MBR: The Artbook Shelf
MWBOOKREVW
The Simple Art Of Chinese Calligraphy
Qu Lei Lei
Watson-Guptill Publications
770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003
0823048381 $24.95 watsonguptill.com
The Simple Art Of Chinese Calligraphy is a captivating introduction to learning
and practicing the 6,000-year-old art of Chinese calligraphy as author Qu Lei
Lei draws upon his personal expertise as an artist and calligrapher whose work
has been exhibited in a number of galleries and museums in London, Paris,
Geneva, Singapore, Tokyo, and Venice, and who has been a guest lecturer in
Chinese art and calligraphy at the British Museum, the Victoria& Albert Museum,
the Ruskin School of Art, as well as the Christie and Sotheby auction houses.
Basic characters for good luck and other worthy concepts, stroke techniques,
beautiful paper fans, and much more are discussed and described with
easy-to-follow instructions and gorgeous full color photographs. The Simple Art
Of Chinese Calligraphy is a superbly presented and truly first-rate
introduction to the timeless joy of an ancient art form with an enduring
popularity.
Watercolors Of Bridges Over Minnehaha Creek
Victor C. Gilbertson
Galde Press
PO Box 460, Lakeville, MN 55044
1880090066 $19.95 galdepress.com
Watercolors Of Bridges Over Minnehaha Creek: 101 Variations by Minneapolis
architect Victor C. Gilbertson is a soothing, full-color artwork of wistful
bridge scenes. Each thoughtfully painted piece has a caption describing the
length, width, and year the featured bridge was built, as well as its location
and composition. Simple maps and directions to the bridges allow devoted art
and scenery enthusiasts to visit these lovely sites and see these impressive
structures for themselves. A thoughtful and touching artbook, invested with
love for the painted scenery, Watercolors Of Bridges Over Minnehaha Creek is
especially recommended for students of art, and the structural architecture of
bridges.
Pennsylvania Impressionism
Brian H. Peterson, editor
University of Pennsylvania Press
PO Box 50370, Baltimore, MD 21211
0812237005 $49.95 1-800-445-9880
Compiled and edited by Brian H. Peterson (Senior Curator, James A. Michener Art
Museum, Bucks County, Pennsylvania), and enhanced with informative essays by
William H. Gerdts (Professor Emeritus of Art History, Graduate School of the
City University of New York), and Sylvia Yount (The Margaret and Terry Stent
Curator of American Art at the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia), with
additional contributions by Erika Jaeger Smith, Constance Kimmerle, Mary
O'Brien, Birgitta H. Bond, and Tricia Fagan, Pennsylvania Impressionism is a
stunningly impressive, full-color compendium of fantastic artworks, enhanced
with an erudite and knowledgeable commentary about the impressionistic styles
Pennsylvanian artists and how they uniquely captured the land and its people.
Brief biographies of great Impressionistic artists who lived in and painted
Pennsylvania, thoughts on emotional works presented for the reader's enjoyment,
state history, and much, much more combine to make Pennsylvania Impressionism
both a gorgeous and unforgettable coffeetable artbook, as well as an essential
addition to personal or academic American Art History collections.
The Art Of Maine In Winter
Carl Little, author
Arnold Skolnick, picture editor
DownEast Books
PO Box 679, Camden, Maine 04843-0679
0892725923 $35.00 1-800-766-1670
Compiled, written, and edited by Maine art expert Carl Little and Arnold
Skolnick (owner and founder of Chameleon Books), The Art Of Maine In Winter is
a visually splendid, full-color collection of breathtaking works of art
capturing Maine during the winter months. Ranging from abstract-style oil on
canvas landscapes of snow, to woodcuts of young people enjoying simple winter
sports, to impressionistic renditions of hard work among tall trees, The Art Of
Maine In Winter presents an eclectic variety of gorgeous artworks, along with
brief yet thoughtful commentary on the spirit of the art itself and the land
reflected in the artist's view. The Art Of Maine In Winter is a welcome and
highly recommended addition to any personal, art school, or community library
Art History collection.
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