Reviews of new/recent books on art/architect/photography
Steve Brock
Here are several short reviews and mentions of new and recent books
on art, architecture, and photography. All reviews are written by
Steve Brock:
ART:
GEORGES LA TOUR AND HIS WORLD, edited by Philip Conisbee. Yale
University Press, 302 Temple Street, New Haven, CT 06511, (203)
432-0960, FAX: (203) 432-3111. Illustrated (273 total, 95 in
color), index, bibliography, appendix, catalogue. 320 pp., $50.00
cloth. 0-300-06948-0.
A catalogue and overview of the seventeenth-century French artist's
paintings, many newly discovered. Published to coincide with a
major exhibition at the National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.,
beginning on Oct. 6) and the Kimball Art Museum (Fort Worth, Texas,
beginning Feb. 2, 1997). An outstanding addition to the growing
body of literature on this overlooked artist. Grade: A.
UNSEEN WARHOL by John O'Connor and Benjamin Liu. Rizzoli
International Publications, 300 Park Avenue South, N.Y., NY 10010,
(800) 221-7945, FAX: (800) 258-2769. Illustrated (125 total, 85 in
color), index. 208 pp., $50.00 cloth.
0-8478-1967-1
Written in the Q&A style of Interview magazine, O'Connor and Liu,
studio and personal assistants to Warhol in the 1980s, have
collected 25 recollections by Billy Name, "Baby" Jane Holzer,
Debbie Harry, Tama Janowitz, and others, who describe their
influences on the life with the man "who showed the art world how
it could survive in the future." Though much of this ground has
been covered before and many contributions are tinged with conceit
(many take credit for Warhol's ideas), the colorful book possesses
a strange charisma. Grade: B+. The "Unseen Warhol" tour will be
at the Union in Los Angeles beginning October 10, and at The
Raleigh Hotel in Miami beginning November 29.
PICASSO AND THE SPANISH TRADITION, edited by Jonathan Brown. Yale
University Press, 302 Temple Street, New Haven, CT 06511, (203)
432-0960, FAX: (203) 432-3111. Illustrated, index, notes. 206
pp., $45.00 cloth. 0-300-06475-6
Brown and four other art historians describe Picasso's Spanish
roots and examine how Spain became the balance that the hero of
French modernism used to resist being totally seduced by the French
School, as well as demonstrating how a distinctively Spanish
influence runs through his still lifes. The book is an essential
element in understanding Picasso's works. Grade: A-.
BEARING WITNESS: CONTEMPORARY WORKS BY AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMAN
ARTISTS, Jontyle Theresa Robinson, curator. Spellman College and
Rizzoli International Publications, 300 Park Avenue South, N.Y., NY
10010, (800) 221-7945, FAX: (800) 258-2769. Illustrated (70 total,
60 in color), index, bibliography, chronology. 176 pp., $45.00
cloth (0-8478-1962-0), $27.50 paper (0-8478-1963-9).
A catalogue for an impressive traveling exhibition featuring 25
artists and their paintings, sculptures, textiles, and mixed media,
commemorating the 115th anniversary of Spelman College and the
opening of its fine arts museum. The three-year exhibition will
open at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art in Fort Wayne, Indiana on Feb.
1, 1997, with stops in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Minnesota, and
Kansas. Grade: A-.
BEYOND THE VISIBLE TERRAIN: THE ART OF ED MELL by Donald J.
Hagerty. Northland Publishing, P.O. Box 1389, Flagstaff, AZ 86002-
1389, (800) 346-3257, (800) 257-9082 FAX. Northland also has a
line of southwestern design T-shirts and other gifts. Illustrated
(133 total, 120 in color), index, bibliography, exhibition
chronology. 176 pp., $45.00 cloth. 0-87358-651-4
A sumptuous retrospective of the paintings of the southwestern
landscape artist, displaying his growth from commercial artist, to
airbrush craftsman, to the Hopi influences that increased his
awareness and appreciation of the land. Mell's transformation from
a strict structuralist to a reconciler of the poetry and geometry
of geology, is exhilarating and inspiring, as is this appreciation.
An exhibition of Mell's paintings from the book will open at the
Scottsdale (Arizona) Center for the Arts on Oct. 25. Grade: A.
ARCHITECTURE/DESIGN:
THEATRE BUILDERS by James Steele. Academy Editions, 175 Fifth Ave,
N.Y., NY 10010, (800) 464-6420, FAX: (212) 420-9314. Illustrated
(over 400 total), bibliography. 256 pp., $70.00 cloth. 1-85490-
450-7
The interaction between a performance and its audience, and its
importance to the architect, is well-illustrated in this
magnificent volume, which presents, in both photographs and
architectural renderings (where's the scale??), the best theatre
designs from around the world. Included are L.A.'s Walt Disney
Concert Hall and Warner Theater, the Lyon Opera House in France,
the Kara-za Theater in Japan, and many others. Grade: A-.
Forthcoming in the series: "Library Builders" and "Modern Church
Builders."
ACCESS BY DESIGN by George A. Covington and Bruce Hannah. Van
Nostrand Reinhold, 115 Fifth Avenue, N.Y., NY 10003, (800) 544-
0550, (212) 254-9499 FAX. VNR's WWW home page is located at
http://www.vnr.com. Illustrated, index, bibliography, lists of
resources, appendix. 256 pp., $49.95 cloth. 0-442-02126-7
Covington and Hannah explore and review an architectural concept
called Universal Design: the creation of products accessible to as
many people as possible, with special consideration given to the
elderly and handicapped. From equipment in offices and schools to
signage in subways and trains, the book is packed with examples,
checklists, and considerations. Grade: A.
THE DOME OF THE ROCK by Said Nuseibeh and Oleg Grabar. Rizzoli
International Publications, 300 Park Avenue South, N.Y., NY 10010,
(800) 221-7945, FAX: (800) 258-2769. Illustrated (200 total, 150
in color), index, bibliography, glossary, maps. 180 pp., $60.00
cloth. 0-8478-1942-6
Commemorating the 3,000th anniversary of Jerusalem comes this
tribute to the third holiest site in Islam, the place where
Mohammed ascended into heaven, led by the Archangel Gabriel. While
concentrating on the architectural aspects of the building's golden
dome, its carved marble columns, and the mosaic tile panels that
adorn its arcades, the book also includes many historical accounts.
These will, no doubt, be contrasted with contemporary
controversies. Grade: A.
SIR BANISTER FLETCHER'S A HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE, 20TH EDITION,
edited by Dan Cruickshank. Butterworth-Heinemann/Architectural
Press, 313 Washington St., Newton, MA 02158-1626, (800) 366-2665,
FAX: (617) 933-6333. Illustrated, index, bibliography, glossary,
chronology. 1844 pp., $99.95 paper. 0-7506-22679
This edition of Fletcher's distinguished reference, commemorating
the 100th anniversary of its first publication, contains all the
major examples of world architecture, from the first buildings of
southern Turkey's Natufian culture in 9000 BC to the concepts of
modern urban design. A monument in itself, though it could use
more material on aesthetics. Grade: A-.
IN MY WORLD: DESIGNING LIVING & LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS FOR THE YOUNG
by Ro Logrippo. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 605 Third Ave., N.Y.,
NY 10158-0012, (800) CALL WILEY, (212) 850-6088 FAX. The Wiley WWW
home page is located at http://www.wiley.com/. Illustrated, index,
bibliography, lists of resources. 286 pp., $24.95 cloth.
0-471-11162-7
Logrippo provides over 100 rooms full of remodeling and decorating
tips for kidspaces, expanding on the innovations of the late
Antonio Torrice. The focus is giving children a voice in the
creation of their personal areas by following the three C's:
choice, color, and convertibility. Logrippo's enthusiasm, whether
she's creating a bathroom mural or a physical fitness area, is
infectious. Grade: A. Also by Logrippo, with Torrice: "In My
Room" (1989); it may be hard to get this, as the second edition is
out of stock at the publisher.
ICONOGRAPHY AND ELECTRONICS UPON A GENERIC ARCHITECTURE: A VIEW
FROM THE DRAFTING ROOM by Robert Venturi. MIT Press, 55 Hayward
St., Cambridge, MA 02142, (800) 356-0343, (617) 258-6779 FAX.
Those on the Internet may place orders by sending e-mail to
mitpres...@mit.edu. MIT catalogs are available on the
Internet by telneting to techinfo.mit.edu (login: anonymous,
password: your complete e-mail address - at the main menu, choose
#2, then #21), by gophering to gopher.mit.edu (choose #5), or by
sending e-mail to mitpres...@mit.edu. On the WWW, MIT Press
is at http://www.mitpress.edu/. Illustrated (117 total). 396 pp.,
$40.00 cloth. 0-262-22051-2
This irreverent and indulgent collection of essays, lectures,
aphorisms and scrutinies finds Venturi in despair of the postmodern
movement, equating it with show business. Instead of aphorisms, he
should have called them "abhorisms." Venturi's new vision is
composed of flashing, neon-lit, messages: "architecture as
iconographic representation emitting electronic imagery from it's
surfaces day and night." The drafting room becomes an asylum.
Grade: B.
PHOTOGRAPHY:
PARIS BETWEEN THE WARS: ARTISTIC LIFE IN THE TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
by Carol Mann. The Vendome Press, 1370 Avenue of the Americas,
N.Y., NY 10010, (212) 957-8802, FAX: (212) 957-3480. Illustrated
(188 duotones), index, bibliography. 208 pp., $39.95 cloth. 0-
86565-981-8
The aftermath of the four years of horror called "The Great War"
was a period of tremendous creativity in the fine arts and optimism
in the social lives of European citizens. Paris was its nucleus,
and Mann insightfully documents the rise of intellectual, cultural,
and artistic movements of the period, including surrealism, dadaism
and cubism, international expositions, jazz, dance, and the avant-
garde. Sandwiched into these celebratory photographs, however, are
also ones that foretell a time to come: unemployment lines, soup
kitchens, and preparation for another conflict. Grade: A-.
LIVING APART by Ian Berry. Published by Phaidon Press Limited,
distributed in the U.S. exclusively by Chronicle Books, 275 Fifth
Street, San Francisco, CA 94103, (800) 722-6657, (800) 445-7577 in
CA, (415) 777-8887 FAX. Illustrated. 288 pp., $69.95 cloth. 0-
7148-3523-4
Berry documents South Africans living under apartheid, where blacks
and whites had a "duty to live apart while occupying the same
space," which, of course, was impossible. His collection depicts
the juxtapositions of social life (whites ignoring black flower-
sellers, white police dispersing black crowds), over a thirty-year
period, from the Sharpeville riots in 1960 to the ANC victory in
1994. A moving chronicle. Grade: A.
SHORT MENTIONS:
FOR INSPIRATION ONLY by Future Systems. Academy Editions, 175
Fifth Ave, N.Y., NY 10010, (800) 464-6420, FAX: (212) 420-9314.
Illustrated. 128 pp., $24.00 paper. 1-85490-478-7. A source book
of images that inspire the innovative architectural design team,
from Michael Jordan to the nautilus shell to the Space Shuttle.
Indulgent and expensive. Grade: B-.
ART AND THE HIGHER LIFE: PAINTING AND EVOLUTIONARY THOUGHT IN LATE
NINETEENTH-CENTURY AMERICA by Kathleen Pyne. University of Texas
Press, P.O. Box 7819, Austin, TX 78713-7819, (512) 471-7233, FAX:
(512) 320-0668. Illustrated, index, select bibliography, notes.
432 pp., $50.00 cloth. 0-292-76571-1. An innovative history of
the influence of Herbert Spencer and the theories of Darwinism on
American art and culture. Grade: B+.
NAOMI by Naomi Campbell. Universe Publishing, 300 Park Ave South,
N.Y., NY 10010, (212) 387-3400, FAX: (212) 387-3535. Illustrated.
144 pp., $25.00 paper. 0-7893-0400-0. A retrospective of the
model's work and career, with personally selected photographs.
Grade: B.
TAKING MEASURES: ACROSS THE AMERICAN LANDSCAPE by James Corner and
Alex S. MacLean. Yale University Press, 302 Temple Street, New
Haven, CT 06511, (203) 432-0960, FAX: (203) 432-3111. Illustrated
(128 total, 115 in color), index, notes, maps. 208 pp., $45.00
cloth. 0-300-06566-3. A photographic study of topographic
geography, with the impressive addition of Corner's schematic maps.
Grade: B+.
PRIVACY AND PUBLICITY: MODERN ARCHITECTURE AS MASS MEDIA by Beatriz
Colomina. MIT Press, 55 Hayward St., Cambridge, MA 02142, (800)
356-0343, (617) 258-6779 FAX. Those on the Internet may place
orders by sending e-mail to mitpres...@mit.edu. MIT catalogs
are available on the Internet by telneting to techinfo.mit.edu
(login: anonymous, password: your complete e-mail address - at the
main menu, choose #2, then #21), by gophering to gopher.mit.edu
(choose #5), or by sending e-mail to mitpres...@mit.edu. On
the WWW, MIT Press is at http://www.mitpress.edu. Illustrated (168
total), index, notes. 408 pp., $22.50 paper. 0-262-53139-9. A
paperback reissue of Colomina's argument that architecture becomes
modern only when engaged with mass media, focusing on Le Corbusier
and Adolph Loos. Grade: B.
HORST: SIXTY YEARS OF PHOTOGRAPHY, text by Martin Kazmaier.
Universe Publishing, 300 Park Ave South, N.Y., NY 10010, (212) 387-
3400, FAX: (212) 387-3535. Illustrated (200 total: 161 duotones,
39 in color), chronology. 278 pp., $45.00 paper. 0-7893-0055-9.
A paperback reissue retrospective of the legendary photographer's
work, concentrating on fashion and celebrity portraits, as well as
publicity stills. Grade: B+.
THE NEW BUSINESS OF DESIGN: THE 45TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL DESIGN
CONFERENCE IN ASPEN. Published by Allworth Press, 10 E. 23rd St.,
Suite 400, N.Y., NY 10010. (212) 777-8395, FAX: 777-8261. Index.
256 pp., $19.95 paper. 1-880559-38-2. Design professionals
contemplate new relationships between business, technology, and
design, and their moral and ethical implications. Grade: B.
ACHTUNG ARCHITEKTUR: IMAGE AND PHANTASM IN CONTEMPORARY AUSTRIAN
ARCHITECTURE by Eeva-Liisa Pelkonen. MIT Press, 55 Hayward St.,
Cambridge, MA 02142, (800) 356-0343, (617) 258-6779 FAX. Those on
the Internet may place orders by sending e-mail to mitpress-
ord...@mit.edu. MIT catalogs are available on the Internet by
telneting to techinfo.mit.edu (login: anonymous, password: your
complete e-mail address - at the main menu, choose #2, then #21),
by gophering to gopher.mit.edu (choose #5), or by sending e-mail to
mitpres...@mit.edu. On the WWW, MIT Press is at
http://www.mitpress.edu. Illustrated (201 total, 39 in color),
index, notes bibliography. 195 pp., $40.00 cloth. 0-262-16159-1.
An exploration of the Austrian avant-garde (a "mysterious and often
startling brand of architectural experiment"), especially the works
of Volker Giencke. Grade: A-.
SOLOMON D. BUTCHER: PHOTOGRAPHING THE AMERICAN DREAM by John E.
Carter. University of Nebraska Press, 901 N. 17th St., Lincoln, NE
68588-0520, (800) 755-1105, FAX: (402) 472-6214. The University of
Nebraska Press WWW home page is at http://www.unl.edu/up/home.htm,
and their email address is pr...@unlinfo.unl.edu. Illustrated (120
duotones), map. 152 pp., $40.00 cloth. 0-8032-1404-9. A reissue
of the 1985 original edition, which contains photographs of western
Nebraska settlers and their furnishings in the mid-1800s. Grade:
B+.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOME: SPIRITED WESTERN HIDEAWAYS by Elizabeth Clair
Flood, photographs by Peter Woloszynski. Gibbs Smith, Publisher,
P.O. Box 667, 1877 E. Gentile St., Layton, UT 84041, (801) 544-
9800, FAX: (801) 544-5582. The Gibbs Smith home page on the WWW is
at http://www.gibbs-smith.com. Illustrated (175 total), list of
sources. 160 pp., $39.95 cloth. 0-87905-704-1. A splendid
celebration of mountain dwellings, log homes, and other retreats
that celebrate pioneer life. Grade: A-.
SPECTACULAR VERNACULAR: THE ADOBE TRADITION, text by Jean-Louis
Bourgeois, photographs by Carollee Pelos. Aperture, 20 East 23rd
St., N.Y., NY 10010, (212) 505-5555, FAX: (212) 979-7759.
Illustrated (150 in color), index, bibliography, notes, afterword.
192 pp., $34.95 paper. 0-89381-672-8. A reissue of the 1989
original edition, celebrating the diversity and practicality of
adobe architecture, with images from around the world. Grade: B+.
THE ESSENTIAL GOMBRICH: SELECTED WRITINGS ON ART AND CULTURE,
edited by Richard Woodfield. Published by Phaidon Press Limited,
distributed in the U.S. exclusively by Chronicle Books, 275 Fifth
Street, San Francisco, CA 94103, (800) 722-6657, (800) 445-7577 in
CA, (415) 777-8887 FAX. Illustrated, index, notes. 624 pp.,
$49.95 cloth (0-7148-3009-7), $29.95 paper (0-7148-3487-4). A
wide-ranging anthology of the writing of the celebrated art
historian, with several unpublished essays and interviews. Grade:
A-.
PISSARO, NEO-IMPRESSIONISM, AND THE SPACES OF THE AVANT-GARDE by
Martha Ward. University of Chicago Press, 5801 South Ellis Avenue,
Chicago, IL 60637, (800) 621-2736, FAX: (312) 665-2235.
Illustrated, index, bibliography, notes, three appendices. 371
pp., $85.00 cloth. 0-226-87324-2. In this illuminating work, Ward
situates the neo-impressionist movement in relation to major
political and social upheavals in Paris in the mid-nineteenth
century, focusing on Pissaro, its oldest adherent, who understood
both the nature and science of painting. Grade: B+.
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