Artists Books

I was very satisfied with my purchase. I was also impressed by the speedy delivery time from Amazon.
Regards,
Craig Taylor

Beautiful Turner book with many colour reproductions, excellent chronology. Flawless work! Highly recommended Thames & Hudson art monograph.

Excellent reproductions that will knock your socks off. Also, interesting read.

I checked this book out at my local library. It is so good, I'm going to buy it. While I knew who Turner was and had seen one or two reproductions of his work in books about other, later artists, I had seen little of his work and knew nothing about him before reading this book. It has been an absolutely wonderful introduction and has spurred me to look for more about Turner's art. There are something like 168 reproductions of oil paintings, watercolors, and drawings; most of them are large and in color; all of them are outstanding. I have looked at them in awe. The great landscape painter is himself a marvel. His prodigious talent revealed itself very early (by age 11 at least) and was recognized by his father, a London barber. He hung his son's paintings in the window of his barbershop with prices attached. Thus, Turner was a professional from childhood. In as much he was blessed with a reasonably long, healthy, and extremely productive life as well as extraordinary creativity which increased, rather than decreased with age, Turner left the world with a huge treasure-trove of great art. Stylistically it spans the period from the Old Masters of the seventeen century to the Expressionists, and in my view, towards the end of his career, it verges on Abstract Expressionism.

This book is a biography of the artist as he was perceived during his life. Thus, it is filled with an abundance of quotations from contemporary sources, which serves to make Turner a very real and likeable, though very prickly, man. However, the emphasis is on the pictures. Wilton is a Turner scholar. His discussion is well-informed, without being pedantic or impenetrably academic. He has appended lists of the contents of Turner's house/studio and the contents of his library, which were made after his death, a bibliography, and an index of the pictures included in the book, which identifies their locations.

Arranged chronologically the book is divided into six chapters; chapter one covers the first twenty five years of Turner's life with the other five chapters covering ten years each. Well written and very readable the text provides an insight into Turner the man and Turner the artist, and includes numerous quotations from Turner and his contemporaries; it succeeds among other things in bringing alive the artist as a person.

Concluding the book is an extensive Chronology; Inventory of the Late Residence of J.M.W. Turner; Turner's Library; Bibliography; a detailed List of Illustrations and an Index.

The book is fully illustrated throughout, with the images usually on or close to the page on which they are discussed. In total there are 186 illustrations of which 164 are in colour. The illustrations not in colour are mostly engravings and the like, period photographs or the work of other artists. The majority of the illustrations of Tuner's work are full page (or as large as the picture format will allow on the page with a margin), with some full-page or page-and-half bleed images along with a few double page images. There are a few actual-size details of paintings; very informative. The quality of the pictures is excellent, often revealing the texture of the paint, and the colour very good. Very usefully each picture is accompanied by a brief description or commentary, but irritatingly not with the details of the pictures dimensions; surely with the great range in size of Turner's work these should be included alongside the image, (there are of course to be found in the List of Illustrations).

This is a large handsome volume, almost square in format, which provides a very good survey of the artist and his work. It covers all aspects of Tuner's output, including his oils, water colours and examples from his sketch-books. The choice of work ranges from the very well known to the "I didn't know Turner painted that!" Very interesting are the few examples of his very early work, including a water colour produced when he was about eleven years old. Providing as it does a comprehensive overview of the artist and his work, this is a very worthwhile publication.

This is a hero. Really. Anybody that can come through all he did-and laugh about it-MUST be a hero. I rather expected to be bored when I saw how long it was going to take him to actually get to the prison camp. Uh uh. Not at all.

As a member of the younger generation, I take off my hat (if I wore one) to Bill Ash. He has a brilliant sense of humor-and yet doesn't belittle or diminish the severity of his situation. Something that could very accurately be called a fire, despite the clichedness (word?) of that phrase, is conveyed, very modestly, as burning inside of him. Somehow he gives some of it to the reader-that calmness, that strength. If he can go through all of that-and not be bitter-surely I won't complain about all the little molehills bothering me. Right?

However, even all of this might not be enough to commend a book, some books that should by all rights be amazing aren't. But Bill Ash and Brendan Foley together make something magnificent.

In summation:
Amazing book. Couldn't put it down. Don't miss it.

I was ill and needed some light reading and found this on the cheap rack at my local bookstore. As one who's best memory growing up was reading The Great Escape I'd read most accounts of those involved. I didn't think a peripheral player in that drama would have anything new or give much insight but I was wrong. His strength was escaping but you read where he probably lacked a bit on the other side of the wire. It's to the readers' benefit.

Ash doesn't waste the readers time with unnecessary personal history but that which he shares is interesting - especially the parts about riding the rails as a college graduated hobo. He was one of the earliest Americans to go to Canada and volunteer. His perspective of his training is unique and you get an Americans perspective of what life was like living in England during the darkest days of WWII. When he finally gets shot down he gets very lucky then unlucky. His account of his interrogation/torture is more detailed than what I've read in most other POW stories.

His time as a POW though is the real meat and potatoes of the story. What's truly insightful and interesting are his profiles of the early escapers. I was fascinated with his description of the original Big X (Pre-Roger Bushell), Jimmy Buckley who was unfortunately killed - it's touched on in the Great Escape. Getting the idea that escape would be easier from an NCO POW camp, he made the switch and his account there provides some original and amazing stories. I thought the NCO's would not have been as resourceful as the officers but this book proved me wrong. The NCO's were some of the most colorful and inventive escapers of the war. Certainly more needs to be written on their experience. Particularly the story of the incredibly heroic George Grimson was worth the book alone. I've had to re-read his story in the book a few times.

One mass escape at the NCO camp was amusing. The POW's fooled the Germans into believing none had escaped, then only those caught were missing and so on until the Germans became thoroughly confused. The POW's even fooled the Gestapo many times without serious recrimination.

Ash's final days as a POW are some of the best, most descriptive I've read and he ends to book perfectly. I enjoyed the easy prose and his is a story that deserves all the acclaim it gets.

"Under The Wire" by William Ash (with Brendan Foley). Sub-titled, "The World War II Adventures Of A Legendary Escape Artist And `Cooler King'". St. Martin's Press, New York 2005.

William Ash was raised in Depression-Era Texas, where he learned the hard way that life is rough. Those lessons stood him in good stead when he became an expert escape artist from the POW camps of Nazi Germany. As he said, on page 22, his "twilight actives" prepared him by: "...being an unwelcome nonpaying passenger, learning how to avoid the attention of guard dogs or the authorities, sharing food and political discussions with men just as badly off as myself , and sometimes just learning to laugh in the face of everything the world could throw at me." He calls his younger days as "An Apprenticeship In Escapology".

Building on the first two chapters, he then relates the story of his decision to fly for the RAF, his aviation training, first in Canada, and then in the actual combat zone in England during the Blitz. Because of his flying for the RAF, he had to renounce his American citizenship. There are vivid descriptions of London under the bombs, with destruction and fire seemingly everywhere. Then comes the chapter that changes everything: "The Day Of Reckoning". (page 85): "I cut my engine, since it was clearly full of holes and not doing much good".

Shot down over occupied France, William Ash is helped by some French farmers, who struggle with his high school French but help him to find the underground resistance. He is, however, captured in Paris in June 1942, but not before he was able to enjoy the city of Paris as any tourist would do. The bulk of the book, from page 101 (the capture) to page 307 (his return to London) deals with his experiences with German Prisoner Of War system. The Gestapo threatens to shot him as a spy, as he is in civilian clothes, etc. He is "rescued" from the Gestapo by the Luftwaffe, as the German Air Force claimed all air force type POWs as their responsibility. Ash then relates his travels from camp to camp, through bombed out German cities, and finally arriving in a POW camp about as far East as the Reich went. His escape attempts are recorded in detail and his punishments, each time he was re-captured, made him, as the book flap recounts, the "real-life `cooler king'". This book documents a real-life "Great Escape" story.

The subject matter for this book sounds grim: Ash starts off talking about life in the Great Depression, and ends up talking about his experiences being thrown into (and escaping out of) German POW camps. In fact, though, this is one of the most thrilling, funny, suspenseful and inspiring books I've read in some time. Ash's optimism, indomitable spirit, and wonderful sense of humor got him through the war, and they're all on display on just about every page.

Ash is also a keen observer--a trait that no doubt helped him pull off his daring escapes, and one that enables him to bring the characters he met along the way to vivid life.

In short, "Under The Wire" reads like a great thriller. The fact that it's all true makes it all the more gripping and inspiring.

When I began reading UNDER THE WIRE, I expected a story of heroic "derring-do", recalled with a sort of misty, stiff-upper lipped nostalgia by a Grand Lion in the winter of his remarkable life.

Instead, I got so, so much more.

Bill Ash's life is remarkable by anyone's yardstick. From his earliest childhood in Depression-era Texas, he was a hero, ready and eager to take on any bully. While America watched as Europe fell to a maniacal Hitler, he made a decision to personally take on the biggest bully in modern history.

Remarkable? Brave? Courageous? Yes, all of these adjectives describe the heroic life of Bill Ash.

But his life, and his story -- told so extraordinarily well by Ash and his co-writer, Brendan Foley -- is also funny, human and a lesson in living one's life with heart and a true moral compass.

There is as much Huck Finn and Jack Kerouac in Ash's war stories, as there is John Wayne.

Like all great tales of history, UNDER THE WIRE does more than offer adventure after adventure (and WOW, what adventures Bill had!)

The book offers a sense of the times, a sense of the politics, insights into the dangers, the choices, the cat-and-mouse existence of a Prisoner of War.

Bill played cat-and-mouse with the Third Reich, and did it brilliantly.

And I have never read an adventure story with so much genuine humor!

UNDER THE WIRE is a glorious tribute to the sort of person we long for, but never really see anymore: a true hero.

And it's a great, entertaining read.

Published to accompany the exhibition "Unknown Territory: The Landscape of Andrew Wyeth" organised by the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1998, following the introduction two essays discusses the critical appraisal of the artist, his approach to his work and his painting methods; the easy are illustrated throughout in colour and black and white. The catalogue of work runs from pages 51 to 199. The book concludes with a further essay which includes a number of comments by the artist. There is also a list of works included in the exhibition but no bibliography.

In total there are approaching 200 illustrations, with the vast majority being in full colour, although the restrained nature of Wyeth's palette does not make this immediately apparent even in the main section of plates. The landscape format of the book accommodates well the predominantly similarly proportioned paintings and drawings, however sometimes the image is reproduced rather small relative to the page size.

A very useful publication which well demonstrates the range of the artist's output even with the designation of landscape.

If this were a hardbound edition (it may exist?) it would sell for an expensive price. The color plates, index and footnotes are exquisitely designed and printed in this softbound catalog edition. Anecdotes are plentiful, critical examination controversial, but this catalog of Wyeth's work is beautifully presented and great fun to examine. The words of critics are always oddly out of place and hard to swallow and fortunately there aren't many critic's editorials contained here. It's the dozens and dozens of paintings that are in this book-exquisite! As many of A.W.'s pieces were of a comparatively large dimension-as far as water-based works go, the plates do not capture the spatial and color phenomena of these paintings, but this is as good as it gets-next to a visit to a museum to view them "live!" One would be hard-pressed to find this many unpublished, heretofore unexhibited Wyeth pieces under one roof! A very enjoyable publication!

A collection containing a number of stunning watercolors loosely executed, rarely included in a book of Wyeth's works. Also includes many of his more labored tempera paintings.

The staff of the Whitney Museum for a 1998 Wyeth exhibition compiled this beautifully printed and bound book. The stock is heavy and glossy and the colors sharp and clear. Many watercolors included have not been publicly seen for years, as many private collectors contributed their paintings for this exhibition. The dates of the compositions range from the early 30's through the late 90's.

The two most recognized American artists of the 20th Century are Andys-Wyeth and Warhol, and they have more in common than their initials. Both are controversial and neither is as "realistic" as accused and/or categorized.

My enjoyment of Andrew Wyeth was never diminished by the fact that I had a lot of company. Popularity does not necessarily mean inferiority in spite of what the self-consuming art world tells us. True, you have to have a certain fondness for bleak settings to properly take pleasure in most of the paintings. I often idly wondered if Wyeth ever painted landscapes in spring or summer and why he was so enamored of bare earth and beige and brown compositions. I have never seen as many abstracts as are contained in this book.

The essays in the book are interesting, but not so prevalent as to overshadow the marvelous prints. My only complaint is the book is an unhandy shape, longer than it is tall, making it difficult to shelve. However, this is minor. Many hours of viewing pleasure are in store.

When you view the work of an artist, who is to be the arbiter of what, in this case the painting is about, what it means? Do you turn to the Professional Art Critic, Art History Majors, you the viewer, or the man or woman who created the work? In this case the Artist is well and painting, and his thoughts about his work are many and well documented.

This book on the paintings of Andrew Wyeth focuses primarily on the media of watercolor and drybrush as opposed to the egg tempera paintings that are the medium for so many of his most famous works. Mr. Wyeth takes up to 6 months for a tempera work, and completes as few as 2-4 a year. The images in this book are produced by the hundreds, and over his career amount to literally thousands of images. This book discusses and publishes many images that have never been publicly shown, and uses this body of work to advance various ideas.

The book is a valuable addition to those who are admirers of his work, the opinions that are expressed by people other than the artist, are either critical to the book on one extreme, or mostly ridiculous from where I sit.

Andrew Wyeth has been a target for the self-proclaimed tastemakers of Art for one reason; his art is widely admired, collected, and highly valued. These elements automatically qualify him for criticism that is so absurd; it adds a comedic aspect to the text. Then there are those who do love his work but feel they must demonstrate that, yes, he is what the critics say he is not, and even more!

The text did help me understand more about the method by which Mr. Wyeth creates these works, and the role they sometimes play in a major tempera piece. I loved his work before this book, and will continue to regardless of what "they" have to say. The only individual whose comments matter are Mr. Wyeth's. His thoughts are documented; I don't see the need for others to presume they know better than he what he paints, and what his intent was when he created the work.

The book is great for the new images it brings to the public. Everything about the construction of the book is as good as you will find in a commercial publication, and the color plates are excellent. As to the text, that is left for you to decide, I am placing the stars above for the Artist and his work, not for what others have to say about it.

Needed book for a class. I received it early and fast. I would buy from this seller again.

An incredibly thorough examination, making hundreds of original interpretations of the individual works of Duchamp as well as his body of work as a whole. Throughout I was charmed by Judovitz'sense of humor and punnery which reflects that of Duchamp. A real treat for readers, writers and artists like myself.

Dalia Judovitz has written a challenging, stimulating and exhaustively researched book on Duchamp. Her take on many aspects of Duchamp's career is fresh and imaginative, as for example in her close reading of his word play and ready-mades. After the comprehensive studies of Duchamp's ready-mades by Antin, Bauer, Caws, Compton, de Duve, James et al this is very impressive.

A key chapter on Art and Economics, cultural and economic value, as one Duchamp scholar observes, "opens up a whole new area of investigation. Her discussion of the Monte-Carlo Bond and the less well known Drain Stopper which she cleverly compares to Renaissance Art Medals will intrigue all those who are seriously interested in Duchamp.

This is a book to be read and re-read.

Unpacking Duchamp is a highly innovative and breakthrough investigation into Duchamp's transformations of the conditions and status of twentieth-century art, art making, and art viewing. Judovitz approaches Duchamp's "oeuvre" from many interrelated angles, offering detailed and illuminating analyses of individual works, all the while contextualizing her discussions through considerable research and erudition. Her mode of inquiry is at once historical and philosophical -- perfect for the study of Duchamp. Intellectually refined, the book is clear, well-written, with many dashes of humor.

Unpacking Duchamp will appeal to culture critics, historians, and theoreticians, as well as to artists and writers. It is a must read for anyone interested in the contemporary conditions of art.

With so much of the literature available on Marcel Duchamp offering accounts that neither seem to fully resonate with the evidence of the work or with the spirit of the artist himself, I find Unpacking Duchamp to be a refreshing exception. Not only does this book live up to its title's promise of showing us how to "unpack" the master's enigmatic thinking, it does so with such wit and grace that I suspect even he would tip his hat to its author. Taking a body of his work that often appears overly difficult and elusive to enter into, Ms. Judovitz does the nearly impossible, gently prying it open in ways that are beautifully lucid, accessible, and free of jargon, yet, entirely up to the challenge of her ever-moving subject. She constructs readings of the work that go beyond analysis and interpretation to become aesthetic acts in their own right --- reciprocating one that generously enable her readers to enter into and perform their own Duchampian thinking, in ways that genuinely illuminate and bring it to life. This is potentially Duchamp's most important legacy to us but an aspect of his work that often seems poorly understood by many specialists.

In short, I'm extremely glad to finally have a book like this, and I look forward to rereading it in the future. If you are considering it, I would say that it's a challenging read, but one I would strongly recommend if you are at all interested in Duchamp or just interested in exploring an extraordinary mode of thought and creativity. While I do have some knowledge of twentieth-century art, this was not really essential to my appreciation of the book. Its interest and appeal should be broad-based and not limited to either an art audience or one of largely academic interests.

This book was stunning, and much better than expected. Not only did I learn much more about Van Gogh than I could have learned anywhere else, but the quality of the artwork and photographs is outstanding. Details of Van Gogh's paintings are so fine that the brushwork is highly visible. The photos are so well composed, they could be used as practice for reproducing with oils. Photos include not only gardens and plants that Van Gogh knew and painted, but also gardens and designs for gardens that the author planted according to Van Gogh's ideas. All of Fell's books are great (I am getting quite a collection), but he really outdid himself with this one.

Photography and an artistic view of the garden by a true gardener. This is the path to paradise for anyone who wants escape from the urban jungle. Even if you can't own a garden, you can imagine your own secret garden with the influence of Vincent Van Gogh.

Derek Fell is a fine photographer and a fine writer about things horticultural. In VAN GOGH'S GARDENS he marries these talents and in doing so has produced a unique book that is bound to fascinate lovers of gardens, Van Gogh devotees, art collectors and museum visitors, and just about everyone who delights in understanding the motivations of artists when viewing their subjects.

Fell selects particular paintings by Van Gogh then shows the point of inspiration by photographing the areas visited by van Gogh in his lifetime. Yes, there are the ubiquitous sunflowers, comparing the flowers to the canvas versions of them. But there are also the trees that are part of van Gogh's legacy rarely mentioned. His twisted trunks and branches of olive trees side by side with Fell's gorgeous photographs of the particular types of olive trees that inspired the painter create an art course for the astute observer. His lilac bushes/trees that mesmerized the artist are shared as are the many plants the artist interpreted.

Balancing fine photography with excellent reproductions of canvases is an art in itself and Derek Fell has created not only a visual splendor but writes with the depth of a horticulturalist's knowledge that makes this beautiful volume all the more seductive. A very fine addition to the literature on van Gogh. Grady Harp, November 06

This lavish book of lush photographs has won Derek Fell another award - the Garden Globe Award for Best Photographer from the Garden Writers Association of America. Derek was one of only five individuals selected out of a field of more than 300 entries to receive a 2002 Garden Globe Award for work produced during 2001. This award could easily make Derek the winner of more awards from Garden Writers than any other garden communicator. The book was selected by a panel of garden communication experts - some Pulitzer Prize winners themselves -- who look for the best books, magazines, writers and photographers in the country. This book is more than a collection of beautiful photographs. Derek uses the painter's personal interpretations, color theory and painting techniques to inspire you to re-create van Gogh's breathtaking paintings in your own backyard. Derek even includes tips on creating the picture perfect van Gogh garden of your own, complete with a list of van Gogh's favorite plants. To view all the Garden Globe Awards...

This book is a great combination of learning about Van Gogh as an articulate gardener, nature lover, and color connoisseur as well as the artist as we already know him. It is a touching story told in a way that allows us to understand how Van Gogh used all these parts of his life and about the intensity with which he lived. His incredible appetite and curiosity about color combinations, the thought that went behind his choices of plants using color and texture as guide, and how he shared these experiences in letters to family. The pictures are gorgeous and yes, it has had an effect on the garden I am currently working on. How can one not be influenced by such genius. My thoughts on what goes into my garden & color perspective will forever be somewhat different, and made better, for having read this book. This book will give everyone who reads it a different way of looking at all gardens, plants, trees - and their selection of all these for their own garden.

Out of curiosity I started reading Van Gogh's abridged letters (Dear Theo) and got confused who the main characters were in his life. So I bought this biog on a whim . . . and couldn't put it down. I even cried at the end. Sweetman is a terrific writer. He helped me figure out not only the difference between "K" and "Cent" and "Sein" and the artists he hung with and the Doctors who attended him off and on throughout his tortured life, but Sweetman helped me make sense of impressionism and post impressionism, the "solon" system which made the independent galleries so radical (and necessary) and much more. Despite the inclusion of great photos of many of Van Gogh's drawings and paintings, like the letters, this book is best read if one has a picture collection close by so one knows what painting is being discussed. Interestingly, VVG chronicled his life in such detail that biographers like Sweetman can easily track his whereabouts for nearly all of his 37 years. Sweetman distills the 600+ letters in which VVG ruminated to his brother Theo about art, women, religion, poverty, color, what the grass looked like after a rain, etc etc etc. Great job, Sweetman! Thank you.

I read this book several years ago and it taught me so much about art, life, love and passion that Sweetman's biography resonates in me still. Vincent is the most famous artist on the planet today and so much has been written about him. But David Sweetman really took the time to update so much information - just as he did in Gauguin's biography - that you learn so much more by reading this book. I recommend it to everyone who wants to understand about mental illness and all the stigma that goes with it. Vincent was very brave to rise above his pain and blessed the world with so much beauty and colour. This text refers to the hardcover book.

If you want to know Vincent... this is the best book out there. Sweetman is thorough and empathetic and like the Don McLean song, lovingly writes through Vincent's eyes.

The review above is absolutely right. This is one of the best biographies of Van Gogh out there. Sweetman's approach is thoughtful and well researched. This biography has proven to be an invaluable reference for my own Van Gogh research. I hope that the publisher of this book will consider reprinting it. It's a real shame that Sweetman's excellent book isn't easily available to anyone interested in Vincent van Gogh's life and art.

I read just about every biography of Vincent van Gogh I can get my hands on, and this is by far one of if not the best I've ever come across. David Sweetman writes with a thoughful consideration to the life of Vincent beyond the popular label of a "mad genius" and delves into the soul of this brilliant man. Vincent was a generous, loving human being with such capacity for giving that he bewildered those around him, that he was mistaken as insane, and cast aside. Mr. Sweetman does not dwell uneccesarily on the events which biographers today are so captivated by-the ear thing, the Gauguin thing, etc. This was a man who tried to find his place in the world as a not just a painter, but hopefully a husband and father, as well. This book brings to light the devotion of Theo, and, after Vincent's and her husband's deaths, the devotion of Jo. The surprising friendship of Signac, and the not so surprising mental instability of the Dr. Gachet. It is a shame that this book is out print, because it is a fascinating read for not only lovers of Vincent, for readers of biographies in general. It is well worth the search.

If you are looking for a contemporary painter, whose craft is stunning and vision leaves you speachless, you have arrived. His love and understanding of representational imagery along with a gentle gift of irony and pathos is boundless. Gorgeous and worth every penny. The quality of printing and the design and presentation of the artist work gives you everything you could want when exploring Vincent Desidario's intimate and emotional world.

This is an excellent book covering Vincent Desiderio's work for those years mentioned on the title. My favorite subject is his own son, Samuel, who has been an inspiration to us all he has touched.

Excellent book, is a MUST, unbelievable artist, is a response to many people that surrender instead of confronting life problems, he simply takes this raw material to create ART, and he does it in a way only comparable with greatest of old times : Rembrandt, Velázquez & Caravaggio.
Photographs are amazing, the price is just a low contribution to what I have got buying the book
A modern figurative painter should buy it immediately !!!
Vincent Desiderio is undoubtedly a great master of our age, sorry : of our culture, time does not matter in this assertion

Vincent Desiderio's first major book - something many of his admirers have waited for some time to finally see - is fulfilling on a number of levels. The expansive, richly formatted book is a joy to hold and flip through. The images are given plenty of space and there are many fold-outs for larger works. This is definitely a studio book, a teaching book - perfect for in-class discussion as well as personal reflection.

The three texts in the book (two essays on specific works, one interview), provide a great insight into the ways and means of the artist's work. The in depth looks at specific works afford the reader/viewer with new perspectives on Desiderio's entire body of work, and offer rewards for more lengthy consideration of the poetic vision within each work.

The depth of Desiderio's engagement with his process, ideas, and the history of painting is both awe-inspiring and daunting. He is a master of his craft and a deft intellectual, able to very precisely describe what he's trying to do while never losing the absolute primacy of the act of painting. In many ways he is a conceptual artist and the facture of oil painting his most potent expressive tool, yet his intuitive responsiveness, his sensitivity to the nuances of the creative work - what happens that we can't plan - is so refreshing. The interview Donald Kuspit conducts with Desiderio is a real treat. It reflects an artist both deeply intellectual and sincerely feeling; yes, we can be both.

This book is absolutely essential for anyone interested in what's happening in figurative painting today.

Were there a possibility of a 10 Star rating, this book would easily qualify! As produced by Marlborough Gallery and published by Distributed Art Publishers, Inc. VINCENT DESIDERIO PAINTINGS 1975 - 2005 is everything a fine art monograph should be: entertaining, informative, spiritually moving, and visually illuminating.

Vincent Desiderio is one of our finest contemporary artists in America. His long and successful career has been marked by restoring life to figurative painting, creating canvases that do not shy away from social comment, philosophical investigations, or creative explorations. His paintings vary from small works on paper to huge canvases, vast triptychs, and deeply felt personal statements from drawing to canvas. He has managed to address the human spirit, the plight of survival in a society not always friendly, matters of destiny, of altered life, of illness, of death, and other tragedies and heroisms. His own son Sam born with a devastating birth defect is the subject of a series of now famous paintings that speak of suffering in a very personal way. There is nothing maudlin in his repeated paintings of Sam: what is projected is the love a father and the innocence of a child born into suffering but somehow negating the negative aspects of it all.

As if the generous number of illustrations of over one hundred of Desiderio's works weren't sufficient alone to move the reader, the book is greatly enhanced by sensitive essays by Lawrence Wechsler who wisely opens the book with a well illustrated tale of Desiderio's 'Sleep', a painting 96.5" X 288" that belongs to Seven Bridges Foundation in Greenwich, CT - the still titled 'work in progress' says volumes about the artist and the man; by Mia Fineman; and interview with the artist by Donald Kuspit, and a closing evaluation by Barry Schwabsky based on a painting 'Cockaigne' which summarizes all the influences in Desiderio's artistic mind.

The glory of this book is not only that it finally pays tribute to a brilliant genius of a painter, but that it also takes the time to include quality reproductions including five gate fold expansive depictions of his huge canvases. Words of praise fail: this book about this artist is one of the finest books to be printed in 2005. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, December 2005

I was so thrilled to discover these posters. Bought them and showed them to my eldest daughter last year before her baby shower. We framed 9 of them for her daughter's nursery and they are wonderful. Perfect subjects and colors to add that special touch to a nursery. These will be saved for future generations to use. We just love them. Can't say enough good things about them. Love this style.

This is a truly stunning collection of images. Great for a new baby gift, perfect for framing. The quality of the prints is excellent, and the pictures are sweet without being sappy. They work for decorating a baby's room for boy or girl (or both---I gave them as a gift for a boy/girl set of twins).

I have purchased several of these books for gifts. Every person I have given it to has loved it! The posters are wonderful and are an easy addition to any nursery.

I bought this book as a gift for a friend with a new baby. She loved it so much that it is now my standard new baby gift. The posters can be framed and the look and feel is jst great.

Love this book of posters!! We are decorating our nursery in a nursery rhyme theme. I chose this book because of its vintage style. I was impressed when I received it. The poster pages are very thick and sturdy, similar to a very thick wall paper. We plan to frame them without glass, because they are textured as if they are already on canvas.

Amazon is great! Got the books fast and well-packaged. These books are amazing, and Amazon is amazing for getting them to me so fast, right before Christmas, and we are all very happy with the transaction. Thanks, Amazon!

In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, Grey's paintings are intellectually provocative, as they show human bodies as energy forms interacting with other energy forms.

This is an amazing collection. If you don't mind spending the money this is the best option for the complete Alex Grey experience. It comes with both of his books in beautiful hardcover format. They aren't just all of his pictures either. There are many, many side articles and writings with pictures describing many fascinating things about his life and works and other teachings. Plus, you get the 6 glossy drawings you can frame on your wall. The book contains close-ups of many of the paintings so you can see the incredible detail put into them. My only complaint is that the little lock on the outside of the whole hardcover casing can be hard to lock because of the books on the inside pushing out, but this is a minor detail. I highly recommend this for anyone craving the complete Alex Grey experience in hardcover.

The books are awesome for sure BUT I think Amazon should warn buyers that this "book" Visions is actually a hard case containing the books Transfigurations and Sacred Mirrors so that people don't buy both or all of them (as was the case here).
(In fact, on the Amazon page it is recommended to buy Visions and Transfigurations....)

These book and prints give you a very complete look at the amazing work of Alex Grey. He teaches through his paintings. You can't go wrong with this purchase!

Wyeth, Pyle and the others captivate my imagination and this book captures their mastery. Strongly recommended!

This book covers very well some of the most important people in American History. N.C. Wyeth,Howard Pyle, Dean Cornwell,Harvey Dunn, Frank Schoonover and Philip Goodwin have illustrated the turn of the 1800's to 1900's with the same spirited passion that bred our great country. It's this great passion that is given to the pictures that they created that seperates their work from photographs which are just taken. Looking at the Illustrations shows you that Pyle was successful in creating an American art which will always be a foundation for Illustrators to follow.

Visions Of Adventure surveys the arts of N.C. Wyeth and the Brandywine artists, providing a lavish display packed with color plates and paintings by Pyle, Wyeth, Dunn, and others. Histories and backgrounds of each featured work accompany the fold-out and full-page illustrations and make for an excellent review. Highly recommended.

Incredible collection of paintings and the stories that go along with them. Colorful with spectacular detail of the famous paintings of a time gone by. Amazing how the author was able to put together a collection of this magnitude. A must have for anyone who appreciates art. It is perfect as a gift to that special person you care about.

i m french so i say it with my word : c'est trés beau !