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Hollywood, gas stations, and the airbrushed style of commercial graphics figure predominantly in Ed Ruscha's art. One of the first artists to use text and pop imagery in his paintings, he captured the America of Route 66 and the Sunset Strip. Not tied down to painting, he produced books of photographs that catalog life with a dry, deadpan humor, including Thirtyfour Parking Lots, Nine Swimming Pools, and Some Los Angeles Apartments. Ruscha began his artistic endeavors with plans to become a commercial artist. With his 1956 arrival in Los Angeles and its art community, he was fast on his way to becoming a major creative force with a uniquely American perspective.

The publication of Ed Ruscha coincides with the first traveling retrospective of Ruscha's work in nearly 20 years. Launched at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C., the show covers his illustrious career from the 1960s through the present. If you can't make it to any of the show's other stops--Chicago, Fort Worth, Miami, or Oxford, England--then this book is a must-have. Included are three essays that elaborate on Ruscha's paintings, use of language, and photography in the context of art history by drawing parallels to earlier American painters and the history of documentary photography. Ruscha defies categorization by straddling both pop and conceptual art with his funny, elegant, and thoughtful work. --J.P. Cohen ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Ed Ruscha reviewed by the only correct source
My friend is named Dan and he really likes this book. He first showed it to me outside during recess. We are both only 13 . If I had to chose over either this Ed Ruscha book or a Sega dream cast, playstation 2, alot of chocolate, a gun that looked real but wasn't, but felt real cause it was so heavy, I would choose the gun, probably because I couldn't get a gun now( I am not 21) and because none of my friends have ever seen a gun, it would be cool. But I still would like to flip through this book, but I don't know if I'd buy it, especially with my own money.

RUSCHA IS THE BOMB
YO, IF YOU THINK THAT RUSCHA IS THE BOMB DIGGY, LET ME TELL YOU THAT, YOU ARE CORRECT. THIS BOOK IS THE ILL SPOT ON THE HOT ART MAN. WHAT YOU WANT IS IN THIS BOOK. This book contains detailed critizism and history of Ruscha. In addition, the book pocesses all of Ruscha's most famous paintings. The book is an all around fine package.

an amusing family that will make you cringe
The first time i browsed through this book, i thought Richards family are totally mad.Some of the photos made me feel sick especially the one where Richards mum and dad have spilt gravy down thier tops. I've never seen anything like it in my life. The visions where shocking but i was very hooked by the images, even though they made me cringe. I was interested by all clutter of ornaments and art deco chaotically arranged around the house. Also the kind of food brands they have which are very cheap such as nettos no frills, i found it very interesting to see how a poorer class family lives. Some of the picturs are really disgusting, i mean what is Ray actually doing sitting by the toilet,this book is totally mad so if you have n't seen it yet then you relly should. This is a book not to be missed!

Brilliant
Thought this book was the best I've seen for years. It's refreshing and I love it that he's not one of those patronising usual 90s artists who want to cash in on roughing it. This is real life. I loved his parents and his home. They are real and his photographs are amazing. Liked the mum and puzzle pic, the pic where she's feeding a kitten. REally great. Because they are honest. Make you laugh, make you cry kind of pics.

Smashingly confrontational with humorous grit!
At first I was aghast at this visually unappealing book; it's so raw. Then I took a closer look and realized that it's a courageous, confrontational and visually incredible slice of real life. No Hallmark card whimsy here! I enjoyed Ray's A Laugh because it isn't another glossy coffee table book with which to impress guests, but an often-times unpleasant look at a "real" family. I'm sure many Brits will be offended by this book, which makes it even better knowing that the underbelly of British society is exposed in these gritty and often-repulsive photos. If you want to stimulate conversation, leave this book out and watch the horror on people's faces as they skim the kitchen photographs; you'll never look and canned beans the same way. Not only is Ray a Laugh, but this book is one sick chuckle through & through. Kudos to the publisher who had the spirit and sense of ugliness to have these photographs made public! I plan to give this book as a gift to my friends who can appreciate a "velvet Elvis" or anything off center! ... Read more

Book Description

Long awaited in the photographic community, this is the first complete overview of the work of Arthur Tress, one of today's most intriguing photographers. His whole career can be seen as a long, fantastic voyage from early photojournalism into the realms of surrealism, eroticism, and fantasy. Richard Lorenz offers an in-depth biographical essay on the photographer and his vision, and an essay by noted critic John Wood places Tress' work in context. The 250 images collected here range from early black-and-white photographs, to richly colored surrealistic images of the 1990s, and his latest, visionary work incorporating painting and collage. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

arthur tress: fantastic voyages
This book is a great overall of Tress' work, covering his early workes to his present ones. As an art photo teacher, its a great resource to have to show examples for assignments such as dream, light and dark, series, and shadow.
The images are wonderfully reproduced and there is a great essay describing Tress and his vision. Each section of Tress' work also has an introduction by him.

Emphasizes Tress' singular language of surrealism
Arthur Tress: Fantastic Voyage, Photographs 1956-2000 arose from the Corcoran Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.) retrospective exhibition dedicated to this influential American photographer. Richard Lorenz's informative commentary is augmented by a contribution from John Wood on the life and work of Tress. Organized as a kind of autobiography emphasizing Tress' singular language of surrealism, humor and psychosocial commentary as expressed with an artist's eye through the medium of a camera's lens, this seminal work will introduce a master photographer to a whole new generation of appreciative students and photographer buffs. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great german modern photography
This book is realy a must!

Max Baur is one of the significant german Photographers of modern art and architecture. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This is what dreams are made of
Dreams of a Young Girls is a typical work of David Hamilton's. Those who are familar with his particular brand of artistry will feel at home with his adoration of the young female form. Those a bit more on the prudish side will see the man as nothing more than an aging voyeur. Whatever your personal opinion, "Dreams of A Young Girl" is standard Hamilton fair. ... Read more

Book Description

Whether depicting desolate landscapes, the homeless, or the bodies of Cuban prostitutes, Kander’s photos illuminate the fragile, the ephemeral, and the disconcerting. Whatever the subject, Kander’s work shuns traditional categories. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Striking images, smart writing, and elegant design
This is a collection of beautiful photographs of mostly unbeautiful people and places. This is a great challenge and he meets it well. The more I look at this book, the more unfolds for me. These are dense, graceful photos from around the world. He uses cross processing, black and white and simple color with the eye of a real master. There are a collection of short stories which I have not read yet, but anything with Nick Cave in it, gets my money. For a first book, this is a keeper. ... Read more

Book Description

Sometimes, but very rarely these days, one can announce a real discovery in contemporary photography — a book that will emphatically place its author on the international map on the same level as such giants of photography as Robert Frank and Nan Goldin. After the international success of Lux et Nox Scalo is proud and excited to announce the definitive mid-life retrospective book on Australian artist Bill Henson. The book combines all groups of work that Henson has created up to the present: from his early Ballet pictures (1974), to his body and nude portraits (1977–1986), from his photographs of street-crowds (1979–1982) to his Baroque Triptychs (1983–84), from his fantastic combinations of pictures taken in the Australian Suburbs and Egypt (1985/86) to his Los Angeles and New York nightscapes (1987–88), from his famous cut-out collages shown at the centenary Venice Biennale in 1995, to the portraits of adolescents and his magical color compositions for the Paris Opera (1990/91), and, most recently, a haunting selection of his images of children adrift in the wilderness of night (1997-2004), many of these appearing for the first time. Bill Henson is a continent in photography to be discovered. This book will be one of Scalo’s major contributions to the understanding of contemporary photography. Published on the occasion of the artist’s retrospective at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, opening January 2005 and touring to the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne in April.

Essays by Judy Annear, Jennie Boddington, Edmund Capon, Dennis Cooper, Peter Craven, Isobel Crombie, John Forbes, Michael Heyward, Alwynne Mackie, David Malouf, Bernice Murphy, Peter Schjeldahl, and an interview with Bill Henson by Sebastian Smee. ... Read more

Book Description

Bettina Rheims came to worldwide fame in the early 80s with sensational nudes and portraits.As a sequel to her legendary, mostly black-and-white publication Female Trouble, first published by Schirmer/Mosel in 1989, More Trouble presents new photographic visions of glamour, beauty, fashion, sex, and seduction, created from the 90s to the present day.They include portraits of Kylie Minogue, Madonna, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Ludivine Sagnier, Emmanuelle Beart, Brooke Shields, Liv Tyler, Isabella Rossellini, Salma Hayek, to name just a few.This time, however, her pictures are mostly in color.And they include men, such as Jackie Chan, Michael Douglas, James King, Tupac Shakur, Mickey Rourke, Marilyn Manson, and Emir Kusturica.Once again, Bettina Rheims proves her extraordinary originality, her empathy, her sense of style, and her feeling for pictorial eroticism. ... Read more

Book Description

Over the past twenty-five years, the internationally renowned Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky has been an explorer of unfamiliar places where human activity has reshaped the surface of the land. His astonishing large-scale color photographs of the landscapes of mining, quarrying, railcutting, recycling, oil refining, and shipbreaking uncover a stark, almost sublime beauty in the residue of industrial "progress." The implicit social and environmental upheavals that underlie these images make them powerful emblems of our times. This handsome catalogue of the first major retrospective of Burtynsky’s work features essays by Lori Pauli, Kenneth Baker, and Mark Haworth-Booth, as well as a wide-ranging interview with the artist by Michael Torosian. The book includes sixty-four color plates. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Meager but Attractive Collection of Narrative Photography
Edward Burtynsky surely has a keen eye for unnatural landscapes and features that have been scarred by man, and his stunning and thought-provoking photos of such matters are the focus of this book. Despite Lori Pauli's introduction, not to mention the very title of the book, I don't buy the claims that Burtynsky was dedicated to the relationship between man and nature, or is always on the lookout for "manufactured landscapes." This is certainly true for his shots of railroad cuts up and down huge mountains where they surely don't belong, indicating a desire for conquest by railroad engineers. However, I find much of Burtynsky's work, at least as presented here, to be about devastation and ruination of both the environment's health and its scenic aspects. This is most evident in his terrifying shots of uranium and other heavy metal pollution around lakes in Ontario, the bizarrely angular destruction at marble and granite mines, and the strange operations at a supertanker graveyard in Bangladesh. The main problem with this volume is that is generally meager in its offerings, and Burtynsky's shots are often presented in a disappointingly small size. Thus this book can be best seen as an incentive to explore Burtynsky's work further. [~doomsdayer520~]

Burtynsky Delivers Excellence With Sincerity and Humility
In 2002, I first noticed Edward Burtynsky's gorgeous 40 x 50-inch color prints at the AIPAD conference in New York. To me, Burtynsky's work stood out from all the rest in that immense exposition, which annually showcases international photography galleries. I hoped his gifts would receive appropriate recognition. I didn't realize the degree to which his reputation as a master photographer was already well established by museums, collectors and critics. Since 1985, the Charles Cowles Gallery has represented his work in New York and the Mira Godard Gallery, one of Canada's most prestigious galleries, represents him in Toronto where he is based. So I am now delighted to report that Yale University Press' handsome catalogue from his recent retrospective exhibition in Ottawa is a remarkable accomplishment in every respect. The National Gallery of Canada organized the show and co-published the book. Although the 64 color plates do not deliver what I love most about seeing his work in person - that is simply not possible to achieve in small-scale, half-tone reproduction. The fact is that this book's design and color plates are wonderful. Every aspect of this book is highly accomplished and carefully, thoughtfully considered. Assistant Curator of Photographs, Lori Pauli, deserves special recognition, firstly as editor for selecting top professionals and for coordinating their efforts seamlesslessly. Secondly, Pauli also wrote a scholarly, insightful essay that sets the tone for engaging inquiry and discourse that is maintained by a distinguished panel of co-authors, each with a different approach, including Mark Haworth-Booth, Kenneth Baker and an interview of the artist by Michael Torosian. Their different perspectives should satisfy many questions that might arise for the reader who wants a broad social context without losing a sense of personal connection concerning aesthetics or individuating details about Burtynsky himself. He grew up in southern Ontario, Canada's most populous and richest province. Much of Ontario's wealth comes out of the ground itself and even more significantly, comes out of manufacturing industries, particularly auto plants. Mining and heavy industry are major themes in his site selection both close to home and far away. He traveled half way around the world for some locations. Burtynsky's beautiful art of otherwise terribly distressed places is absolutely authentic, warmly human and almost always immediately engaging. The reader learns that there is neither pretense nor opportunism in Burtynsky's choice of site selection and content. His deliberate ideological detachment also distances him from the controversy and rancor that often accompanies polemical discourse. However, his personal connection with his sites is another matter. Burtynsky reveals his distinctly individual sense of place in almost all of these man-altered landscapes. Considerable skill, intelligence, time, and expense were devoted to every composition. He certainly did not need to work this hard to simply provide compelling evidence of the consequences of large-scale exploitation of natural resources. The color reproductions are only a small fraction of the size of the original photographs but they still illustrate his career-long attraction to detail and immense, complex space. He understands color, light and large-scale abstract composition like few others in his medium. In fact, I believe that he could make anything appear beautiful anywhere -- and yet he doesn't. At the exclusion of everything else Burtynsky chooses places transformed by human desires - including his own - for commerce and comfort. His pictures of mine sites, quarries, oil rigs and rusting steel can truly astonish the viewer for their visceral impact. They convincingly demonstrate decades of demanding study, persistence, experiment and high critical standards but his conflicted passion for his sites is a separate, far more complicated matter that for the most part remains undisclosed. As a fellow large format photographer and colorist, I can attest that there is nothing he takes on to photograph that is simple or easy. Tripod-mounted view cameras are cumbersome tools to use, especially outdoors at the mercy of ever changing natural light conditions as well as the unavoidable and unexpected shifts in weather. It is slow, complex, painfully deliberate work in conditions that are always unpredictable and often physically uncomfortable. Burtynsky makes it look easy - it isn't. Ian Hunt, the designer, also hides his craft. His design reveals wise William of Occham's razor, keen balance and restraint. It is what only the very best design can demonstrate. This is certainly a book worthy of collectors but it is accessible for us all. It showcases an artist about whom we shall hear many more richly deserved accolades in the years ahead. There will definitely be more books about Edward Burtynsky, but Manufactured Landscapes will be difficult to surpass. ... Read more

Book Description

Over a glittering 50-year career, award-winning photojournalist Harry Benson has covered the central events and personalities of our time. With a range that is unequaled-from the Beatles to Bosnia, from world leaders to thousands of the most glamorous celebrities-Benson's unforgettable images have found their way onto the pages (and often the covers) of such major magazines as Life, Vanity Fair, the New Yorker, and People.

Benson has a lifetime of photographs to show and stories to tell in this fabulous retrospective of his work. As John Loengard, former picture editor of Life and People, says: "He knows where it is important to go and what it is important to see. What he sees informs us all."
225 photographs, 125 in duotone and 100 in full color, 224 pages, 10 x 13" ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Harry Benson is the World's Best Photographer!
Fifty years of the world's best photographs are in this book.
From the Beatles to the Bush family, this book has it all. It will be the best gift under the tree of any Beatles fan, and it also has great pictures of your favorite celebs and politicians. Harry Benson was voted one of the top photographers in the world in a recent photo magazine, and it is easy to see why. I don't know if Benson should be called a photojournalist, an artist, or a celeb. himself--he is all of that and more.This is a must for anyone who loves the Beatles, and it is a must on your Christmas list. Check it out! Harry Benson is the best. ... Read more

Book Description

In Style hailed Lucinda Lewis's Roadside America as "a ride through the history of the automobile-for those who lust for the open road." Time magazine said that her "elegant images of classic cars magically transport the reader to the intersection of Nostalgia Road and Dream Drive." Now, building on the success of that evocative celebration of America's love affair with the automobile, comes Roadside America: 365 Days-a year's worth of fabulous automobiles from all eras.

Fans of vintage cars will surely find their favorites among the Packards and Cadillacs, woodies and pickups, Edsels and Bel-Airs, Corvettes and Thunderbirds, hot rods and muscle cars-all shown in glorious full color by one of the world's premier automobile photographers. Peppered with quotes from those who traveled the country's fabled roads in the days before interstates and chain restaurants, when the journey took longer but was richer for the experience, this irresistible volume-in the enormously popular format of Abrams' Earth from Above: 365 Days and The Universe: 365 Days-is the ideal gift book for every classic-car enthusiast and anyone interested in America's fabulous and fast-fading roadside culture. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Exciting Mix Of Automobile History & Premium Photography
When it comes to the love of automobiles, my hub is somewhat of a road warrior. So, when he purchased this book, I must admit I feigned polite interest. After thumbing through pages of classy, glossy dream vehicles--- I was hooked. This was no ordinary book on cars. This was eye candy with all pedals to the metal.

Photographer Lewis relates that ad agencies would urge her to shoot cars in studio setups. But she always preferred to go on location to wait until the dawn sky "radiated a glow that rolls like warm caramel across a car's sheet metal."

That glow rolls through the pages of this sumptuous photographic history of the American motor car. The book starts with the Model T (costing $850 in 1908) and Henry Ford's vow to "build a car for the great multitude." It picks up speed in the '20s with the birth of the U.S. highway and cruises to our current national love affair with SUVs, "two-ton behemoths that swill fuel like hogs at the trough."

The automobiles themselves will be treat enough for car nuts. For the rest of us there is Lewis's affection for Americana. She shoots a '35 Ford pickup, black with red-rimmed wheels, against the bleakness of Two Guns, Ariz.; a ruby red '59 Cadillac Eldorado convertible in the glitter gulch of Fremont Street in Vegas; and a muscle-car legend, the '64 Pontiac GTO, beneath a towering doughnut sign in L.A.

A great gift for car loving guys & gals on Valentine's Day or any day. Warning: The rumble of the road will be calling you!

The Open Road Comes Alive
Lewis captures the epic wonder, strange beauty, and raucous vitality of the American road. Her eye is attracted to the things we often notice, but seldom observe. The text is excellent, offering actual experiences of those who journeyed along these fabled highways in the past. The color photography is mouth-watering and extremely vivid (the neon practically jumps from the page), but the black and white photos are especially haunting. They explore some of the same terrain immortalized by photographers such as Robert Frank and Dorothea Lange. All in all, a splendid book.

Worthwhile time-travel guide; review exerpt from lacar.com
...Arranged in chronological order, the seven chapters take us from 1895 through 1999. The pictorial focus is on American iron, largely from the '50s and '60s. Lewis' narration accompanies in a casual tone with dry humor and interesting historical anecdotes, allowing the reader to mentally complete the cross-country journey with ease. I found myself reliving the multiple coast to coast excursions I took in the 1970s and felt the seeds of yet another trip being planted.

...Roadside America is a long-term book. Lucinda Lewis has lovingly recorded historic cars in historic settings with such visual detail that it is impossible to take them all in at one viewing. You will come back time and again. This book evokes all the romance and sense of adventure that early automotive culture has come to mean. Whether you are a fan of beautiful old cars, traveling Americana, automotive culture, or dramatic professional photography of all of the above, Roadside America, The Automobile and the American Dream is for you.

Roadside A Winner
I was wowed by this book. I've seen vintage car books before, but this one is different. First, the photography is a notch above the best I've seen. Lucinda Lewis is a true artist with the camera. Second, this is no ordinary chronicle of automotive history. Instead, the author takes the reader on an imaginary journey across America, much of it on historic Route 66, where each car is photographed (beautifully) in a period setting appropriate for the vehicle. The author loves cars and loves photography, and her passion comes through in the book. Much of the text of the book is about the "roadside experience" and the development of auto travel in America rather than detailed technical descriptions of the vintage cars. Because of that, this is a book you can enjoy as a good read while being dazzled by some astounding photography. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Speaking "SignLanguage"
You know him best for his striding around Middle-Earth in grimy clothes, beheading orcs left and right. But talented actor Viggo Mortensen is a man of many gifts -- poetry, photography, painting and music among them. "SignLanguage" is a unique blend of his art and what he captures on film.

In "SignLanguage," he demonstrates his ability to take the ordinary -- bicycles, ferns, flowerpots, a dead fish and a baby's chubby legs -- and give it a mysterious, ethereal spin. Some are more posed, like "Te Anu," a shot of costar Elijah Wood sitting in the snow. Others are more intimate like "Fell," a haunting collage of light, shadow and leaves. You can sit and stare at that one all day.

Several photographs are from Mortensen's time in New Zealand shooting the fantasy epic "The Lord of the Rings." As a result, there are shots of New Zealand's beautiful scenery, such as a haunting shot of misty forests as pretty and ominous as anything in the films. Additionally, there are some pictures of Mortensen's castmates. These moments are captured with surprising delicacy, as if Mortensen has cropped away the outside world and just left in the images he wants his readers to see.

And peppered in with the photos are paintings: The layered, deceptively simple-looking "Sun Losing Its Yellow," the haunting, darker "Element of Surprise." Kevin Power's thought-provoking, intelligent essay on Mortensen's work is, if not a good summary, then a good springboard into the work itself. Certainly reading it puts you in the right frame of mind to fully appreciate Mortensen's work.

The meditative, capture-the-moment quality of Mortensen's work is one that is rare to find in any kind of art. And "SignLanguage" proves yet again that when it comes to Viggo Mortensen, still waters run deep.

Viggo Mortenson's "Decisive Moment" Photography
There is much to admire in Viggo Mortenson's latest collection of photographs. "SignLanguage" contains pages of black and white and color photographs which resonate with visual echoes of Henri Cartier-Bresson's, Diane Arbus' and Mary Ellen Mark's work. Like Cartier-Bresson, Mortenson has embarked on a personal quest for photographs that are "decisive moments". Yet unlike Henri Cartier-Bresson, Mortenson is more engaged as a photographer in tune with his immediate surroundings. He demonstrates a genuine interest in personal intimacy and interaction with those he photographs, whether they are strangers in Manhattan and New Zealand urban streets or fellow castmates from the "Lord Of The Rings" movie trilogy. At times his images may seem as voyeuristic as some of Arbus' work, yet they are firmly rooted in the keen interest and passion he shows towards his subjects, which is certainly true of Mary Ellen Mark's finest photography.

Art historian Kevin Power offers an insightful look at Viggo Mortenson's art and the photographer at work. He draws interesting parallels between Mortenson's recent work and the fantasy literature of Tolkien and Le Guin. Yet I think another interesting parallel is to William Gibson's cyberpunk literature, especially the "cultural anthropologist" Yamazuki featured in Gibson's recent novels. In his own way, Mortenson is as insatiably curious about his surroundings as Yamazuki. Without question, Viggo Mortenson is a fine photographer as well as an excellent actor.

This is the one if you're after the Lord of the Rings pix!
I have most of Viggo's books. This is the one you're after if you want the pictures he took while in New Zealand for Lord of the Rings. He has some just beautiful pictures of the cast as well as the country in this one. The ones of Elijah Wood (this is the one where he's in the snow), Karl Urban (I adore this picture. I captures his eyes so well.), & Bernard Hill are the best ones. Having been to NZ, I recognized a lot of the nature shots. They are beautifully done. It also has pictures of Dennis Hopper and several of Viggo's son Henry. It also has quite a bit of his paintings. I recommend this one as well as "Coincidence of Memory". To see what the pictures and paintings look like, I suggest going to viggophile.com and click on "creativity". She has quite a few examples of all his books.

ZOWZA!
I am completely blown away by the nonsensical willowings of the uppermost layer. It truly speaks of divine reality and sequestered formality. If, indeed that is the intent, then I applaud every inkling of the proverbial artist, not only in asmuch as one does, but also because of the intentional effort that cries out, "I am!".

Not my cup of tea
I don't presume to think my kind of art is the only kind of art.
But...this is not my kind of art. I think Viggo is fascinating. But if I cant get a glimpse into what someone is thinking and feeling by looking at their art then I can't relate to it. I'm not saying there was no thinking or feeling expressed in his work, there most certainly is. I just can't percieve what it is. And belive me I wish I could cuz I think Viggo is a great individual. Love his acting. And I'm certainly not a close minded person so thats not why I don't get it either. But more power to him and those who "get" his work. ... Read more

Book Description

When it first appeared in 1971, Larry Clark's groundbreaking book Tulsa sparked immediate controversy across the nation. Its graphic depictions of sex, violence, and drug abuse in the youth culture of Oklahoma were acclaimed by critics for stripping bare the myth that Middle America had been immune to the social convulsions that rocked America in the 1960s. The raw, haunting images taken in 1963, 1968, and 1971 document a youth culture progressively overwhelmed by self-destruction -- and are as moving and disturbing today as when they first appeared. Originally published in a limited paperback version and republished in 1983 as a limited hardcover edition commissioned by the author, rare-book dealers sell copies of this book for more than a thousand dollars. Now in both hardcover and paperback editions from Grove Press, this seminal work of photographic art and social history is once again available to the general public. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Tulsa Changed The World
This is the seminal work. Larry Clark's other masterpieces ("Teenaged Lust" and "A Perfect Childhood") build on this foundation. This book is a savage journey to the heart of the AmeriKan dream, and depicts Larry Clark growing up with cracker Oklahoma outlaws, shooting dope, and playing with firearms. Think of this book as the "drugs" part of Clark's sex, drugs, and rock n roll trilogy. Give this book to your mother for her coffee table.

Hasn't aged well
Maybe for the time, it was groundbreaking, but today this book is a dinosaur.

A New Edition of a Classic
The book Tulsa by Larry Clark is a beautiful and scary photographic journey. The disturbing images hold up even today as a pictoral review of American society.Highly recommend! ... Read more

Book Description

Organized chronologically, this celebration of Graham Watson's images captures Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Stephen Roche, Sean Kelley, Greg Lemond, and Lance Armstrong at the peak of their powers. In the accompanying text, Watson describes how he achieved special shots, and the obstacles he had to overcome to capture fast- moving groups. Features 100 color and 50 black-and-white photographs. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

When did the French stop riding bikes.
I don't want to belittle Grahams work, or imply that I don't like seeing the shots of the American riders, but leaving out the other great riders of the last 20 years is a little sad. I understand this was an editing decision and not really Grahams.

I'm amazed at how he can take photos that convey the athletic endeavor in addition to the excitement, determination, and grandeur of these events. If your year starts with the Race of the Flowers and ends with the Race of the Falling Leaves, these are the vignettes of imagination.

selected photos
Certainly Graham Watson is a great cycling photographer and deserves every accolade. But I purchased this book "on approval" and found when I really looked through it, many of the pictures had obscure subjects and less interesting stories. There is an honesty in that this is a review of Graham Watson's career--it does not claim to be a photo history of professional cycling. So it includes many photos less interesting to a cycling fan, but with more meaning for Graham Watson's career. Especially true in the section of black and whites taken as an amateur. Without question, the photographic and print quality are stunning, but I often found myself scratching my head wondering if a given shot could possibly be the best shot he took at that race on that day of that rider. Many of the pictures in this book really look like leftovers from an assignment. I've read European cycling magazines for years, and I feel you could get a much better selection of shots by subscribing to one of them for a year and/or picking up one of their annuals. Ironically, you hear almost exclusively in the US about Graham Watson--this book made me realize how many other great cycling photographers there must be.

The Agony and the Ecstacy and the Beauty of It All
Graham Watson is the pre-eminent photographer of professional cycling, at least in English-language publications. A few minutes of leafing through this gorgeous book is all that is necessary to explain why this is so. For two decades, he has been there, capturing all the great riders in their glorious moments of triumph as well as the bleakness that comes with physical collapse and defeat. Bicycle road racing is like no other sport in the physical demands that it makes on its participants. It requires amazing conditioning and, even more importantly, a resolve beyond anything a normal person can imagine. One need only think of Greg Lemond, coming back to win the Tour de France after almost dying from gunshot wounds; Laurent Jalabert, his face smashed in after a high-speed collision with a policeman, returning to become the number one rider in the peloton; Lance Armstrong, overcoming cancer and winning the Tour de France twice; Andy Hampsten, riding through the freezing mountains to claim the pink jersey of the Giro; the men of Paris-Roubaix, flailing through the mud and banging over the cobbles. Graham Watson was there to record all of this in his superb style, where no detail is unnoticed. And he shows us the grand arenas where these heroes ride: the villages of rural France, the jagged Alps, the green Pyrenees. Sure, everyone will tell you that this is just another professional sport, with big contracts and illegal drugs and oversized egos, but when you look at these magnificent pictures, you will see brave men riding against grand landscapes, against relentless opponents and even against themselves. Graham Watson's books (Kings of the Road, The Great Tours and so forth) seem to sell for a short time and then disappear from the market. This book contains some photos published in the other ones, but is the best collection I have seen covering so many racing highlights that I can recommend it without reservation for lovers of bike racing, good photography and Europe. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (25)

Another true gem by Jock Sturges!
After viewing 'Last Days of Summer' I came right back to Amazon to order 'Radiant Identities' (and 'New Work'). Again, I am struck by the power, beauty and serenity of Surges' art.

I'm a photographer myself, therefore obviously interested in the matter, and I have seen many - very different - work by numerous photographers. I'm also rather particular about what I like and don't like, and when I view someone's work usually I find just a few photographs I really like, the rest is often considered 'average' or 'not my taste'. However, this is not the case with Jock Sturges' work. Although I obviously have my favourites, so far I haven't seen a single photograph by Sturges I don't like, or even one that could be described as 'average'. They are all powerful, intriguing and stunningly beautiful.

Sturges doesn't only master the art of photography flawlessly; he actually manages to capture the soul of his subjects. They are real people captured in real life, not professional models who just undressed for the occasion. As explained in the foreword, they are nude anyway, and a photographer coming along doesn't change anything about that. This is their life, their world, their home. Sturges offers us the chance to observe these wonderful people in their natural setting, and we get actually get to know them a little bit (or at least we get that feeling). They are at ease, relaxed, and there is a palpable trust between the photographer and his subjects. He is clearly one of them and fully accepted in their midst.

The back flap tells us that Sturges received (a.o.) a BA in in Perceptual Psychology and Photography. After viewing his work that's no surprise, he clearly deserves it. Without his psychological insight, we would 'just' be looking at technically perfect photos, which might eventually become boring for non-photographers. Fortunately, that's not the case here, this book will remain interesting time after time, and it will be viewed again and again. The title is very well chosen, and it actually says in two words what I'm trying to bring across here.

My advice (no surprise here): buy the book; it is a great investment. Don't forget to read the introduction by Elisabeth Beverly; it explains very well what this work is all about.

One other tip: don't hide the book! I keep it (along with his other books) on a visible place in my library or even on the table if I happen to be viewing it (again). If people raise an eyebrow or criticise it, I gladly explain what the true essence is (apart from the enjoyment of beautiful aesthetic art of course). That's not the nudity, which is just a logical consequence of the true freedom and the natural, slow-paced lifestyle these people have managed to find and maintain. No small matter in a stressful, noisy, and aggressive world where materialism seems to rule, and many people are living their life in a way they feel 'society' expects from them. Often they hardly know who they are anymore, since they made themselves into a clone of others in their peer-group (who did just the same).

Fortunately, a friend introduced me to naturism when I was eighteen, soon to discover it's nothing like people who don't know it make it out to be. I only regret I didn't get the chance to discover it sooner, as a child. You can't discover freedom, innocence, friendship, trust, beauty, and in a word - the true essence of life - soon enough, now can you?

In my view, this book (as well as 'Last days of Summer') depicts exactly that, in a beautiful way. Enjoy it, cherish it and live it if you can. You won't regret it, I promise!

What photography is supposed to be.
These are wonderful, sensitive pictures. All of them document the human figure (both male and female) in many of its ages. It's a topic that can never get old, not as long as the viewer is human too.

Normally, I don't have strong response to photography as art. At first, I simply enjoyed the peaceful scenes and happy people that Sturges portrays. Many of his subject are young people, though, and my mind drifted back to myself at their age. Somehow, it all came rushing back to me: that sense of mystery and awe, about fifth grade, when I first started seeing the girls around me becoming young women. Sturges has a unique talent for showing the steps between child and adult with respect and innocence. I was not prepared for the evoked memory of myself at that innocent age.

This book collects some of the most beautiful figure studies I've ever seen. I truly hope that you can appreciate it the way it was mean to be seen.

Beauty
It is obvious that both Jock Sturges and David Hamilton have a very strong appreciation for that youthful beauty that people can only possess during a brief moment in their lives. These two photographers caught their subjects during that transient period in their lives when that particular beauty is present in those same subjects. Through their photographs, they were able to preserve this wonderful moment, where the human body is at its most attractive. I recommend this book for those who have an appreciation for this fleeting type of physical attractiveness.

Perfect
please just buy this book immediately. it's so amazing, i've never seen anything like this. i just bought this and 'last days of summer' and they are both great. there are so many great photographs, especially the ones of misty dawn (the girl on the cover). i am a 20 year old college student and unfortunately i have to keep the books hidden for fear that a room-mate might find it offensive, but it's still great.

One of the Great Portrait Photographers
Of the visual arts, I probably enjoy photography more than any. In particular, I love portraiture, which is probably why I like photographers like Jock Sturges and Mary Ellen Mark who excel at this. They are invariably able to find interesting subjects and to photograph them in unique and beautiful ways. I am also fond of the black and white format usually used by Sturges and Mark which keeps the focus on the figures themselves as opposed to something garish they are wearing or the color of their surroundings.

With the photographs in Radiant Identities Sturges seems to be experimenting. Many of my favorite themes in Sturges' work are here. He has "family groups"--sisters, brothers, parents & children. My favorites of these are the "generational" pictures: where we see a child and an adult who mirror each other as if we are seeing the future of the child. But there are also some pictures here that have no similarity with any of his other work. There are surprises.

Of course, Sturges photographs mainly nudes and is probably best known for the controversy surrounding his nude photographs of young girls. There is no denying the erotic power of some of his pictures but Sturges is no pornographer. He is able to capture so much more. The arrangement of the figures tells us something (as in the "generational" pictures) and I am often surprised at how drawn I am to the eyes of his models and to the careful arrangement of the hair. He is an artist of uncommon skill and I would highly recommend this book. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Bruce Weber the Master
Having seen the Branded Youth exhibition a few years ago in England, I rushed out to buy this book. There are so many different subjects photographed - it's not one type of photo. Sure, many are portraits, but they are of varied people of groups of people ie. wrestling, boy scouts, celebrities, the "branded youth" boys, so Weber demonstrates his talents in documenting life in today's world.

a typical anf photobook
This book does not really have many stories, it has lots of pictures! I think that the title is misleading.

And as some of his books, this book has lots of random pictures. Some are good, some are not. Quite a few are homoerotic. Among all the pictures, there are about two male frontal nudities.

This is just like a typical abercrombie and fitch magazine, and it has stories instead of clothes that they want to sell to you.

Summary
Black & white and a few color plates covering a broad range of material, from hollywood celebs to midwest farmers, from Soweto township to the youth of Vietnam, from a montage of clips from Court TV to Weber's trademark look at the All-American boy. Don't miss this one.

I can't believe I cryed...
The pictures were all fairly nice. But what got to me, was the stories, "Prettest girl in town." the one about the three kdis going out and branding them self with a sword. They were touching in their betrail of human life and want. I couldent have dremt for more of a sadistic, masicistic beautiful book. I read it when i was in Backbone state park with friends, her boyfriend had bought her the book. We were sitting around the campfire reading it all i could thing was...thats what I want in life.

A depiction of all youth
I read the book only after I saw the display first hand at the National Portrait Gallery in London. From the moment I walked in I was captured by each subject and the story that each of their expressions revealed. I think Weber embraced the essence of his topic by depicting all kinds of youth and the gammet of emotions youth provides. ... Read more

Book Description

One of the most important documentary photographers of our time, Dorothea Lange's revolutionary work chronicled America's struggle with poverty during the Great Depression. Her widely reproduced, classic portrait from the 1940s,"Migrant Mother," is just one of the many unforgettable images found in her stunning oeuvre of documentary works. While there have been other books on Lange's photographs, none exist with the scope and breadth of this monograph, which comes from her archives at the Oakland Museum in California and includes numerous unpublished photographs. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Beautiful documentry
I just purchased this book for a friend as I have done in the past. It is a beautiful record of a girls' life that is not glamourous nor sentimental. The prints from the book are wonderful as I have seen them for myself in Chicago. For anyone wanting something a little different, this is a wonderful book. ... Read more

Book Description

Internationally acclaimed photographer Greg Gorman has just completed his most personal work to date: the male figure study. Twenty years in the making, this epic artist's project features carefully selected young men--not big or overly built--who exemplify for Gorman a perfected state, allowing him to frame grace, beauty, and elegance in the form of the male nude. Included amongst the 240-plus portraits are many of Gorman's friends and acquaintances, as well as professional models, many of whom had never posed nude before. The cumulative effect of As I See It creates a pleasurable zone of contemplation, allowing one to reexamine the precepts of beauty within a refreshing framework of exalted maleness. According to Gorman, "As I see it, they're not really boys, yet they're not really men. They are caught somewhere in between--almost at that point of maturity that defines masculinity." ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Refreshing stance
Every aspect of this new volume of Greg Gorman's art is of the highest quality....from the physical cover/paper quality/design/ typeface et cetera. Gorman's choice of models - men who are not buff beefcake for the most part - is refreshing and allows us to more closely appreciate his photographic gifts of choice of pose, lighting, and introspection. These models dwell in that continuum of emerging masculinity untampered by too much experience or over-exposure to the various camera (and human) eyes. With the exception of Nicholas Gonzalez and Alexis Arquette (again, refreshing honest respect for male nudity in a world most celebrities avoid), the models are like people you pass as you walk down the street. The beauty of the resulting photo sessions seems a balanced collaboration between Gorman and his sitters. A beautiful book.

BEAUTIFUL IMAGES
Thanks to the Amazon.com reviews already written for Greg Gorman's book, I bought it online and couldn't be happier. Gorman is a contemporary photographer obviously enamored of his subjects. The care and dignity he bestoys on all his models in this book is exemplary.

A previous collection, published by Rizzoli, is called "Inside Life" and consists mainly of portraits of celebrities from Brando to Sarandon, from Quincy Jones to Leonardo Di Caprio before he was LEONARD DI CAPRIO-from a cross-dressing Sharon Stone to a nude Keanu Reeves. But these are much more than publicity pictures one might see in a magazine like "Vanity Fair;" they really bear repeated viewings: has any of us seen Sugar Ray Leonard looking so troubled?; How clever to let us watch Savion Glover resting his feet, rather than tapping; How witty to show us gay porn icon, Jeff Stryker, as he might have looked in an MGM 1940's studio shot.

As beautifully put together as the above volume is, Gorman's "As I See It" is even better. Powerhouse Books has given Gorman the publication he deserves. This is a magnificently designed and executed collection of classic male nudes, most of whom are posed in neutral surroundings, so that our eyes go to the male form and how this photographer wants us to see it.

Included is a reproduction of a charming, hand-written note to Gorman from his fan (and sometimes model) Elton John. A wonderful book of beautiful images. Highly recommended.

Wonderful Nude Male Photography
The photographs in this book are just marvelous. Gorman has a way of evoking each model's personality so well with his shots. There are also some lower level celebrities in the mix so that is cool. Christopher Atkins has a great spread. If you love the male form, you will love this book of breathtaking photos.

Their beauty transcends all time.
American men are generally ashamed of their bodies, often with good reason. The beautiful youngmen who appear nude in "As I See It" are proud of their masculine beauty and are willing to share it with others. Even more impressive, though some of these men are celebrities, they don't seem to worry that appearing naked in an art book might ruin their careers. As for the artist involved, Greg Gorman is a world-class photographer who is uniquely qualified to capture their perfect moment in time.

The simplicity of beauty.
Greg Gorman presents beautiful, sometimes androgynous, young men in this thick book of back and white photographs.
First of all, the book construction is excellent, with glossy pages that complement Gorman's use of high contrast lighting environments. On some pages the large areas of black ink have speckled in spots, this seems to be the only flaw in construction, otherwise the printing is excellent.
Like Alfred Stieglitz's simple but profound portraits of Georgia O'Keefe, Gorman presents simple images in stark environments, dark in tone, where the sitter is actively engaged in the attempted acheivement of photograhic perfection.
Gorman creates mini-portfolios of each sitter - the images come from one, sometimes more, sessions - and most often presents the model in several variations of the same pose. This strategy allows the viewer to experience the work as a duration of time, rather than a moment in time. Gorman's simplified cubistic aproach works to imbue his work with humanity, spaciousness and enough of a measure of originality to set his work in the upper strata of photograhers within his genre. ... Read more

Book Description

All the Mighty World
The Photographs of Roger Fenton, 1852–1860
Gordon Baldwin, Malcolm Daniel, and Sarah Greenough
With contributions by Richard Pare, Pam Roberts, and Roger Taylor
A highly anticipated exploration of the work of a British photographic pioneer

Roger Fenton (1819–
1869) was Eng-land’s most celebrated and influential photographer during the 1850s, the “golden age” of this radically new medium. Fenton’s majestic pictures of cathedrals, country houses, and varied countryside were without peer in England—as were his views of the royal castles and Houses of Parliament that embodied Britain’s power. But Fenton’s choice of subjects ranged more widely still: he was among the first to photograph the Kremlin and other landmarks of Moscow and Kiev; he was commissioned in 1855 to document the Crimean War, producing early war photographs; and he created theatrical Orientalist costume pictures and a startling series of lush still lifes.
Fenton had first studied law and painting, but soon after he took up the camera he was making photographs that were technically superb and highly original in their handling of composition, perspective, atmosphere, and light. Always he strove to demonstrate that photography could equal the art of painting and even surpass it. He was the force behind the founding of the Photographic Society (later the Royal Photographic Society), which worked to advance the profession and encouraged the exhibition of members’ works throughout Britain. In a career of a single decade, Fenton did much to transform photography into a medium of powerful expression and visual delight.
This exquisitely produced book—the first comprehensive publication on Fenton in almost twenty years—presents eighty-five of the artist’s finest photographs and discusses every aspect of his work and his remarkable career.
FThis catalogue accompanies an exhibition on
view at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (October 17, 2004, to January 2, 2005); the
J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (February 1
to April 25, 2005); The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (May 16 to August 14, 2005); and Tate Britain, London (September 25, 2005, to January 2, 2006).

Gordon Baldwin is Curator of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum; Malcolm Daniel is Curator in Charge, Department of Photographs, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; and Sarah Greenough is Curator of Photographs at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
... Read more