4 comments about Batchelder Tilemaker.

1. Not the greatest tile reference, the detail in the photos is poor and hard to see. Most of the historical reference in this book is accurate, but poorly written. I would not purchase this book early in a library building journey, save it for when you have excess money to spend and are just trying to fill and round out your collection.



2. When the back cover of a book informs you that the author is reputable, rather than the subject is well written - take it as a warning.

   This sophomorically written book is not intended for Arts & Crafts devotes, it is meant for tour guides who wants to get an "Ooo!" or a giggle out of a bus load of little old ladies.

   While the photos are fair, I found myself wishing I could actually see what they were showing. I guess the little old ladies are use to not being allowed too close, but I'd like to zoom in, please.

   Throughout the book, the reader is assured that the author is highly praised by the Governor of California. Perhaps taxpayers should insist their Governor spend his time more selectively.




3. While specific to the works of Batchelder, the photo supplements leave much to be desired - they are too general (a photo of a tiled room is nice, but a few more detail photos would have been most welcome!) and there are simply not enough of them (especially when compared to works referred in text). Overall, I found the book too big (and expensive) for the content delivered.



4. Ernest Batchelder's ceramic enterprize grew from a home-based business to a nation-wide enterprize: Batchelder Tilemaker follows his life and works, starting with his 1908 venture into entrepreneurship and his establishment of the 1930s Batchelder-Wilson company showrooms. An outstanding, revealing title surveys his life and artistic achievements.

1 comments about Art Nature Dialogues: Interviews With Environmental Artists.

1. John Grande's new book Art Nature Dialogues is not only informative, but it presents the scuptors and artists ideas, points of view without the usual critical control or monologue.
   Included are David Nash, Nils-Udo, Hamish Fulton, Patrick Dougherty, Bruni Babarit, Bill Vazan, Alan Sonfist, Betty Beaumont, Ursula von Rydingsvard, Peter von Tiesenhausen and herman de vries (apioneer of earth art from the 1950s in Holland)
   '
   This is one book thatshakes the art world softly, gently and with a sense of the physical, realworld of nature . Bye Bye PostModernsim. Hello respect for the Earth.
   
   
   
   
   It is about time a writer focusssed on earth sensitive artists instead of the od generation of minimalist earth movers like Smithson, Heizer who destroyed the earth for art./.

5 comments about Teach Me! An Erotic Journey.

1. The cover looks very nice, even physically and I was attracted to the book. I was expecting a similar if not the same artistic quality on the content. I am very particular with the graphic presentation and the comics need to have certain quality to "turn me on" (not sexually ).
   
   I was looking for graphics with thin and clear line work, just as what displayed on the cover. I am a little disappointed that the artist uses thick marker as the tool for his work. The drawing is not very consistence and more work is needed to improve. The book also comes in black and white, different from the mainstreams which are now more or less in color.
   
   There are 2 stories, one set in the present day while the other in the past ( early migrants to USA ). Due to the slight dis-oriented presentation of the content, the stories are a little confusing and need some re-organization to have better understanding of what the artist trying to convey.
   
   Erotically it is mildly entertaining as I was quite put off by the artwork. The technique would be better applied to work meant for teen contents.



2. This book I rate minus zero. It contains extremely degrading sadistic text and illustrations through-out without any redeeming qualities.
   Amazon should practice greater disclosure when it comes to presenting products with so much abusive content(perhaps a rating system) so those reasonable carefull in there selections do not purchase such dehumanizing content unknowingly. Greater and clearer discloser would benifit both the buyer and seller avoiding uncessary resentment as well as benifit society as a whole.
   PS I not religously oriented and liberal in my viewpoints within limits.



3. I'm not really an expert on this kind of media, but I found the art to be passable, it would have been better in color. The storyline was good, not exceptional.
   
   All in all this was decent beginning for my collection.



4. This book has two stories.
   The first is fun and I enjoyed it..it is silly and sexy.
   The second one one is only for those whose fetish is torture, not SM, but just torture. I like kinky sex. I do not like debasement. Do not read this if you have any Sexual abuse issues.



5. It's got straight sex, lesbian sex, a LOT of anal sex, gay male sex, domination, rape, murder, B&D, S&M and bestiality. One of the rape victims is constantly worried about what might be happening to her "little girl," though the girl in question turns out to at least LOOK over 16. What it doesn't have is any hint of affection between the players. I was hoping for something that focused on the type of sex I like, rather than trying to please every preference under the sun. At least the male member is pleasingly present, though often attached to men no vanilla-romantic would touch with gloves on!

No comments about Art of Claudio Aboy Vol 2.

1 comments about Handbuilding Ceramic Forms.

1. This book has several very good alternative handbuilding techniques that I've found useful over the years. It is easy to understand, and is illustrated just enough to give you a good sense of what is possible using each individual technique. This book is an excellent resource for the beginner ready to move beyond the beginning.

1 comments about Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980-2005.

1. This volume is one of the best written books about a living artist in our time with an informative timeline of the artist's life and achievements. Artwork is beautifully reproduced and delineated. This volume will soon be out of print.

2 comments about Beasts Factual and Fantastic (The Medieval Imagination).

1. Elizabeth Morrison's BEASTS reproduces illuminations from medieval manuscripts in the Getty Collection depicting various real and imagined animals. The demon trying to tempt Thomas Aquinas and the scene of the animals paying homage to the Christ Child struck me as especially noteworthy.



2. The cover features one of my favorite Getty manuscripts. Inside are photos of beasts from a variety of Getty mss, not just bestiaries. This is another way of getting familiar with their collection. The captions are good, but the photos of the ms. pages are the strength of this book.

2 comments about The Art of Bill Viola.

1. At the first introduction of so-called 'art' in the form of videotapes played in museum and gallery installations caused a public response of skepticism: how can something so transient as filmed activity be called Art? The validity of video art is now accepted as one of the more creative venues of artistic expression and that is due to a very great degree to the pioneering efforts of Bill Viola, a uniquely gifted man who now is accepted internationally as one of the most important artists of our time.
   
   This brilliant book as created by Chris Townsend explores Bill Viola's works from the 1970s to 2004 with abundant photographs of 'stills' images from his videos that even in the frozen state of the book page are shatteringly poignant and beautiful. Perhaps for those uninformed about Viola's work this format will not impress, but the book may stimulate more people to seek out installations of his works as they appear in the varied arenas of art around the world. Townsend includes contributions by excellent writers such as Rhys Davies, Cynthia Freeland, Antonio Guesa, David Jasper, Jonathan Lahey-Dronsfield, David Morgan, Otto Neumaier, Elizabeth ten Grotenhiuis, Jean Wainwright - each of whom brings not only artistic verification but also personal response to Viola's many projects.
   
   Perhaps one of the most successful works Viola has produced has been THE TRISTAN PROJECT in which he worked in tandem with Director Peter Sellars, Conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Gehry's Disney Hall to re-think the Wagner masterpiece "Tristan und Isolde" in terms of the elements of water, fire, and the spiritual transformation of love - all by adding the element of projected gigantic screens of Viola's models in movement that created an opera production so profound that it is being staged throughout the world to both audience rapture and critical acclaim.
   
   Bill Viola is a living genius and this fine book helps to inform us why. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, November 05



2. Sixty illustrations, all but five in color, lend to Chris Townsend's compilation Art Of Bill Viola, the first extensive critical appraisal of the works of video and installation artist Vignola. From themes surrounding the relationship of Vignola's art to religions to essays which consider his international influences and reputation, The Art Of Bill Viola is a 'must' for any in-depth art collection strong in video and installation works and artists.

5 comments about Raku: A Practical Approach.

1. Long considered a handbook of raku, Raku; A Practical Approach details a myriad of topics pertaining to this method of firing.
   
   *Glaze recipes for many different raku effects
   *Extended chapter on kiln design, construction and operation
   *Information on how to do raku safely in a school or workshop environment.
   
   Raku, a ceramic process originating in Japan, involves taking a pot from the kiln with special tools at the height of the glaze firing, and putting it into a metal container filled with combustible materials. This is a dramatic operation, requiring a team of people, all garbed safely and moving in time to the firing schedule. It results in red hot ware clutched in tongs being carried from place to place- often bursting into flame as the pots contact the combustible leaves, sawdust or shredded paper. As you might imagine, there is much preparation that leads to this firing.
   
   Raku; A Practical Approach details the whole process of producing raku pottery.



2. A complete resource for raku firing. Specific technical information for kiln construction, as well as photos, glaze recipes and much discussion about experimental materials for reduction. If you had only one book to learn about raku tecniques,this should be the one.



3. This is the second Raku Bible that I have used and referred to repeatedly over the years. There is a short section on what Raku is and the history of Raku, but then it quickly moves into the guts of technical information on Raku. Branfman includes clay recipes (for those who are interested in actually mixing clay) and several glaze recipes with some details on how they perform.
   The real meat of the book is on kilns, building kilns, and firing a Raku kiln. Branfman covers firing in both an electric and a gas kiln. He also details many plans and techniques for building your own Raku kiln. Branfman also details many variations of firing methods including reduction firing, piece removal, and post firing reduction methods. Sprinkled throughout the book are great examples of finished pieces using many different styles and techniques that I have used as a repeated source of inspiration. Overall, the book is a very excellent text that covers the practical aspect of the Raku art form.



4. Recently I got the idea of replacing my current electric kiln, and converting the old kiln to a gas-fired rake kiln. I posted a question on the ClayArt mailing list asking for advice on how to do this. Every single reply refered me to Steve Branfman's book! I quickly bought a copy, and found it to be every bit as good as advertised. In an readable, conversational style, Steve covers a wide range of topics, including some history, glaze formulations, types of kilns, firing advice, and health & safety. Where needed, he gives very detailed and specific technical information (the section on determining BTU requirements for burners was *exactly* what I needed). He also provides great recommendations on sources and suppliers. For anyone who wants to get started, or go further, with raku, this is a great book.



5. A very good resource for anyone who is interested in the Raku process. I would not recommend this book for novice Raku artists because of the technical terms used in the book. The author does expect you to know varios technical terms. I found this book very hepful to me as I have been a Raku artist for 2 years. This book is easy to read and the photos are great. There are also a few glaze recipes that I enjoyed experimenting with.

2 comments about Paperclay: For Ceramic Sculptors 3rd Edition.

1. There are few books out there on paper clay, so if you're one who learns by reading there's precious little to choose from. If you're interested in the medium, you probably need to have this book. But be forewarned: though it contains lots of information not currently available from other sources, it's one of the worst-produced books I've seen in a very long time.
   
   The book was evidently never put through a professional editing process, and it shows. It's full of typos, punctuation errors, and confusing sentences. After reading the first few pages, I concluded (erroneously, as it turns out) that English was not the author's first language. Here is a sample garbled sentence, admittedly one of the worst: "Join between bone and soft is usually better that same join at would be leatherhard." Some sections read more like the author's notes rather than a finished manuscript.
   
   Many of the illustrations have been reduced so small that it's difficult to discern what's being shown -- and some of the labels, reduced along with the illustrations, contain type that literally required a magnifying glass to read.
   
   The author decided to use a question-and-answer format for the entire book, which quickly becomes tiresome. As a result, there's no "narrative" to the book and the information is disjointed and episodic.
   
   The book I received, although it says it's the 2007 "third edition," does not look like the one pictured here. Instead, it's printed in a very horizontal format (about 9 inches wide by 5 inches deep), which is awkward to hold and irritating to use.
   
   If you have the patience to deal with all this, much information about paper clay can be gleaned from this book. The author quite obviously knows a lot and seems willing enough to share that with her readers. However, I believe the publisher does her, and us, a disservice by going into a third edition without taking care of these fundamental problems.



2. i have found this companion boock easy and clear to follow.it have beeing a great help developing new forms in my studio.