2 comments about Oudry's Painted Menagerie: Portraits of Exotic Animals in Eighteenth-Century France (J. Paul Getty Museum).

1. Fabulous book! I really enjoyed this book,and I'm so glad I purchased it. It offers a "mind blowing" experience in this genre. The paintings, the drawings all depict with much clarity an area of history I was not familiar with. No longer!
   Clara has entered my life with a "bang"! I was never aware of her, and the loyal following is just another example of animal rights. Again the paintings and drawings bring to the casual viewer, much welcome clarity and force. Breathtaking colors, and detail are outstanding. I highly recommend this book!



2. The book is beautifully done, the descriptions of the restorations and the photos of the oil paintings are amazing. Although I would have loved to see the images in "life size" I could not afford the trip to California for viewing. The book is the next best thing to being there. Rather than just showing the images with titles, the narrative explains so much of the history of the paintings and the restoration.

No comments about Flowers in Watercolour.

5 comments about Legal Guide for the Visual Artist/the Professional's Handbook (Legal Guide for the Visual Artist).

1. This is the "Bible" of legal forms and information. Used early 1989 edition quite a bit. Will use this up-dated edition even more.



2. It's not always the most entertaining book to read (who enjoys reading about taxes?), but read through it once. Stick it on your shelf. And then whenever you need it, the book can reference you to certain government documents such as release forms, copyright forms, tax forms, consignment forms, authenticity forms, etc. There's tons of forms in the book for you to work off of when you are writing up your own agreements. Also current on laws for artists. Always keep a current edition of this book handy.



3. Tad Crawford does his as-usual excellent job clarifying a complex area for the working visual artist. Readers will admire his straightforward writing style and many, many practical examples.
   
   A word of warning, though: as Tad himself says, he is not providing legal advice and, while the artist will thank Tad if he or she follows Tad's advice, it does not substitute for appropriate legal consults as needed.



4. This is an excellent resource to define and explain legal issues in the arts. It is a little dry in some parts but far easier to read than books written for the legal profession. I have been using this book as a textbook for a college class at an art school for graphic design students for several years.
   
   The book covers copyright law and touches on legal business issues that pertain to all visual artists. The focus of the book is on fine artists but it is the best resource I have found for graphic designers.



5. Even if you have the luxury of an attorney that speicalizes in art contracts, as I do, this is a great book of forms to keep handy for quick reference. My advice is to get it with his other book: Business & Legal Forms for Fine Artists also by Tad Crawford

4 comments about Original Sin: The Visionary Art of Joe Coleman.

1. Nothing can prepare you for a Joe Coleman painting if you've never seen one before-- the beauty of these works will literally rip your eyeballs from your skull. With a scholarly, yet fierce courage Coleman reinvents the characters and scenes he portrays, with a technical skill which borders on the supernatural. In a recent show in Rotterdam, Coleman's work was hung beside those of Hieronymus Bosch, a deserved honor.

   The essays in this book are excellent, describing Coleman's ground-breaking history as a performance artist as well as a painter. The design of the book by Katharine Gates is beautiful, and enhances appreciation of Coleman's work. I recommend this book to anyone who cares about art in the early 21st Century (or the 15th Century for that matter!).




2. Nothing can prepare you for a Joe Coleman painting if you've never seen one before-- the beauty of these works will literally rip your eyeballs from your skull. With a scholarly, yet fierce courage Coleman reinvents the characters and scenes he portrays, with a technical skill which borders on the supernatural. In a recent show in Rotterdam, Coleman's work was hung beside those of Hieronymus Bosch, a deserved honor.

   The essays in this book are excellent, describing Coleman's ground-breaking history as a performance artist as well as a painter. The design of the book by Katharine Gates is beautiful, and enhances appreciation of Coleman's work. I recommend this book to anyone who cares about art in the early 21st Century (or the 15th Century for that matter!).




3. Joe Coleman is represented in other books, but the essays in this book , along with the reproductions, give the viewer an intimate glimpse into the twisted and detailed paintings of joe coleman! a bargain!



4. Unique work that is overlooked. All work has a very narrative-illustrative style. Srong line quality, color and composition. For a viewer with the ability to explore.

1 comments about Lawrence Weiner (Contemporary Artists).

1. i bought this book, having a little knowledge on lawrence weiner. i found it to be very well written and covering alot of his artistic life. i recommend it to anyone who values comceptual and thought provoking art.

3 comments about The White Blackbird: 8A Life of the Painter Margarett Sargent by Her Granddaughter.

1. I don't know why this book isn't better known, or why we haven't heard much more from Honor Moore, whose grandmother's life is fascinating, tragic and ultimately mysterious. Unlike so many contemporary biographies, this one isn't overly long or obsessed with detail at the expense of perspective. An exquisite piece of work from start to finish--one of the best biographies I have ever read.



2. A very honest study of Honor Moore's grandmother Margarett Sargent. I was impressed by the amount of research that went into painting a portrait of a complex and intelligent woman and artist. A certain amount of sympathy is felt for Margarett, yet she was a proud independent woman whose strength inspires. For me, Margarett's life transcended the label of "wealthy society woman." She had great talent that she put to use. With all the advances in anti-depressives and the treatment of bi-polar illness one wonders if the mental illness that helped suck her into a vacuum of loss would have been able to do so in this decade. In the end, her loss became our loss. Honor Moore did a great thing by keeping her grandmother's memory alive so that we could revisit her colorful art and life. A great read



3. Honor Moore spent more than a decade researching the life of her grandmother, the painter Margarett Sargent, in an attempt to understand why she stopped painting in middle age. "It was too intense," was all her grandmother ever told the author, late in the ex-painter's long life. Ms. Moore attempts to show that the demands of Sargent's privileged Boston society lifestyle forced her to give up her art and contributed to her madness. A wonderful read, and a surprising insight into the creative process, especially in a woman. --Jack Sheed

1 comments about Painting Flowers in Watercolour: A Naturalistic Approach.

1. I was quite amazed at the detail there is in this relatively small publication. It takes you through the steps of locating a suitable working space, finding and using materials and then building skills to paint flowers in a different way from the botanical studies. It's wonderful!

1 comments about The Good Ol' Days: Paintings.

1. I love Charles Wysocki's art and I got this book for less than $7.00. At that price it's worth it--it's only 48 pages. I wasn't overly crazy about the verse and prose, but the pictures are wonderful. If you love Charles Wysocki's art and you can pick this up for a good price then get it.

2 comments about Capturing Texture in Your Drawing and Painting.

1. There are some good techniques in this book. I like how it shows a texture notebook at the end of each section. It shows how to collect samples to implement in your own drawings.
   
   I have read other books like this one, but the final artwork they have to show at the end sucks. In this book, there are several excellent pieces that motivate me to want to try it out and be creative in my own subject matter. It's like a receipe book, I don't always follow them exactly. Sometimes, I omit or add my own influence. So, there are no limitations.
   
   I would say no matter what medium you choose you could benefit from this book, because all are covered.



2. A very good book for the price. Lots of info for young artist's. The pages are full of color and fun. I enjoy having it in my collection.

1 comments about Impressionist Cats.

1. Feel like having a bit of whimsy? I bought "Impressionistic Cats" a number of years ago and have thoroughly enjoyed the art, the cats, and the cats in art. Definite whimsy! Might I add, the art is good enough to frame and hang.
   
   (If no image displays for the cover, just click on the product and go to the product page. It will be there.)
   
   This book is an amusing adaptation of Impressionistic art by making all the characters in each painting cats that resemble the characters. However, Susan Herbert has another explanation. She says that Professor Harvey Fishbone, a devout cat lover, collected these paintings and kept them undisclosed, allowing only cats to view them. Now his descendants are releasing these fine paintings for the world to see.
   
   Oh, how I wish you could see the print opposite the title page. It is called "after Edgar Degas Absinthe 1876" and had me belly laughing. If you have seen the painting/print, maybe you remember the abysmal look on the poor woman's face. She has been drinking absinthe, the bane of drink at that time. The artist Susan Herbert, who has several other books with cats in the paintings, is quite talented. Not only does she capture the essence and detail--well, impression, ok, the look of the original painting, she knows her cats. You should see this look of the absinthe-drinking cat! Woe and begone! Come any closer and my claws will have your eyes. Something in that line.
   
   "After Mary Cassatt The Loge c. 1882" is quite the opposite. Instead of stark and dreary, this is all sweetness and light. Two lovely young kitty women sit in the lower balcony, awaiting the opera. Ah, "after Paul Gauguin Tahitian Women 1891." Lovely, lovely cats, solid, earth-bound maidens of Tahiti. Here's "after Vincent Van Gogh, Self-Portrait, 1889," the one with the swirly turquoise background and Vincent's red hair and beard, only this "Vincent" is a marmalade tabby.
   
   One of my favorites: "after Claude Monet The Promenade (Madame Monet and her Son) 1875" showing Mrs. Manet swirling around with her umbrella. Monet/Susan has captured the moment with swirling skirts and puffs of wind made by the twisting umbrella. Ah, the magic of the impression. Lovely Mrs. Cat Monet. Another favorite: "after Berthe Morisot the Cradle 1872" showing a reflective moment of a mother cat after putting down the kitty baby, who has her little paw against her little fur cheek. The sweetness!
   
   And a last print: "after Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec In the Salon at the Rue des Moulins 1894" is a study of night cats waiting for toms, sitting in garish colors and velvets of the waiting area. The moment is everything. I do believe that will do.