Book Description

Over six decades, Lucian Freud has built up a reputation as one of the most distinctive contemporary figurative artists. Freud's startling and disconcerting portraits and nudes have a haunting quality that makes them impossible to forget. This stunning book brings together key works from Freud's entire career, including over 140 paintings, drawings, and etchings, some new, and many never before exhibited. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An In-Depth Survey of This Important Painter
LUCIEN FREUD is certainly one of the most talked about contemporary figurative artists around the world. Most people are familiar with his greater than life-sized portraits of corpulent male and female nudes and of his much talked about protraits of friends such as Francis Bacon and David Hockney. But few of us have been exposed to the gamut of this artist's output to the extent that this very fine book by William Feaver investigates the entire career of the grandson of Sigmund Freud.

The book is a catologue for the exhibition currently in Los Angeles, having opened in London and travelled to Barcelona. But to classify the scholarly and intensively detailed tome as an 'exhibition catalogue' simply does not do justice to the scope of this volume. The writing by Feaver is wise, witty, and thoroughly readable - the essay portion that opens the book is more a biography and an analysis of Freud's position in art history than a resume. The color reproductions are superb, spreading as they do across two pages for the very large paintings. As a catalogue the editors can be forgiven for not including sufficient 'detail views' that enhance understanding, but this is a minor point. The supporting data in the back of the book is as fine a catalogue raisonne as has been published to date.

Those of us fortunate enough to live in Los Angeles allowing multiple visits to this impressive exhibition can use Feaver's book as a Master Class on Lucien Freud. But the book stands alone in its mastery of the life and work of this exciting painter. Highly recommended.

At last ...
The definitive book on one of the greatest figurative painters of our time. The format is large enough (double paged, at times), the repros rich enough, and the scope comprehensive enough to properly capture a life/work as important as Lucian's. A must have.

Look into the work of Phil Hale ("Goad" from grantbooks.com), Odd Nerdrum (nerdrum.com) and Jenny Saville (geocities.com/craigsjursen/index.html) if you enjoy this artist. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A mammoth achievement
Not much more to add to what's already been said. This is a big investment of space as well as money, but I'm glad I have it, I've never seen an art book that compares, for Leonardo or any artist for that matter. Absolutely beautiful.

Without equal; without hyperbole....
Some books are good. Some are great. This one is profound! This is a prodigious quantity of Da Vinci's works in mostly large format and astonishing color. The subtleties found in his technique, his drawing materials, the toning due to age, are all given an immediacy and a life-like quality that is rarely achieved in reproduction. The drawings and studies are particularly interesting and appealing because of this. One is left in awe both by Da Vinci's work and Taschen's bold efforts in printing this monumental book. Taschen, always a good choice for art books both for their quality and extraordinary price advantage, has with the production of this book, added significantly to the literature on Da Vinci that is available to the average consumer. In all honesty, I don't know how they can produce and sell this book for less than $500. Its overall dimensions must be seen to be believed, weighing in at about 22 pounds! Start re-enforcing your bookshelves now. This is a proud addition to any library.

A Magnificent Addition to the Library on Leonardo Da Vinci
LEONARDO DA VINCI: THE COMPLETE PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS is a mammoth undertaking in concept and the product of this undertaking is physically mammoth! The very large, heavy tome sets out to explore the history of one of the greatest minds, artists, thinkers, and seers of all time and in doing so we are presented with all of the paintings down to the brushstroke, all of the drawings which include notes and paper quality, and the many writings of this giant of a man. Frank Zollner is an entertaining writer as well as a fine scholar. The facts are all (mostly) here and they are related in an enormously readable fashion. No dry data crunching here, just elegant prose that accompanies more visuals than you could ever imagine.

The three parts of the book are presented with equal importance: Part One is Da Vinci's life and his place in the historic and retrospective setting and contains many of his writings. Part Two is the catalogue raissone for the paintings, both those well known and extant and some images of paintings that no longer exist. Part Three is devoted to the fascinating drawings of just about every subject imaginable. Each is presented with grace, a touch of humor, and a sense of profound respect.

Other books on Da Vinci may boast better/more correct color reproduction and choices of cropping and layout, but for the sheer splendor of this great artist's output and influence on the world of art, religion, sociology and science, this book is going to be the benchmark for years to come. A magnificent book for your table and a particularly elegant gift for your friends!

A Glorious Complilation Of The Master's Work!
Leonardo Da Vinci epitomized the Renaissance humanist ideal. He possessed one of the greatest minds of all times. Painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, scientist, Da Vinci personified creative genius and had an immeasurable effect on modern culture. This compilation of his work, probably the most complete collection ever made, is spectacular. The reproductions are riveting.

Taschen has reproduced here Leonardo Da Vinci's 34 paintings in glorious color. The paper quality is excellent as is the binding. From "The Last Supper" to the "Mona Lisa," the paintings' details, even Da Vinci's brushstrokes, are clearly visible and exquisite. This 700 page book measures 22" X 17" when open and many of the artist's masterworks are shown with full page or double page details.

Frank Zollner biographical text is beautifully written and the book's first ten chapters explore Da Vinci's life, with excerpts from his letters, contracts and diaries. His painting are also discussed and interpreted here. A complete catalogue of Leonardo's paintings is included in Part II. Da Vinci's extraordinary talent as a draftsman is documented in the six hundred and sixty-three drawings which are presented in Part III. The drawings are arranged by categories, i.e., figures, anatomy, architecture, etc. Johannes Nathan's has written excellent commentary on Da Vinci's drawings and the artist's sensitive lines, both fine and bold, are truly a feast for the eyes.

"Leonardo Da Vinci: The Complete Paintings and Drawings" is one of the most visually stunning books I have ever seen. This was a "must have/must own" item for me, and I have spent many leisurely hours reading, perusing and enjoying this phenomenal collection. I can't think of a better gift for anyone who admires this master's works. This is a very rare and special book.
JANA

Hold on to your books on the paintings!
I was literally aghast when I opened this giant, lavish production to see page after page of the paintings bound right down the center and into the spine of the book. I can't imagine what the publisher was thinking. Tashen books are never really good books, but could they really exercise such poor judgement when using such a large amount of resources?

On the positive side, the drawings are excellently reproduced and are rarely split. Fortunately, they constitute the vast majority of the book. However, the book should be purchased for the drawings only. The treatment of the paintings is offensive. So much for a comprehensive source on Leonardo. Hold on to those books on the paintings, when you buy this one! ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (8)

ok, worth it cuz its cheap
This book is worth the money 'cuz its so cheap. The reproducions arent really that good, and there are some problems of provenance: the cover drawing attributed to Leonardo, but it is by his master/teacher Verrocchio.

drawing enthusiast, don't buy it
if you are a Da Vinch zealot, you should have it. but, if you need some drawings to study or copy it. don't buy it. the quality of print is not that good, there's a bunch of Da Vinch's memos though...i doubt it's useful for a drawing enthusiast..pretty sure that it's invaluable for people who are studying "Da VinchSTICS".if you are a drwaing enmthusiast you'd better buy da vinch's another drawing books.....

drawing enthusiast...don't buy it
if you are a Da Vinch zealot, you should have it. but, if you need some drawings to study or copy it. don't buy it. the quality of print is not that good, there's a bunch of Da Vinch's memos though...i doubt it's useful for a drawing enthusiast..pretty sure that it's invaluable for people who are studying "Da VinchSTICS".

Excellent insight into Leonardo Da Vinci
Interesting book detailing the life and thoughts of Leonardo Da Vinci. Historical context of the period and biographical information is included. Reading gets a little dry at times. Excellent resource book. Specific topics can be looked up to discover da Vinci's wisdom and insight.

Leonardo's Masterworks
This 2-Volume collection published by Dover wonderfully exhibits Leonardo's works with his sketches, designs and ideas. If you ever wondered what Leonardo thought, then these are the books to get. The book is set up with the text in two columns; the left in the original Italian, and the right side in the translated English. In those words are written of Leonardo's philisophical ideas, lives of where he lived and his surroundings, his theories on color, perspective, proportion, architecture, foliage, physiology and so many other things that the Great One was curious about. Througout the book and amidst the text are Leonardos sketches, thumbnail sketches, workings of famous pieces such as the Last Supper, some anatomical drawings - and in those pages you can see Leonardo's handwriting which he tended to write backwards. The value and reference is endless, especially for the artist. This edition is reprinted from the 1833 version originally entitled "Literary Works of Leonardo Da Vinci." This is a 2-volume set, which is sold seperately, but for the price, it is so worth the money. Highly reccomended! ... Read more

Book Description

This early autobiography, which takes Dalí through his late thirties, is as startling and unpredictable as his art. On its first publication, the reviewer of Books observed: "It is impossible not to admire this painter as writer ... (Dalí) succeeds in doing exactly what he sets out to do ... communicates the snobbishness, self-adoration, comedy, seriousness, fanaticism, in short the concept of life and the total picture of himself he sets out to portray." Superbly illustrated with over eighty photographs of Dalí and his works, and scores of Dalí drawings and sketches.
... Read more

Reviews (6)

A mess
This is not Dali revealing honestly about himself, his work, his life: This is 400 pages of Dali promoting Dali, being Daliesc: which means shocking people. This book covers a time period from his birth to the outbreak of World War II, at which time he was mostly known for being a shocking surrealist, not necessarily as a great painter yet. The book is used more to promote himself to the public at that time in his style of the time (shocking, unexpected, deviant) rather than reveal the secrets of his work and style. Heavy heavy influence of Freud and psychoanalysis; the text becomes so introverted and self-analytical that it is almost unreadable much of the time. There is a 4 page discussion of a piece of mucus on a bathroom wall; one page about the painting The Persistence of Memory. Somewhere along the first or second chapter you learn something about how his style developed, in the rest of the book you learn that he has a huge ego and a nasty cruel streak, to the point where you really start to dislike him as a human. I have been to the Dali museum in Tampa, seen his works in other museums: He is a genius of a painter. This book is a waste of time unless you are truly truly die-hard. The reviewer who thought it was a comedy and laughed at every page has serious issues.

Funniest Book Ever
This book, without a doubt, is the most hysterically funny thing I have ever read. Dali is some kind of weird comic genius, and I am not exaggerating when I say that I laughed out loud on every page. Whatever you think of Dali's art--and I've never thought much of it myself--this book is a guaranteed laugh riot.

Dali Grasps More Than His Own "Secret Life"
Salvador Dali is a genius, and even though I really do think that it is redundant to say genius and Salvador Dali in the same sentence, it serves it's purpose. This book, so intimitely perverse yet, cunningly understandable sets an example for man kind at it's best. Who has ever dreamed of conducting their own experiments based off of their wildest dreams? Or plunged off of a stair case to give the example of anti-limitation? How about searching their entire life for their one true love, ignoring all possibilities of just a fling or a relationship without meaning. Everything has meaning to Dali, and he brings that meaning to real life. I know that I have always wanted to explore my wildest dreams in actuality, and this book gives me the power to overcome what other people think. Salvador realises that what others think is important, but he knows that their thoughts and actions, when based upon his own unpredictablity makes a hell of a show for the audience within. Through this book you will learn to think outside the box and everything for one instant will make sense in your mind. Or you could read it without knowing what you are getting into exactly and become the most disgusted person on Earth. That doesn't matter though... all that you have to do is comprehend, and he will help you with that.

Revealing Self Portrait of a Great Artist
This book reveals that in addition to being one of the century's greatest visual artists, he was also a tallented and entertaining writer. Dali's personality is all here-- the brilliance, the cruelty, the humor, and the megalomania.

If you compare this with other sources you'll find that the chronology for his youth is off, and (not surprisingly) some incidents are creatively embellished. Still, anyone interested in the artist should read this book first-- it's a great self portrait by a brilliant eccentric artist.

Dali: Genius and Spoiled Brat
Those fascinated by Dali's artwork will want to read this autobiography. Dali provides 400 pages of commentary describing/explaining the symbols of his artwork.. Mostly psychoanalytic approaches. There are a number of descriptions of events that shaped his thoughts from childhood. A great read for anyone seeking companionship in a world that resists weirdness. ... Read more

Book Description

A new and profusely illustrated appraisal of this leading Romantic painter. The international reputation and popularity of Caspar David Friedrich, the leading German Romantic artist of the nineteenth century, has grown steadily since the major retrospective at the Tate Gallery in 1972. In the past three decades, intense critical interest has led to different, and sometimes conflicting, interpretations, thus necessitating this new appraisal of the artist and his achievements. Friedrich's works have an extraordinary, haunting quality that is the product of an elaborate and consistent system of symbolism. The elements that make up a traditional landscape painting--high and low, near and far, light and dark, summer and winter--are all used symbolically. Declaring that "every true work of art must express a distinct feeling," Friedrich painted the yearning of people for the infinite and their perpetual separation from it. Among his characteristic subjects, depicted in a sharply delineated style, were gothic ruins, stark contorted trees, bleak seascapes, and mountain crags often seen under mysterious lighting and peopled with lonely figures. This comprehensive and marvelously illustrated survey examines Friedrich's paintings, watercolors, and drawings in a new critical light, and places the artist in his intellectual and historical context. His difficult relationship with Goethe, his nationalism, the critical judgments of his contemporaries, his position in European art: these and many other topics are explored. 210 color illustrations. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Sublime
Werner Hofmann's new monograph on Caspar David Friedrich benefits from superb colour reproductions as well as Hofmann's own discursive brilliance.

Selections from Friedrich's letters are a neat fit, bowing to the idea that his transcendental painting ultimately eludes scholarly discourse.

This book lands with authority, passion, and a keen sense of the vistas of silence that Friedrich communicates to admirers everywhere.

A bargain. Snap it up if you come across it... ... Read more

Book Description

One of the most recognizable of American artists, and one of America's most innovative printmakers, Jim Dine has created a multidisciplinary oeuvre tied together by his continued use and reinvention of familiar imagery. Hearts, bathrobes, skulls, tools, the Crommelynck gate, Venus de Milo, self-portraits, plants, and flowers--Dine infuses these personal metaphors with new meanings and continually depicts them in novel and diverse contexts. Over time, some of these motifs have become recognized as clearly symbolic: the bathrobe figures as a self-portrait, the heart as a symbol of his love for wife Nancy. And also over time, Dine has added new images to his iconic repertory. Mountains, ancient Greco-Roman sculpture, owls, hands, trees, apes, Pinocchio, and ravens figure prominently in the prints he has made since 1985. This catalogue raisonne fully documents Dine's evolving imagery and technical experimentation from the late 80s through the millennium, including his limited-edition illustrated books, and establishes his absolute maturity as an artist. A glossary of printmaking terms, a selected print exhibition history and bibilography, and a discussion of his poetry and literary leanings make this catalog complete.
By Elizabeth Carpenter with an essay by Joseph Ruzicka. Foreword by Richard Campbell and Evan M. Maurer.

9.5 x 12 in.
400 color illustrations ... Read more

Book Description

Among the supreme masterpieces of 19th-century art are Edgar Degas's dramatic, incisive, and often brilliantly colored pictures of the ballet. Yet despite his enormous popularity as the foremost artist of the dance-with more than half his vast body of paintings, pastels, drawings, and sculptures devoted to the on- and off-stage activities of ballerinas-this is the first major exhibition and catalogue to illuminate the theme in its historical context.

This authoritative book presents much new material about Degas as an artist and his relationship with the ballet of his day. Far more knowledgeable about the training and technique of dancers than has previously been realized, Degas is shown responding to numerous ballet productions at the Paris Opéra, to the shadowy life of the wings, and to the daily routines of the classroom. With huge crowds expected to throng the exhibition venues at the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Philadelphia Museum of Art , this lavish, richly illustrated volume should fascinate a wide audience of art- and dance-lovers alike ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Not your average exhibition catalogue
The relatively high cost of these big art volumes based on major exhibitions are often a significant factor when considering their purchase. Reader: in this case you will not regret it. Go ahead, buy the book. This beautiuflly published volume is worth it. I had the good fortune to see this exhibit in Philadelphia. It was wonderful and this catalogue is a great companion. In addition to an informative and well written text, the book contains over three hundred plates (about half are color), a rigorous documentation of Degas' decades long obsession with ballet at the Paris Opera. The period photographs are a fascinating complement.
The text is divided into eight chronologically organized chapters. The writing is clear and not overly-academic.
This is a book you can keep returning to. It is also a great gift for lovers of dance. Buy it from your local bookstore.

For anyone who appreciates the immortal art of Edgar Degas
Collaboratively produced by independent curator and ballet instructor Jill DeVonyar and art historian Richard Kendall, Degas And The Dance is a gorgeous volume filled cover to cover with spectacular color photographs of art and sculpture celebrating the dance, particularly ballet, as created by 19th century artist Edgar Degas. An insightful text provides informative commentary about the man called "the painter of dancers", and his body of work, enriches this vivid presentation of pieces that blend realism with occasional softening or abstracting elements. Degas And The Dance is enthusiastically recommended as being beautiful book just to page through, and a "must" for anyone who appreciates the immortal art of Edgar Degas. ... Read more

Book Description

Max Ernst (1891–1976) was a pivotal figure in the history of twentieth-century art. A leader of the Dada movement in Germany, he later joined the circle of writers and artists gathered in Paris around André Breton, the unofficial founder of the Surrealist movement. At the outset of World War II, Ernst fled Germany for the United States, first going to New York and eventually settling in Sedona, Arizona. Ernst returned to Europe in 1950 and continued to explore Surrealist imagery and methods throughout his life.

This important book accompanies the first retrospective exhibition of Ernst’s work held in the United States in thirty years. It examines his pioneering accomplishments in painting, collage, and sculpture and considers his use of the techniques of frottage, grattage, and decalcomania. Also featured are Ernst’s unique collage novels--narratives comprising disparate images culled from nineteenth-century engravings and combined in surreal, unsettling compositions. Leading scholars write on various aspects of Ernst’s life and art: Werner Spies on Ernst in America; Ludger Derenthal on Ernst and politics; Pepe Karmel on Ernst and contemporary art; Thomas Gaehtgens on Ernst and the old masters; and Robert Storr on the collage novels.
... Read more

Amazon.com

In this magnificent book, Pietro Marani, the director of the project to restore Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper, presents all the artist's known paintings. The history and significance of each are analyzed at length: we read, for example, that "from a very early date, Mona Lisa was considered among Leonardo's most extraordinary accomplishments, one that made every other artist 'tremble and lose heart.'" Context is provided by a wealth of related paintings and sketches. The presentation is extravagant: double foldouts show frescoes in their entirety, and small areas are hugely expanded to give access to a world of sensuous detail. The intimacy of these extreme details--a tiny blue landscape glimpsed through a window, or the warm flesh of a baby's foot resting on its mother's arm--is unexpected, and one of the book's many successes.

Marani combines connoisseurship with the technological tools of art history, such as x-ray exploration of revisions in a painting's underdrawings. He has spent his life studying Leonardo's paintings firsthand, so closely that he can point to where the artist lightly blurred layers of paint with his fingertips to suggest the soft skin around the eyes of his portraits of women. A chapter is devoted to Marani's belief that Leonardo was profoundly influenced by ancient artworks rather than being exclusively the "modern genius" described by Romantic critics. The research is fully footnoted, with appendices including checklists of paintings and lost paintings and a collection of all known primary documents referring directly to Leonardo's life. From its enigmatic cover (the lips of the artist's exquisite portrait of Ginevra de' Benci) to its extensive bibliography, Leonardo da Vinci comes the closest this reviewer has seen to being the ultimate art book. --John Stevenson ... Read more

Reviews (5)

beauty to impress on the marrow of your soul
I bought this book pretty much as an impulse buy. I was very glad I did! I love Leonardo's paintings, I've had the pleasure of viewing some in the Louvre. I think it is such an amazing gift to be able to reproduce observation, providing insight into an individuals sense of consideration and emphasis. These last two are a requisite for style, along with skill in execution, which almost like text must convey clarity with the gradual perfecting in time, we have something most profound. I often find myself contemplating the pictures in this book, and being a scientist more than an artist, I was curious as to how it affected me so. Our sense of achievement is in part appreciated on the point that we can follow a path to the point of completion with the appreciation of the process rather than the end point attained. Now to understand and appreciate anothers achievement would require a sound and deep empathy of anothers 'travelled path', with Leonardo and others I just cannot empathise and understand how one can attain to something so majestic and magnificent I'm literally in awe, hence the belief that it is something beyond the sum of its parts (its make-up) - a gift. This book presents the wonderful works of this man and what is conveyed in the art. It is a little understanding of the personality and character of a unique time and individual. A great book!

Nearly perfect in every way
I don't know how daVinci did it. His artwork is so fantastic and its all so well presented in this rather impressive tome. He was such an amazing man and this book beautifully shows every tiny facet of his array of experiences and talents.

Leonardo - my hero. This book - my bible.
My dear fellow artists, You, like myself, have been blessed (cursed (?)) with an ability to draw and to dream, in the quest for beauty. This is it! As artists, nobody can outdo Leonardo. On Leonardo, this one is the best, the most complete. Read as many books on Leonardo as you wish, but make sure to own this one!

What a beautiful book ! Worth every dollar. Don't miss it.
I have no words to describe what I felt enjoying this book. Worth every single dollar it costs. You will never regret buying it and browsing it whenever you wish to. Every Da Vinci's painting is displayed and explained in full details and colors. Starting with Leonardo's apprenticeship in Verrocchio's shop until his first autonomous works, Pietro Marani's book is a must buy not only for all Da Vinci's fans worldwide but to all people who love true art. Don't waste your time with gossip books and stuff... read this book, and you won't be sorry. Never. I assure you. In Brazil, where I live, you don't find such a book easily. Thank God there's Amazon.com to bring me such a treasure as this masterpiece.

TOO BEAUTIFUL TO BELIEVE
THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND COMPLETE ART BOOK I HAVE EVER SEEN. I WAS AN ARCHITURE MAJOR FOR A WHILE IN COLLEGE, I TOOK MANY ART HISTORY COURSES; BUT, NONE OFFERED THE INFORMATION IN THIS BOOK. THERE ARE SEVERAL FOUR-PAGE FOLD OUTS THAT MAKE YOU FEEL AS THOUGH YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE REAL THING -- ORIGINAL ART.

THIS MAGNIFICENT VOLUME ALSO CONTAINS ALL THE SKETCHES AND WORK SHEETS THAT LED UP TO THE FINAL PRODUCTION.

I AM WRITING THIS FOR ANYONE IN DOUBT ABOUT BUYING THIS BOOK. BUY IT, YOU WON'T BELIEVE HOW BEAUTIFUL IT IS UNTIL YOU SEE IT. (AMAZON.COM DIDN'T PAY ME TO SAY THIS.)

THANKS FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE MY THOUGHTS. I LOVE THIS BOOK! ... Read more

Amazon.com

M.C. Escher, the artist who lived from 1898 to 1972, suffers from horrible overexposure. Who hasn't seen the college dorm room posters, postcards, T-shirts, and coffee mugs of such well-worn images as a hand drawing another hand or gothic buildings with never-ending staircases? The mass reproduction of these images has carved a firm place in our popular culture, yet made the work dismissible as modern art. Beyond the familiar images, though, is an immense body of work. The Magic of M.C. Escher covers in depth the graphic illustrations, woodcuts, and lithographs of Escher's career. The artist has always attracted the attention of scientists, mathematicians, and teenage boys everywhere; the popular 1980s game Dungeons & Dragons seems to borrow heavily from the systematic yet mystical quality of his drawing style. With his amazingly repetitive graphic illustration and unflinchingly control of size, shape, and shading, Escher draws like a human computer. One can only wonder what he might have done with today's graphic tools.

The book itself is creatively put together, with foldouts, seemingly endless images, and a loving introduction by the director of the Gemeentemuseum in the Hague. The minimal text selections that appear throughout are quotes from Escher himself, many taken from letters to family members. These personal musings give candid insight into what he thought about his peers, his career, and his work: "I really do feel these days like a kind of 'specialist,' and I don't want to 'depend' on my specialty alone, but I also feel it to be my duty to devote myself to that as much as possible." This remarkable book is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the astounding work of the man who could create two-dimensional origami with a pencil. --J.P. Cohen ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Magic of M.C. Escher
Wonderful coffee-table book of Escher's best drawing illusions. Even the jackets is two-sided and imaginatively done with style.

M-escher-merizing!
Given as a gift by a special friend of mine, the book has always adorned the coffee table in the living room as a centerpiece that never fails to attract the attention of both art lovers and art dabblers alike. Perhaps it could be said that my interest in the two seemingly disparate field of mathematics and art motivated that friend of mine to purchase the book, as Escher himself apparently believed and proved that those two seemingly unrelated fields could be beautifully synthesized in a brilliant fusion of creativity. The result is more than convincing.

Outstanding!
Escher was a Dutch wanna-be mathematician, who expressed himself through incredibly intricate, creative works of art. This book contains hundreds of his drawing as well as his notebook sketches, which is interesting to look at because you get to see how he developed his drawings. Accompanying most of the pictures in this book are excerpts of letters that he wrote to various people. If you want a book on Escher's work, then this is the one to buy! Fantastic.

Stunning
High-quality reproductions of the amazing artworks. Minimalistic style of comments and excerpts from artist's letters gives you a focus on subtle details and motives, and lets images tell you the rest.

A Must Have!!!
For all M. C. Escher fans out there, this is truly a must have. No other book describes the techniques of an artist better than this one, and the commentaries by Escher himself make it even better. A must have!!! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

JIM DINE IN FULL BLOOM
Blooming with botanical drawings and paintings this coffee table volume by artist Jim Dine is a must for gardeners and flora aficionados.

Here we find beauty in the unexpected intricate charcoal shading in Dine's interpretation of a mandrake root, in an amazing pencil and watercolour study of a hyacinth, and in the bawdy, robust color found in anthuriums.

This is a timeless volume that brings pleasure each time it is opened.

To Jim Dine Art Fans
Jim Dine Art Fans are you looking for a bit of inspiration? Are you looking for a great coffee table book? Well, you found it! Jim Dine creates his version of botanical prints by drawing, painting and ceramics. His masculine style gives you another view of what the flowers in our backyard may look like. A great first book to buy to add to your art library! Enjoy! ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (5)

Even his rough sketches have a quality few can match
It is a tribute to the artistic genius of Leonardo da Vinci that even his rough sketches have a dynamic quality that few people can match. The 60 sketches in this collection are sometimes rough, and yet they exhibit a detail and a precision that make them look like finished works. The level of detail in his anatomical drawings is so exquisite, that the bulges in the muscles appear to extend out of the page. Many of his sketches also represent daily events such a storm over a village, a grove of trees, plants in the wild and sometimes just the heads of people met in public.
My favorite is the sketch of drapery laying on an upraised surface. So lifelike that it is superior to many photographs, the level of detail is amazing. Arguably the most talented person who ever lived, da Vinci is clearly one of the best at drawing the world has ever seen. After looking at these drawings, no one could ever doubt that supposition.

A good reference book.
This small book is great for a quick reference to a DaVinci drawing but its not good for really anything else. Its just what you should get if you need a DaVinci drawing for a quick study. There are all types of drawing examples in it. I suppose its worth the money.

The Master's Work Is Incomparable
This is a good collection of da Vinci's drawings. It is one of the best among those in the Dover Art Library. A few of the pictures so vividly captured the instantaneous expressions of men in various emotional states that one is left breathless by da Vinci's incomparable power of observation and stunning drawing skills. Another bunch of drawings had complicated contents and they all showed amazingly accurate perspective geometry. One is left with no doubt that the great artist is no less a great scientist.

This book, being a collection of drawings, does little to teach, but it is a good reference and a standard of excellence for comparison with other drawings. I recommend it for any serious art student.

Great for drawing practice
This booklet is good for copying practice. All of the lines are clear, but deterioration marks transferred on some sheets. Figurative drawing is best represented, but there is also some architecture, flowers, horses, landscape, and two drapery studies. The text is minimal, but it provides the date, location and materials used for each sheet.

If you want a more beautiful book, Clayton's "LdV: A Singular Vision". It has many of the same drawings (and many more) cleaned up in full color (lines lighter, but still clear). Marani's "LdV: The Complete Paintings" also has clean reproductions of many of these drawings (usually smaller) and excellent reproductions of the paintings.

the ultimate picture book
This a great book if you're looking to decorate your room, but it's not much for explanations. It is very lacking in text, but then again, the prints more than speak for themselves. A great book for any art collector. ... Read more

Book Description

A true genius whose talents embraced painting, engineering, anatomy, and flight, Leonardo da Vinci was--and remains--an extraordinary human being, indeed one of the most intriguing figures in world history, as the recent success of The Da Vinci Code attests. Now, in this new biography, Martin Kemp explores the essential nature of this forever fascinating artist-engineer, both as an individual and as a historical phenomenon.How can we best understand Leonardo? How did his mind work--was he prolific but scattered in his thinking, or is there a method in what often seems to be his madness? Was he basically an artist who also pursued science and technology, or was "science"--his understanding of the physical world--central to his artistic vision? In Leonardo, Martin Kemp offers a vivid portrait of the Renaissance giant that answers these questions and more. The book takes us on an absorbing journey through the life and work of Leonardo, looking first at the historical man, portraying an impressive and cultivated figure, an artist who in truth completed few paintings, rarely satisfied a commission, and yet lived in style and ended his career with a massive salary. More important, the author examines the ideas underlying Leonardo's investigations of nature, illuminating his vision of the artist-engineer as matching nature itself in his creativity. Kemp argues that Leonardo's apparent diversities reveal a desire to find an inner unity in the functioning of everything in the observable world. For Leonardo, writes Kemp, every act of looking and drawing was an act of analysis, and he used these analyses to re-make and re-interpret his surroundings. In a final chapter, Kemp also comments on the Da Vinci Code and "the continuing public appetite for Leonardo and his doings." Beautifully illustrated with a unique "thumbnail museum" that offers a tour of all Leonardo's paintings, plus 30 additional illustrations and life-size reproductions of pages from his famous notebooks, Leonardo is a powerful portrait of one of the towering geniuses of world history. ... Read more

Book Description

Almost half Dalí's illustrations in this book have rarely been seen

This publication presents the entire painted oeuvre of Salvador Dalí (1904-1989). After many years of research, Robert Descharnes and Gilles Néret finally located all the paintings of this highly prolific artist. Many of the works had been inaccessible for years - in fact so many that almost half the illustrations in this book have rarely been seen. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Art of Dali
I liked the book. The mix of explanations of the painting and his life was very descriptive. I learned a lot about his friends and famliy. The book just reminds me that in every genius there's a lunatic.

DALI at his best...........
After collecting, selling and trading Dali art works for more than 30 years, Mr. Robert Descharnes, one of Dali's past secretaries, has outdone himself in this magnificent book. Without a doubt it will become a collectors classic and a must for any serious Dali admirer. Well worth its price in gold!!!!!

Dali for Dali afficionados
Not only does this book have biographical info, it has the Dali painting in chronological order and the sculptures as well. A valuable reference.

Everything You Want From Dali and More
This book is the definitive look at Dali. I own a few other of his books but this one blows the out of the water. The only negative aspect about the book really comes down to my opinion. Some of my favorite paintings are fitted onto a page with 3 others making them a little difficult to see the extreme detail. While others get their own page but in my humble opinion didn't deserve it. While reading or just skimming through the paintings its awesome all the way through. The book is in chronological order so you can see his progress throughout his life. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, even if you don't like Dali's style, there is so much in here that you'll find something. I've spent dozens of hours looking through it, finding something new each time.

The best of Dali
While it may be hard to get a hold of here at Amazon, "Dali: The Paintings" is worthwhile in searching for. I found it at a local bookstore and snatched it up immediately. It's a gorgeous book at nearly 800 pages. It has a black cover with a classic image of Dali and his mustache ends sticking straight up on the cover.

The real meat of the book is the paintings, drawings, and sketches. Over 1600 of them to be exact, almost all of them produced in vivid color. The book progresses year to year, giving a glimpse into Dali's changing techniques and styles. Thoughtful commentary by Robert Descharnes and Gilles Neret compliment the works of art.

Overall this is one of the best and most comprehensive Dali books around. A must for any serious Dali fan, or even the casual admirer. ... Read more

Book Description

The J. Paul Getty Museum holds nearly 1,200 prints by master photographer Walker Evans, spanning four decades of his professional life.Many of them have never before been published.This catalogue brings together all of the museum's material on Evans.Included are images both familiar, such as his photographs of tenant farmers in the 1930s, and unfamiliar, such as those he made in Florida in the 1940s and his very late Polaroid studies from the 1970s. Judith Keller's lively text provides essential background on the major phases of Evans's artistic development. In the wealth of biographical and bibliographical information assembled here, even the reader well acquainted with Evans's work will find much that is new.Walker Evans: Catalogue of the Collection immediately becomes one of the essential studies of this American master's long and influential career. ... Read more

Book Description