1 comments about The Essential Dale Chihuly.

1. This book would make a wonderful coffee table book if it weren't so small. The great thing about the book is that we see 74 color plates of Chihuly's work. Chihuly is a genius who manages to create a fireworks display of color and light in glass. Unfortunately, Warmus doesn't know how to write. The book pretends to be unpretentious, but it is, in fact, simple-minded. For example, in the section Warmus calls "The Merchant of Venetians," he writes: "Chihuly is astonished by these wildly innovative and beautiful pieces from the 1920s and 1930s. Ever the savvy businessman, he knows that their rarity drives collectors to snap them up whenever they become available. He'd love to collect them, but knows they are too rare. How to do it? Eureka! He decides to pretend that he is back in the 1920s and that HE - Dale Chihuly - is creating these priceless items himself!"

   If you buy this book, look at the pictures. If you decide to actually READ it, have a few strong drinks first.

No comments about The Sculpture of Jacques Lipchitz, Catalogue Raisonne, Volume 2: The American Years 1941-1973.

No comments about The Sculptures of Picasso: Photographys By Brassai.

2 comments about Madame Tussaud: And the History of Waxworks.

1. Note: I made some Mormon angry because of my negative reviews of books out to prove the Book of Mormon, and that person has been slamming my reviews.
   
   Your "helpful" vote is greatly appreciated. Thanks
   
   Pilbeam's book is worth the read for the following poem by William Wordsworth, who so accurately described the world of the macabre that includes waxworks. Here is a country fair:
   
   The Horse of knowledge and the Learned Pig,
   The Stone-eater, the man that swallows fire,
   Giants, Ventriloquists, the Invisible Girl,
   The Bust that speaks and moves its gooling eyes,
   The Wax-work, Clock-work, all the marvellous craft
   Of modern Merlins, Wild Beasts, Puppet shows
   All out-o'-the way, far-fetched, perverted things.
   
   It is surprising that a number of the practicianer's of wax art were women. Mrs. Patience Wright (1725-86), a wax expert, toured America until her show was destroyed by fire. Then she moved to England, and finally to France. In 1781 "she failed to persuade Benjamin Franklin to help her set up a wax exhibition. He apparently told her there was too much competition."
   
   Highly recommended history of a strange art form.



2. With all the historic sites, shrines, monuments, cathedrals, and museums in London, one must-see has been a tourist magnet for almost two centuries, and has been merely a commercial operation. Pamela Pilbeam says, "There is nothing so fascinating for a human being as others of the species," and if we can't rub elbows with the stars (and scoundrels) of our species themselves, then waxwork simulations will do. Pilbeam has written an enjoyable history, _Madame Tussaud and the History of Waxworks_ (Hambledon & London), which gives insight to a subject that, quite obviously, people find fascinating.

   The future Madame Tussaud was the niece, possibly daughter, of the man who made waxworks a popular exhibit in Paris. Once the Revolution came, both the theater and waxworks were a sort of newspaper, but waxworks, unlike newspapers and theater, were not censored. The exhibit showed who was in, who was out, and who was guillotined. There was a great appetite to put the guillotined heads on display, and, according to her sometimes unreliable memoirs, Madame Tussaud at her studio would receive the heads hot off the chopper. She would make wax copies, so that there would be enough heads to go around, some going for display in England. Her eventual marriage to Monsieur Tussaud became unsatisfactory, and to pursue a career in exhibitions, she left him for England in 1802, never to return. Remarkably, she was 41 at the time, when women did not launch themselves into mid-life careers; she was to continue running her show until her death at 89. She originally had a traveling exhibit, offering music, good lighting, and space in which visitors could walk around and see themselves, as well as the waxworks. Her marketing was well-targeted; her show became a central place for people to socialize. Eventually she settled in London. There were plenty of others waxworks, but Madame Tussaud continued to be the one to see. She installed over five hundred figures in the new space, more than any competition could muster. She kept the exhibits timely and watched what people watched; a mannequin which didn't make people pause and look was doomed to be melted down. Most importantly, when museums had limited entry, she bought up relics, royal robes, and paintings that would make her waxworks respectable to the respectable middle class. But "respectable" has its limits; the most popular attraction has always been the Chamber of Horrors.

   At last counting, Madame Tussaud's had more visitors than any pay-for-view attraction in England. Pilbeam examines the appeal, but it is hard to say exactly why a three dimensional image of, say, Madonna, would be a draw, when there are plenty of lively photos and movies that provide perfectly good depictions. There are some artistic claims among those who appreciate the exhibits; there is no reason, of course, why a wax sculpture should be less "art" than a bronze. Somehow, waxworks might be entertaining, might be instructive, but fundamentally are just fun. The same can be said of Pilbeam's book.

No comments about Meret Oppenheim: From Breakfast In Fur And Back Again.

No comments about Shields: Africa, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. From the Collections of the Barbier-Mueller Museum.

No comments about The Warner's Collectors Guide to American Sterling Silver and Silver-Plate Hollowware (Warner Collector's Guides).

2 comments about Katsina: Commodified and Appropriated Images of Hopi Supernaturals.

1. Bought this book despite the reviewer who complained it had too many t-shirt images. Actually, that's exactly why I bought it. And I'm glad.
   
   If you want images that savor the power of katsina's, there are many other books (many, many). And, they're quite good. But, this excellent book tracks the movement of these spiritual ideas and images used to organize and guide Hopi society into the mainstreaming of Southwest culture.
   
   Given American tackiness, sometimes the results are pretty tacky. But that's the point of this book and it's a very interesting look and read.
   
   I highly recommend this book if you want to see how these symbols have evolved. (And, in case evolving them seems "wrong", let's remember that the Hopi were already evolving them before they hit the mainstream because symbols always evolve when cultures mix.)



2. Looking for a book which contains images of some of today's best katsina dolls? They're here. How about a book on T-shirts, cheap posters and napkin holders? Toss in plastic cups, billboards and tin buttons and you begin to see the intent of this book. Editor Pearlstone has gathered the best and the worst images of katsinam over the years. Wherever and whenever a katsina image has been used, examples are included. Fine carvings and jewelry are represented. A number of Hopi and non-Hopi artists are profiled. To me, the inclusion of so much dime store junk detracted from what is otherwise an extremely well researched volume. This, however, is the editor's intent ... to commodify EVERY example of the katsina in past and present society. One of her objectives was to illustrate how non-Native society has continued to use the katsina image in so many (inappropriate) ways. A book for every collectors' library? I wouldn't recommend this one.

No comments about Lords of the Underworld : Masterpieces of Classical Mayan Ceramics.

3 comments about Origami Magic.

1. I bought this book at a used book store -- and it was the first orgami book I wasn't frustrated with. The instructions were so clear and simple that my six-year-old grandson could follow them too. A great book for beginners of all ages. I've since ordered others for gifts.



2. I've owned many origami books, but this is the best one. I lost it a few years ago and couldn't remember the title. I was devistated. I just remembered it and was thrilled to find it. It is a Great beginer book, as it is clear and easy to understand. I love how they rate each project for ease of compleation.



3. "I have used this book at school and I've used it a bunch and I memorize it all the time and I do it a bunch at home. It has made me love origami." Origami crazed, age 8