1 comments about Kiki Smith.

1. KiKi Smith is arguably our most gifted living artist. She is best known as a sculptor, but it is the complexity of her printed art that I find most fascinating. Experience "Rapture" 2002, page 227, this etching displays a fragile beauty rarely seen in contemporary art.
   Her powerful prints, drawings, paintings and sculptures are superbly reproduced in this book.

No comments about Carving a Traditional Cape Cod Sign.

2 comments about Shelley Tea Ware Patterns.

1. Though a little expensive, this book is a "must have" resource for any Shelley collector. As an avid collector myself, I use this book on a daily basis and have found it to be 99.99% accurate on patterns and descriptions. It does appear that the dollar value placed on items may be a little high, but that may be due to the fact the author lives in England and her values in pounds need to be "translated" into current dollar equivalency. Highly recommended resource for a Shelley collector!



2. This is a great reference book for Shelley china collectors. It shows pattern shapes, pattern numbers and color photos of the hundreds of Shelley tea sets. Great for a beginning collector or for someone who wants
   to catalog their collection. Also,it gives the history of the Shelley company from 1860 to its end in 1966. I like this reference book the best of all the Shelley books I have collected.

1 comments about The Beauty of Navajo Jewelry (Jewelry Crafts).

1. This book is not the complete encyclopedia of Navajo jewelry, but it's not meant to be. It is an excellent overview of the genre, with beautiful photographs of both very traditional Navajo jewelry as well as modern Navajo artists. For someone who wants an idea of what to look for and what is available, this is a brilliant resource. Ms. Bassman's narrative is informative and useful.
   I would recommend this book to any interested in Native American jewelry, but probably not for the advanced collector.

4 comments about Wall.

1. Wall is a visual journey into the uncommon power and beauty of common things. Stones, leaves, a blade of grass. Rushes, thorns, the splash of water on a quiet rock. In the thoughtful hands of artist Andy Goldsworthy, these ordinary landscape artifacts are pressed, moved, shaped and juxtaposed, then left to melt back into earth over time. When viewing Goldsworthy's art, one thinks of the rapt attention of a child, who sees possibility in every fallen branch. Yet, the overall impression is philosophical in nature. Even the person who claims little understanding of art can find a way to enter in, especially with the help of Baker's essay. A beautiful read, a beautiful look.



2. Imagine that you're a giant playing with pebbles in your backyard. There's a big puddle nearby, and a lot of weeds. You idly pick up pebble after pebble, placing them gently one on top of the other, winding what ends up being a wall through the weeds until it gets to the edge of the puddle. That's the deliciously disconcerting feeling you'll get as you page through Andy Goldsworthy's "Wall."

   A document of the design and construction of Goldsworthy's wall at Mountainville, New York, the book details the finding of the original, now-falling-down stone wall and the decision to recreate and embellish upon this. Andy Goldsworthy was called in to design the new wall. While he begins by following what is left of the old wall, his work is looser, more elegant, almost scroll-like as it winds down the hill and plunges directly into the water of the lake. There is a calligraphic quality to this wall that's visually arresting and, quite simply, beautiful.

   Along with the wall, Goldsworthy can't resist playing with nature in other ways and these photographs are thoughtfully included as well. We see the line of chrome yellow leaves he's stitched together and placed on the wall, the holes he's filled with crimson leaves and water, and the tree whose bark he's lined with, well, other trees! It's astounding to see how Goldsworthy's brain works and what handsome design statements result from his creativity.




3. As one of the wallers involved in the building of Andy's wall at Storm King, I can honestly say that this book gives a really good insight into the ideas behind his work and some of the technicalities involved in its construction. The photography is wonderful and the text informative. This book is well worth a look, and so is the wall itself.



4. The photography in this book is stunning, as is most of Andy's work. The real heroes of the Wall at Stormking are the Dykers, mainly Max Nowell legendary stone worker from South west Scotland.

2 comments about Moods in Wire: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fine Art of Wirewrapping, Vol. 1.

1. I was looking for a starting point to do "real" wire wrapped jewelry - not "crazy wire spirals" jewelry. This is not a book about how to make spirals using those boards with the moveable pegs. It's about how to make wire "settings" for free shaped stones, cut stones, and cabachons. I found it very easy to follow (When reading without distraction) and full of encouragement to be creative.
   The only drawback was that a number of more complicated designs in the later part of the book had no illustrations or photos of the finished design. Adding just one black and white photo page of these designs finished would have made this book perfect and worth 5 instead of the 4 stars!



2. Jewelry designs are presented with step by step text and drawings including a color photo page with the full variety of jewelry pieces shown in the book. Emphasis is on wire-wrap rings, including 13 designs with instructions. Also included are additional designs for 2 bracelets, 2 earrings, 4 pendants, 2 stickpins, 2 sharks teeth pendants, 3 spider pins and 1 cross. Ring and pendant designs are very creative and quite attractive.

No comments about Carving Realistic Animals With Power (A Schiffer Book for Woodcarvers).

5 comments about Stone Circles: A Modern Builders Guide to the Megalithic Revival.

1. Any one interested in Stone Circles should read this book! It is just not another coffee table edition. This is an excellent study in circles, their meaning and how they were constructed.

   There are detailed accounts of travelling to many stone circles around the world - new and old, with even chapters on how to build a stone circle and the alignments.

   An excellent new, fresh look at the stone giants that haunts us today and their relationship with our lives.




2. I can hardly wait to start laying out my own little "stone henge" and with this book I now know how! I always wondered how they did it, now thanks to Rob Roy, not only do I know how they did it, but now I know how I can do it too! Rob provides history, lore, safety tips, labor saving "secrets" of the ancients, great anecdotes and practical and technical instruction on site selection and preparation, stone selection and preparation, constuction of safe and durable megalithic structures, and even a human and spiritual side of the subject that can be quite energizing. With this book anyone can find their own connection to our ancient ancestors! In addition to all the information provided, this book also harbors some very phenominal photographs of both ancient and modern megalithic structures around the world. If you buy only one book this year, buy this one...if your disapointed then you have no soul!



3. Rob Roy's book, Stone Circles, is perhaps the most comprehensive and masterful work on the topic of stone circles by a living author today. There is much more to megalithic stone circles than just the movement and placement of massive dormant objects. When properly placed, they become permanent monuments to a timeless spiritual perspective. Considering our fragile and tenuous hold on life, we humans, especially in modern times, would do well to learn about and understand these marvels of engineering, determination, and dedication. Rob Roy's book gives us all a good place to start.



4. Here's that book on engineering that bridges the gap between the left and right brain. Rob Roy captures you with an engaging writing style that'll accidentally open the secret door to some other very intriguing dimensions. Go for the science -- stay for the spiritual rousing. Well thought out and perfect for any awareness.

   Genuine magic. Rock on, Rob -- in every sense.




5. Years from now, when I'm asked what books impacted my life in major ways, I'm sure I'll immediately list "Stone Circles" as one of them. This is partly because the book came along at a time when I was developing an interest in standing stones and sacred places but mostly because it treats megalithic architecture as a living art: not just a phenomenon from the past to be studied, but a way to connect, as the ancients did, with the earth and with the cycles all around us. This book truly is a "modern builder's guide to the megalithic revival." It speaks of ancient standing stones at Stonehenge, Avebury, the Orkneys, and other sites, but concentrates primarily on contemporary stone circle builders and on practical information for doing this ourselves! It's filled with incredible photos and the stories of contemporary megalithic architects and builders, as well as a wealth of technical information. Thank you, Rob Roy, and thanks to all of your colleagues for lighting a flame in me - before, I had an interest in megalithic architecture, now I am an (amateur) "megalithic anthropologist." That means that I have an interest in the study and application of how human culture and big stones interact - not just in the context of the past, but here and now. I have a small circle of stones on a shelf at home that I rearrange, am going to build some temporary circles at the beach in a couple of weeks, and I can hardly wait to go to work in the back yard this summer! Two thumbs way up for Stone Circles!

1 comments about Richard Long: Walking the Line.

1. This book supplied me with the information I was hoping to receive. I am doing research on Richard Long and I am very happy with the contents of this book.

5 comments about Carving Architectural Detail in Wood: The Classical Tradition.

1. This book was great. It has information I have not been able to find anywhere. I loved it so much I purchased his other one.



2. Frederick Wilbur is the American Master Carver of our time. In this book, written with scholarly erudition, Frederick Wilbur finds the plain words to show us how he works and how we can hope to improve our own carving. This book is indispensable for every wood carver's library. Read it now and refer to it for years. William Tapia



3. This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it. It is quite large, very thorough, is loaded with colour photos (every second page?) and as well, colour diagrams. It covers everything (that I can think of) with almost step-by-step instructions and many examples from both real life (pictures of buildings, doorways, windows) and the workshop (finished items on the table). I find the colour photos very useful, as they give a good indication of the kind of beauty you can aim for, and the photos of work in progress also very useful. I don't think black and white photos are as good for this kind of book, so I was very happy to see so much vivid colour.
   
   I would say you would need to be a bit beyond beginner to get the most out of this, perhaps early novice would be enough.
   
   Overall a very useful book, well worth the money and the best I have seen for carving these kinds of things, and I have the Taunton books (which often seem lacking, somehow).



4. Just what I was looking for. Thanks



5. This work is very descriptive in both word and picture of architectural detail. It demonstrates methods of calculating the plan or measuring the details to permit you to lay out elegant but traditional carving projects. It has been a wonderful source of learning for me and a guide to several carving motifs. The author is publishing a second book that I am anxious to see.