Studios Books

MAKING TRACKS: UNIQUE RECORDING STUDIO ENVIRONMENTS is a gorgeous display of unique recording studios which are all special, from million-dollar facilities spread over acres of land to small studios in cities. They are housed in all kinds of structures from modern office and new construction to old churches and sawmills, and the author interviews studio owners and users alike in a survey which considers the physical attributes of the recording environment. Color photos of interiors and exteriors compliment working analysis of how they were developed, architectural insights, and how they were engineered to craft a working studio environment. From insights on musicians who have recorded at these studios: their styles, their recordings, their memorable moments - to strategies for promoting both label and studio, MAKING TRACKS: UNIQUE RECORDING STUDIO ENVIRONMENTS is packed with involving discussions.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Man as Art is a stunning pictorial essay of face painting in Papua New Guinea. It's coffee table size format and razor sharp photographic resolution make the pictures breathtaking. The colors are vibrant and the lighting is outstanding.

I originally borrowed this book from the library, but I liked it so much I bought it. I was very sad to finish it. It is, by far, the best book about art/artists I have ever read. Manet just comes to life in Cachin's pages, and the color photos are phenomenal. You can see the brush strokes in some of them. I find it sad that so much of his work is outside France, as Cachin makes quite clear that his native country neither understood nor appreciated him during his lifetime. A great painter, I have come to love his work much more after reading this book. If you love art, don't pass this book by.

Young children will come away from this spiral book having learned fundamentals of printing upper and lower case letters. Using a dry erase marker, your child can master letter formation, size and slant of letters.

The surface of the pages are slick and reusable and the illustrations are fun and appealing to young learners. Whether your child is home-schooled or attends outside classes, this is a wonderful addition to the steps in perfecting a fundamental skill.

Taubes was a heavy weight in (international art museum level) technical knowledge re: oil painting/ old master techniques.
This book is a keeper for a serious oil painter's reference library. It gives all kinds of back up data, and formulas for mediums, glazes, varnishes etc....how to grind your own paints the right way, facts about opacity, archival data, drying data, brushes, palette knife techniques (how to use with glazes)
I'm a professional painter and I love this little book!

Here is a quote from my son, "Mom, can we do math now?" He was confused with math until we got this item. I have already bought the one for 2nd grade so we can use it next year. I love it, and more importantly, he loves it.

Unlike some of the other books about Ophuls, Bacher's book goes into what lay behind some of Ophuls' directorial decisions, the personalities of producers, editors, stars, etc. It is the book of scholarship that needs to be written about every director worth studying. This is the book you read BEFORE you start to consider what Ophuls is trying to communicate, what the meaning is of Ophuls films. The only drawback of the book is that it only goes into detail about Ophuls' four American films!
The biggest surprise was that the book was a pleasure to read. The personalities presented are real people. It is, despite the scholarly intention of the book, very fast reading. I found it too fast.... I will have to go back and read it again in order to write my own paper on Ophuls films!

MIchael Ian Chaplan

Ideal for people who are amused by merry pranks or people who are amused by the name Till Eulenspiegel.

So many books written today about jewelry tend to be heavy on beautiful images, but lacking in useful information. Toni Greenbaum's Messengers of Modernism is truly an exception. With its well written introduction, the author places these jewelers within the cultural context of their time, providing us with a glimpse of the creative environment that fostered such fabulous works. The book is profusely illustrated and highlights the careers of each jeweler/artist. The inclusion of period photos is an added bonus and hints of the artists' individual personalities. Messengers of Modernism is a valuable reference for anyone interested in this fascinating period of jewelry history.

Metal Corrugation by Patricia McAleer is an excellent tutorial on the subject of metal corrugation. The projects in the book have complete and detailed instructions and are very easy to follow. The projects can easily be completed by anyone with the most basic metalsmithing skills. Some of the projects can be done with inexpensive corrugators from craft supply stores. That is a real advantage for those that want to learn the techniques without investing lots of money. Ms. McAleer's source directory is excellent. The project photos and gallery photos are very well done and meant to inspire. I would recommend this book for anyone interested in metal work, from jewerly to sculpture.