Artists Books

Creative. Imaginative. Easy to follow directions to make all kinds of prints. There are ideas in here for those with no experience as well as great suggestions for new techniques for those who already make prints in one form or another. The visuals were beautiful and helpful when trying out a new idea. I recommend this for anyone who likes print-making. I think it would make a great text for a class.

Make Your Mark is truly a book to savor for many years. After getting it as a gift, the first thing I did was simply read it all the way through. The author has a warm and encouraging tone, and it is easy to imagine her standing by you as you are guided through a variety of wonderful and interesting techniques.
You don't need to be an artist or good at drawing to make use of this book, although if you are, you'll find these projects interesting and appealing. At the moment, I'm really into the gorgeous techniques that I've gotten spray painting with stencils. I can't believe how beautiful the effect is spraying through lace (cheap lace works really well), which I did on fabric, which is what I had around the first few times I tried this technique.
The other technique that appealed to me from the beginning is spray painting with lemon juice. I just loved the idea of the art work going in the oven for a brief stint, and watching it magically come alive. It's like baking, only the gratification is instant. This technique leaves kind of an aged looking mark on the paper, which is enhanced by darker edges where the lemon juice is sprayed heavily. The variations include adding salt and water. It's pure fun.
I can't wait to try some other techniques. An interesting and wonderful byproduct of working with the techniques in the book is that I just felt relaxed and loosened up creatively, and I was able to transfer that creativity to my work as a chef. I found my creative juices just flowing.
There are also chapters on all kinds of stenciling, rubbings, printing, water printing, paste papers, pattern dyeing, and collage, enough to keep one happily occupied with projects for a very long time. Each technique clearly explains what materials you need, available at most art stores, and the artist thoughtfully provides a glossary of places to get the materials.
I highly recommend this book for people of all ages, whatever your level of creativity is, for just a wonderful way to have a lot of fun!

What a delightful book Margaret Peot has written! It could be titled "Art for Dummies", because this grandmother surely qualifies. However, it is equally inspiring for granddaughters too. The book is fun to read and makes you itch to go and try the diversity of projects included. Ms. Peot convinces you that there is a hidden hint of "artist" you never knew was lurking inside. And not to be overlooked is the fact that you don't need a stash of expensive art supplies to get started!!

Joyce Tice

I have used "Make Your Mark" to help me with my own creative blocks and I have given the book to several friends, some artist and some non-artist, to offer the same benefits. All have enjoyed and used the book extensively and have been thrilled with their individual results. It's really a great resource for anyone wanting to create, but feeling a little inhibited.

This book is great. I did the gouache resist exercise and three of my experiments were selected for the Art Guild Show at City Hall. It is so easy to get caught up in the process of creating someting beautiful and interesting and artistic using Ms. Peot's methods. I love reading the chapters and imagening the end result. Once I get started, I am thrilled at how the methods enhance and facilitate my own creativity. Right now I am looking forward to trying my hand at collage knowing that I can just play with the process and see where it takes me.

I saw these books at the Brooklyn Museum retrospective, was impressed with the quality of the paper and printing, and then thrilled to get a new copy for so much less $$ than at the Museum store! (Which was sold out of them anyway.)

Murakami's work is not for the faint of heart. If you are not already familiar with his tropes, or those of modern Japanese art and anime, this book will immerse you and draw you in. You might spend hours poring over the fantastic details in the paintings, making delightful discoveries of characters and actions. A great gift book too!

This book is about Takashi Murakami, if you can't tell by the title already. Half of the book is about how he got started and what he does and why. The other half is all high quality images of his artwork, including his sculptures. This book is huge, like a text book. Free shipping at Amazon is worth it. For the price this book is definitely worth it. It has a couple three-page spreads of long paintings and all of the images are beautiful. Very nice quality printing and paper, plus tons of information about this awesome designer. It is a good add to a collection of contemporary artists. A must have for art, japan and design lovers.

This book is very large, about the size of a tabloid newspaper, and quite thick. The paper stock is some of the nicest I've ever seen. The text is well written, analyzing Murakami's influences and impact on the art world and world at large in a serious and thoughtful manner. The reproductions of his art are fantastic and include virtually every one of his pieces to date. Highly recommended for any fan.

This book and the traveling retrospective show of Murakami's artwork shows the full scope and genius of his art. The pieces are entertaining and thought-provoking...here is finally an artist that is exiting to watch and see what he will come up with next. If Andy Warhol had lived into the 21st century this might have been where he'd have ended up. Murakami takes both the low to high concept, and the factory model to the next level. Most importantly: it's fun! The book is about as comprehensive as we're likely to get until an end of career survey comes many years later so this is the one to get.

I had to get this book after going to the Brooklyn museum exhibit. The price was incredible there and I was happily surprised to find it on Amazo nfor much cheaper! Thanks... great condition and speedy delivery

Robert Irwin has lived his life as both a solitary creator and unrelenting seeker to the same consummate degree that only Dante Alighieri, Agnes Martin, Meister Eckhart, Lao Tsu, and a handful of others have sought. If you haven't heard of him, you should read this anyway. Remember, it even took Bach two centuries to get his proper due. Regardless, this book changed a lot for me. I am forever grateful.

Weschler's prose is Irwin's lighting. His book good as this biography junkie has ever read, and he does it in only 203 pages. As I write this, you can buy this book used for the price of a Domino's pizza - that's all i'm saying.

If you're an artist, you need this book. Even if you don't like Irwin's work (or never heard of him.) Remarkably, this biography of the most minimal of minimal artists contains no abstruse language, no mysteriously self-important pronouncements, nor even a single reference to any French esthetic theorist. Not only is this written in clean, straightforward prose; you can hardly put it down. It also raises critical, fascinating questions about the nature of art, and of the way we see. I've recommended this book to several people. It's never what they expect. They've always thanked me.

*

I am fascinated by the creative process. I am fascinated by physical manifestations born from the spark of an idea. I am fascinated by the complex psychology, rigorous philosophy and simple backbone evinced by those devotees of method. And I am blown-away by Robert Irwin.

My first contact with Robert Irwin's work came in graduate school when a few friends and I drove from Philadelphia to Manhattan to visit the Dia Center for the Arts. There on an upper floor I encountered a truly shocking, yet subduing, experience. Irwin had taken over the entire level and divided into rooms demarcated with translucent scrim. I walked slowly, from space to space, enclosed but not, silent in presence yet bursting with internal applause, and in awe. I marveled at the solidity of light that slid through the Dia's industrial steel windows, tracing its way across two layers of the thin white fabric and gently landing on the concrete floor. My eyes were tickled by the subtlety of color emanating from the vertical fluorescent lights wrapped in gels. There must have been thirty others there at the same time, meandering like ghosts whitened by one, two, three layers of scrim, yet the space was absolutely quiet. This was the first time that I truly understood the word ?perception.? It came in a space filled with exacted simplicity.

Since then I have tried to follow Irwin's work, both past and present, only to find that it is rarely photographed, as the medium cannot do the work justice. However, Lawrence Weschler's biography on the artist is a tremendous piece of writing that will give you much more appreciation for Irwin than any catalog ever could. Weschler spent years interviewing the artist, tracking down collaborators and researching the works. He exhibits an amazing understanding of Irwin's intentions and adds much needed commentary to keep the story straight while tracing the complex and highly personal evolution of the man and his art. From descriptions of Irwin's self-imposed eight month exile in Ibiza, to his two year long rigorous exercise (and again, exile) to create what amounted to twenty lines, Weschler gives us an in depth look at the zen-like disposition of the artist in his search for the perceptual (and hence, not conceptual). Irwin's diligence and rigor will stupefy even those most devoted to their process, and discussion of his material experimentation will act to spur imaginations. Robert Irwin supplies the majority of storytelling, however, and lets the reader in on often humorous tales of the art world from the point of view of a very personable and highly influential artist.

In short, I highly recommend that anyone devoted to design, be it fine art or architecture, read this book. I also recommend that you travel to San Diego to see the first major exhibition of Irwin?s work since 1993, "Robert Irwin: Primaries and Secondaries" at the MCASD through February 23rd.

Note: The installation at the Dia Center was reviewed thoroughly, with an included history of the artist?s work, in an article entitled "Robert Irwin?s Doors of Perception" by Carol Diehl in Art in America magazine, December, 1999, findarticles.com

This is simply the best book about art I have ever read. Like other reviewers, I can say that this book permanently altered the way I see the world (and art). Irwin did it and he still does it.

I picked up this book in 1984 because it was on a reading list for an Art History class I was taking at Oberlin College. I stayed up all night in the library that night. I couldn't put it down. My mind has never been the same.

I still often think of it,tell stories from it and give it as a gift. I always say "skip the first chapter-it gets much better." If I remember right, the book begins with a description of Irwin's perfectionism when cleaning the engine of his car. I figure that will bore my friends.

I tell my students about Irwin's many years attempt to make the perfect line, to his wife's chagrin and his painting the back side of his paintings because it matters to him. They like the story of the riots that occured in South America due to the disorientation of his discs-concave and convex-the viewers couldn't tell where the wall started and the disc stopped. I have given the book as a graduation present.

I thought about this book at the mechanic the other day. My engine is very, very dirty.

I will never forget,forgetting. Great book.

And a fun representation of the year of daily skulls. It also includes a few insights into what making a skull a day can mean.

Noah Scalin's book SKULLS is delightful on many levels. First, there's the sheer fun of the project he conceived, to create a skull a day for a year. Then there are the wonderful and unexpected materials he came up with for creating his skulls - everything from organic produce to bed sheets to human hair and toothpaste. Noah's photography of his skulls is great, as are the accompanying insightful and funny descriptions of what went into the making of them. Finally, his opening chapter, in which he ponders the nature of death and how we view it in our society, is interesting and thought provoking. In short, a wonderful, whimsical, creative little gem of a book that I've already shown to a bunch of friends who love it.

I came across this book without any prior interest in skulls, but I must say I was truly amazed and like the book very much. Lots of surprise images and apparent talent. Friends and family who pick it up on our coffee table are surprised, fascinated and intrigued.

I love this delightful creation! I followed the online skull-a-day project and wondered how it would translate into print. The answer is: beautifully. The format is visually and physically satisfying,the image reproduction is rich and of course it's such a brilliant concept to begin with, a skull each day of different materials, from simple to complex constructions, each shows the designer's range of versatility. And as well as an adult appreciation, kids love it: I gave a copy to a 10 year old friend and he was fascinated from the moment he got his mitts on it. The combination of the classic skull theme with creative treatment makes this a wonder for all ages and temperaments.

This is really a great little book. Scalin's solutions to the enormous task he set for himself are ingenious, engaging, fun, and frequently beautiful. He seems adept at just about any media he lays his hands on. I personally find the sequential, temporal nature of the project inspiring: what could every one of us accomplish if we all decided to do just one thing extremely well every day?

This is an excellent book for artists fo all kinds. Our company has a library we make available to Production Designers - this is a great addition.

A luscious collection of photographs of beautiful colors and textures to inspire any artist/designer and be used as reference again and again.

There are nice collection of the samples.You can enjoy to look through them.

This book is one of the best references for any designer and painter in the industry. Color Photos are amazing and complete. I have been wanting to purchase it for years now and am very glad to add it to my collection. All of her books are worth having in any artists library.

I think I was a little hard on Judy Juracek with reference to the included CD. What Ms. Juracek has done in the way of cataloguing is nothing short of miraculous and one should not expect that every image on the CD would be photographed dead on and shadow-perfect. I was just really irked by the image quality of a CD I had such high hopes for. I purchased this book when it first came out for a Hundred Dollars retail but the price I now see listed online seems almost a steal for the treasure trove contained within.

In any case, A recent search reveals that even more books in the series have been written by the author and I'm excited to purchase these as well--let's hope the image quality has improved on the included CDs for the new millenium we're in. I guess you could still expect "middlin'" quality for an image CD produced back in the "stoneage" of the 90's. The book is GREAT!

This book is an excellent tool to expand your understanding of taijiquan. Mr. Rodell gives an excellent insight into the internal world of the martial arts. This book is not written by an external artist pretending to be an internal master, but by a pure practitioner of neigong.

the auther had a good approach to making it short simple and to the point

Scott Rodell shares his experiences, insights, and knowledge of taijiquan very openly in this appropriately titled book. There is a sense that much of the text was hand-written after a good practice or mini-revelation. It is casual in this sense, but also well organized, with an excellent balance in discussing the principes, personal thoughts and daily experiences with the art. There is a also a very strong sense of history, not to preach, but to strive to bring the art back to where it should be.

This book is the real deal. There's a great deal of wisdom in a very small package. I hightly recommend this book to anyone who is serious about their taiji.

I have been studying Tai Chi Chuan for over 10 years and have read several book on Tai Chi Chuan, finding most of them to be a dissapointment. Very few books on the subject, especially recent ones, actually discuss how to approach the practice of Tai Chi Chuan in such great detail as this book. It is small, concise, and ultimately cuts to the heart of Tai Chi practice and philosophy. There is an amazing amount of detail and breakdown of concepts that are often (intentionally) left vague or not discussed in other works, and the insights revealed are invaluable. This is an author who has steeped himself in the tradition, the culture, and the classics of the art, and made them completely accessible to modern practitioners. Along the way, Mr. Rodell has cut through the mysticism and hype, offering critiques of and solutions to the common mistakes of modern practice
I'll try not to duplicate too much of what others have written about this book as I agree with them, and would highly recommend this book to practitioners of any level. As with all great teachings, the information presented carries layers of meaning that grow with the practitioners understanding of the material. As others have said, this is the real deal.

I fell in love with Tord Boontje when I saw his Midsummer Light. Since then, I have scoured the internet for his other pieces and have only come to love his work even more. It's very ethereal, whimsical, and feminine in an airy, fairy tale kind of way.

I bought this book now knowing exactly what to expect, but it is gorgeous. It is obvious that a lot of thought when into creating this book, from the numerous photographs and extensive text to the textured cover and punched designs. The thought and design that went into this book reflect his overall aesthetic very well.

I enjoyed seeing photos of his work, his studio, his family, and his installations. The text gave a lot of information about his childhood and how he became to be a designer. I only wish there had been MORE pictures and MORE information on his creative process.

The only down side to this book: it's pretty heavy and when I put it on my lap, my legs get numb after about fifteen minutes!

This book is pretty, yea, I'll give it that and agree with the other reviewers. It has innovative text stock and cover treatments. Otherwise, I've seen better "design" books that spark all sorts of inspiration. I guess because I didn't know of the artist before purchasing, I wasn't that impressed. If I had known who he was and was a fan of his work, it probably would have been better received. Oh well, I still kept the book...why not.

This is an absolutely exquisite book, anyone interested indesign would love it..I love every single page. it is now a prized on show possession!!Thanks Amazon i saved more than half the price too by buying this beautiful book from you..you have a new life customer who looooves lovely books....

Tord Boontje is one of my favorite designers. For me this book showcases his collection in such a gorgeous manner it is a delight to read.
I highly recommended this if you have an interest in Tord Boontje and design, or if you just love beautiful books.

Great book by a great artist! a must on a designer's shelve!
Inpirational, beutiful, colorfull, simple - it has it all!
A very strong recommendation.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

There is something interesting about a fairy with attitude. Vidia is not one of the nicest fairies but she is still interesting. In fact she seems to make an appearance in every book. Also, Vidia's conflict with the Queen sort of humorous. This was a good mini quest.

My nine year old daughter loves fairy books about Tinkerbell and her friends. She absolutely devours them as soon as I get them. What a boost for her imagination!

We own all of this series! Started reading them when my daughter was 4 (she just turned 5 now), and they are age appropriate. Not too scary and always a happy ending. One book only takes us about 4-5 nights worth of reading together. The longer ones are good too "Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg" and "Fairy Haven and the Quest for the Wand", but they are a little bit scarrier than the short books (more appropriate for ages 5-7 I would think).

The is a great book for in-between readers--my five year old daughter is not quite ready for regular chapter books, but feels too old for picture books. She has been a frustrated and apathetic listener recently, but absolutely loved this book and asked me every hour to read more. My seven year old son overheard me reading it to her and joined in--and he loved it! Both kids have begged to get more books from this series. They are a great mix of wonderful color pictures, interesting story, and writing that appeals to a broad range of pre and elementary school kids.

Hi well to start I read this and a lot of the other disney fairy books and this one is my favorite. I guess I like it the best cause it's kinda a mystery and I love mysterys and it's about Vidia my favorite fairy. The only problem I can see is it's a short novel and I like long ones. But overall I like this book gotta go hope this was helpful Brooke.

I am in the process of reading this book, and find its discussion of color one of the best I've read. It makes clear why you'd want to use particular color schemes or colors, & the color problems that mixing some paints can produce. The only caveat that I have so far is that she appears to use aureolin and alizarin crimson and maybe rose madder which have questionable lightfastness for fine art--though they are very lovely pigments.

Other color books you might like to check out are Leland, Nita Exploring Color: How to Use and Control Color in Your Painting, Ames, Jim Color Theory Made Easy: A New Approach to Color Theory and How to Apply It to Mixing Paints, or Steven Quiller's Color books Color Choices: Making Color Sense Out of Color Theory or Painter's Guide to Color

-- Mick

She exhibits an enthusiasm to try different color combinations than you might not have tried before. Very important to have someone who has as much experience as she has to encourage you to experiment. Nicely done.

This is a clear and concise review of different watercolors and their properties. It is well written and understandable with many examples and lesson illustrated in the book. It is a must for any artist who uses watercolor whether they are a beginner or more advanced in the use of color.

I just read the reviews of my book for the first time and am really so appreciative and pleased! As a teacher, the purpose of this book was to share what I've learned - hoping that I could write it and show it and communicate it. It looks like it works - and that is the greatest pleasure possible for me. The book took me two years to write and paint - but two years well spent. Hope some of you readers will visit my website, [...] - and come to a workshop! I'd love to meet you!!!

Ditto the above reviews.
Jan Hart has painted and written an excellent book on color. I would say one of the top 2 or 3 I have found during 30 plus years of painting and study, and I have read and studied a lot of them. Constant insightful tips of using color, constant color circles painted with sets of pigments, very specific as to the colors used. Many, many color examples and paintings further clarify the well-written text. Frequently there are 3 or more color illustrations on a single page, all of them with Jan's crystal clean and clear, beautiful watercolors (except there are some included paintings by other artists). Every serious watercolorist should own, read, and study this book. It is much more valuable that its selling price.