian and actor Raphael J. Cristy; collector and Russell authority Ginger K. Renner; and B. Byron Price. A core addition to personal, academic, and community library American Art History reference collections, "Charles M. Russell: A Catalogue Raisonne" is especially recommended to the attention of scholars, collectors, curators, art dealers, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the life and work of Charles M. Russell.



3. This hard cover book arrived damaged. The early pages were seperated from the binding. It was placed in a larger box with just wrapping paper stuffed on top. This allowed the book to slide around during shipping. I don't know if it was damaged before or during shipping.This is a large heavy art book which requires SPECIAL PACKAGING, which it did not receive. Amazon procdures require me to purchase another one but do not provide me a way of talking with the shipping source....so I have to gamble again. I read the previous customer's review about shipping damage, but I gambled anyway, AND LOST.



4. Damaged corner, wrapped poorly for shipping. I have to return as not in good shape. The book is excellent but bad job packaging. Generally unhappy.

2 comments about Craft in America: Celebrating Two Centuries of Artists and Objects.

1. Outstanding! Thoroughly enjoyed the engrossing writing style. It tells the fascinating story of how integral craft was in the the development of a nation and its people. And, I could not agree more with President Jimmy Carter when he wrote in the prologue: I invite you to read this book, consider the outstanding objects these artists have imagined, and partake in what could well be one of the most satisfying times of your life.
   Jackie Mirabel



2. Superb. To say that CRAFT IN AMERICA is a brilliant work of art would not do it justice. It is more than that: it is itself a marvelous realization of the fusion of art and craft. As a book publisher myself, I am in awe of the successful melding of the many elements that must complement one another to make a truly masterpiece of a book. This is that rare "coffee table" book with an intelligent, gracefully written text that makes a compelling read. Every image in the book appears to have been selected with care and sensitivity and illustrates so well the points discussed in the text. But as strong as the visuals and the text are, a book with this subject matter must itself stand as an example of superior design. And it does. Every facet of the book reflects the professionalism of the editors, the creative geniuses they treat in these pages, and the craft of book publishing and production. It is a gem.
   
   Bill Haney

1 comments about New Museum Theory and Practice: An Introduction.

1. "New Museum Theory and Practice" has been a great resource for the Museum Studies course I'm taking in college. This book is a collection of essays that addresses numerous issues that are crucial to the new outlook for museums in the 21st century. Honest and up to date, the book discusses matters such as collection processing, feminism, multiculturalism, and poses questions about the basic foundations of museums as they exist today.

No comments about The DAM Book.

5 comments about The Irish Game: A True Story of Crime and Art.

1. "The Irish Game" tells the true stories of two separate art robberies at the palatial Russborough House in Wicklow. Of several paintings stolen, The Dutch master Jan Vermeer's "Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid" (called the Dublin Vermeer) is easily one the most valuable at several hundred million dollars. I'm not ordinarily predisposed to enjoying true-crime tales, but I found this intriguing and engaging. The world of art theft is a labyrinth of interconnected criminal factions and the trail of stolen art can easily traverse several countries. To accurately present the myriad details--not only of the heists, but also of the extraordinarily convoluted stings that would recover the stolen art--is a feat of painstaking research. To present this to the reader as a thrilling read as opposed to mere reportage is an even bigger challenge. I think that Hart did a splendid job in both.
   
   Whether there was too much background or not enough of the characters' lives, the heists, and the coterie of detectives, depends greatly on one's preference. In a story such as this, I consider it vital to be given a surplus of details rather than a mere spattering. The art theft world is not as straightforward as most people would assume, that is steal the art then sell it. Most of the stolen art, we are informed, are not fenced but used as collateral for other crimes, usually drug dealing and arms procurement. To catch these criminals and recover the lost art goes beyond conventional detection, to say the least, and Hart does a fine job in elevating the narrative from a mere recitation of facts to a thrilling account of this complex game. As to be expected, there are maps, illustrations, color plates, photos, etc., that serve as visual aids to heighten interest.
   
   Of particular interest to me was the segue into the discovery by an art conservationist of a Vermeer "secret." Anyone who's seen a Vermeer is amazed by the realism. The other thing that amazes is the perspective (the convergence of parallel lines into a vanishing point). To refresh my memory, I pulled out my copy of "Vermeer" by Arthur Wheelock, Jr., one of the National Gallery of Art's curators and the U.S.'s leading Vermeer scholar, and once again stared at each of the forty color plates. When I look at them, I get the sensation that I can almost `step into' the picture or that the scene depicted is immediately in front of me. It's both wondrous and chilling, and his mastery of perspective has baffled scholars for close to four hundred years. Several years ago, I saw a documentary featuring David Hockney of the "Secret Knowledge" infamy, illustrating his theory that the old masters had used optics such as the primitive versions of the camera obscura to help create their masterpieces. His theory was equated to heresy and fueled controversies and numerous critics, but I will admit that I found it logical and utterly believable. Shame on me. In Chap. 9, I was stunned by the spectacularly simple technique the innovative master must have used, and for some of us, it will evoke memories of the grade-school technique we were taught on how to draw a perfect circle (bet you want to know now, don't you?). I had forgotten that oftentimes, truth is simply...simple!
   
   Two of the more astonishing facts the reader learns is that the Dublin Vermeer was stolen twice from the same place, first in 1974 by a gang headed by Rose Dugdale, an IRA supporter and the spoiled daughter of a millionaire, and second by a career criminal, Martin Cahill, twelve years later, and the other is that the two separate cases were solved by a father and his son, Ned Hogan and Liam Hogan. Both were officers in the Garda Síochána (Ireland's police force) and Ned was one of the major players in the recovery in the 1970s. When the second heist occurred in 1986, Liam was instrumental in the recovery of the same Vermeer. As father and son look at the recovered Dutch Vermeer, Liam says to his father, "If they lose it again, they can get it back themselves." Ned's reply? "If we get it back again, we keep it."



2. Matthew Hart's The Irish Game : A True Story of Crime and Art is an excellent read about Ireland, art, art theft, and criminal investigation. This is a very intiguing non-fiction book about the theft of art by Johannes Vermeer in 1986 from a great house/museum known as Russborough in Ireland.
   
   Not only is this book a pleasure to read, I walked away learning quite a bit about art techniques, and art theft. Whereas non-fiction, if not done right, can tend to drag, this real story moves along at a brisk pace due in large part to the story, compelling characters, and smooth pace.
   
   I really enjoyed learning about the Irish police AKA the Garda and the techniques they employed to track the art theft's chief suspect Martin Cahill.
   
   I would encourage anyone interested in any of the aforementioned matters, inlcuding but not limited too: art theft, criminal investigative techniques, art techniques, and Ireland, to give this excellent book a try.



3. 
   I don't generally read mystery novels;for the simple reason that when I finish one,I don't really feel that I've learned anything.Sure,there is the suspense, of trying to figure out whodunit;in the final analysis,logic isn't the governing factor;and the author calls the shot.
   True crime is quite a different matter,and I find that getting into the real mind of a real person,is much more interesting.
   Reading this book, one gets a very real insight into crime in the art world. The way the mind of Cahill works is unveiled as well as the way that the Irish police operate. After all,Irish culture is the result of many centuries of the people fighting the establishment.
   The author beautifully sums it up with this paragraph;
   "But the roots of insurrection stretch much farther back in time,into an ancient tradition of secret,peasant societies formed by the dispossessed Gaels in the centuries following the Norman invasion,and persisting into later times. These small,clandestine bands had no chnce of reversing history. Their mission was to exact a steady taxation of terror from those in power over them. They depended on concealment on the complicity of their fellow Irishmen,who shared their language,race and fate. This old tradition of resistance to authority was too deeply engrained to evaporate with Irish independence,and the job of a policeman in Ireland is always at war with the past."
   Along with gaining a good insight into Irish crime; we get a real understanding of the nature of crime in the world of priceless art. I often wondered why criminals stole these items when they are so easily identifiable and therefore virtually impossible to fence. This book clearly explains what goes on here. When a great piece of art is stolen,we also see that it becomes an international crime.
   This book reads like fiction; but when you come to the end ;you are left with the satisfaction that you've really learned something.



4. A delightful book. If you like true stories about the almost perfect heist involving great works of art, then you'll enjoy this book. And like any good book, it is not only entertaining but teaches you something you didn't know...in this case about the world of crime and art.



5. This is the first true crime book I have ever read, and it won't be the last! Hart gives a history lesson of the Russborough Mansion and some of the paintings in it. You don't have to be familiar with art to really understand the heists and why the paintings were stolen. Hart gives you enough overall information; by the end of the book you will be an expert yourself. This book is packed to the max with great information. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants suspense, and historical information about the paintings.

No comments about A Century in Crisis: Modernity and Tradition in the Art of Twentieth-Century China (Guggenheim Museum Publications).