Musea Art Review #50: Secret Language (art book)
musea/Tom Hendricks
Title: 'Secret Language' by Molly Barker
What is it? Hardback book of 176 pen and ink
drawings illustrating 6 stories. (1997)
Technical Quality: Well made book. Her art work
is above average specially in her compositions and
her ability at illustrating words and concepts .
Innovative Quality: Above average in using
pictures to tell a story with little or no dialogue -
much like a silent film in art.
Review:
This book of pen drawings tells 6 stories through
mostly pictures and a little bit of added dialogue - dialogue that
reads much like haiku or concentrated code phrases.
The art work is a mix of fine art drawings and a looser
cartoon style - with many of the best features of both.
The first notable thing is her use of line - short and
long pen lines fill up every section of each drawing.
The y swirl like Van Gogh's starry
night (or Thomas Hart Benton's work).
They flow across the page or around a character
like a river. Streets, objects, people, all are in flux and seem to
flow.
Her art is full of short lines that build up a place or scene.
I speak in somewhat vague terms because it is hard to
describe her style of drawing in any other way.
(I encourage you to search out the cover on the internet to
see for yourself)
She pictures usually poor people with sombre long faces and extra
long hands, who walk through city streets in fogs of
alienation. Some are crazy, some are profound,
some search for sanctuary, many look like monks.
Perhaps summarizing the stories will explain this book better.
Story one , 'Heads', is about the shock of seeing a squirrel
trying to escape a forest fire on a tv nature documentary,
and how it bothers the young girl watching it.
Story two, 'Fathoming', treats the city library as a retreat
from the edgy and somewhat disturbing outside world.
A sample of the captions reads "Everyone is living in
different layers. / There's a feeling of caves all joined up."
Story three, 'Inwardly', starts at the library and expands
like a dream. A sample caption reads, "Breathing between
words."
Story four, Jarbled". In a parking lot a stranger cries,
'Shoot me .You can't kill me. Heh. Heh. I'm already dead.'
As pedestrians walk by.
Story five, "Might', about 2 girls who sneak into the library
and find great joy, "Everyone who hunkered down / will unfurl."
Story six, 'Dream', about a girls grandfather who sings
a joyous song after his death!
All in all these surrealistic stories find great joy in poor times
and in an alienated city.
The style of art is exhilirating and worth looking at over and
over again. The cartoon like aspects with all the repeated
pen lines, is very expressive and highly emotional. The added
text supports the pictures. Highly recommended as a classic
of cartooning.
Contact Info:
City Lights Books,
261 Columbus Avenue,
San Francisco, CA 94133
www.citylights.com
Overall Grade 6.7 out of 10.0
Grading system: 9-10 Highest grade - Life's work of
a master (ex. Collected plays of Shakespeare, collected
symphonies of Beethoven) 8-9 Single best work of a
celebrated master's career. 7-8. Best work of an era or
genre or decade. 6-7 Best work of the year. 5-6 Very
good. 4-5 More good than bad. 3-4 Average amount
of good = amount of bad. 2-3 Mostly bad with some
redeeming parts. 1-2 Nothing redeemable. 0-1 So bad
it is offensively bad and outrages the reviewere for
taking up that time in his life - just awful.
Musea guarantees a review for all art work in any
conceivable field IF you follow the rules posted on
alt.zines or see our website or e-mail me.
Tom Hendricks tomhend...@cs.com
http://musea.digitalchainsaw.com
SteveR
In article <1117505087.7...@g49g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
"musea/Tom Hendricks" <tomhend...@cs.com> wrote:
> Review #50 5/05
>
> Title: 'Secret Language' by Molly Barker
>
> What is it? Hardback book of 176 pen and ink
> drawings illustrating 6 stories. (1997)
Edit out "what is it?". You're not talking to walls, the reader knows
that you're about to tell him anyway...
> Technical Quality: Well made book. Her art work
> is above average specially in her compositions and
> her ability at illustrating words and concepts .
Does she use commas?
>
> Innovative Quality: Above average in using
> pictures to tell a story with little or no dialogue -
> much like a silent film in art.
As opposed to a silent film outside of art.
> Review:
> This book of pen drawings tells 6 stories through
> mostly pictures
A book of pen drawings using mostly pictures. Imagine that. They should
have called it a picture book of drawings.
> and a little bit of added dialogue - dialogue that
> reads much like haiku or concentrated code phrases.
Turn the book right-side up.
> The art work is a mix of fine art drawings and a looser
> cartoon style
Mutually exclusive of course.
> with many of the best features of both.
> The first notable thing is her use of line - short and
> long pen lines fill up every section of each drawing.
Technically, this is true of any artwork - it occupies the space which
it occupies. Perhaps you mean that the artwork fills every piece of the
medium? In which case we'd get into white-space issues.
> The y swirl like Van Gogh's starry
> night (or Thomas Hart Benton's work).
> They flow across the page or around a character
> like a river. Streets, objects, people, all are in flux and seem to
> flow.
> Her art is full of short lines that build up a place or scene.
Oh, she edits.
Some could learn.
> I speak in somewhat vague terms because it is hard to
> describe her style of drawing in any other way.
Maybe she just likes to confuse critics.
> (I encourage you to search out the cover on the internet to
> see for yourself)
> She pictures usually poor people with sombre long faces and extra
> long hands, who walk through city streets in fogs of
> alienation. Some are crazy, some are profound,
> some search for sanctuary, many look like monks.
Twelve minutes in downtown San Francisco with a disposable camera could
do that, and more.
<snip before my head explodes>
Chris
"SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:tex_driver-B16B5...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
Damn it...I was counting on your head exploding for my next review "SteveR's
head, a study in goo"
Bastard!
Dan
> Edit out "what is it?". You're not talking to walls, the reader knows
> that you're about to tell him anyway...
Uh, Tom actually is talking to walls, I suprised someone actually read
something he reviewed or values his opinion as any more important than the
drunk crazy old guy ranting in the back seat of the bus. -dan
SteveR
<Pine.A41.4.61b.05...@homer12.u.washington.edu>,
Dan <t...@u.washington.edu> wrote:
I suspect he doesn't drink.
SteveR
"Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:tex_driver-B16B5...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
>
> >
> > <snip before my head explodes>
>
>
> Damn it...I was counting on your head exploding for my next review "SteveR's
> head, a study in goo"
> Bastard!
My head just exploded.
Chris
Send pictures and six dollars for a "unbiased" review of the explosion and
the resulting artwork created on your wall.
SteveR
"Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:tex_driver-66C22...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
> > In article <baRme.4169$MI4....@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net>,
> > "Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> >
> > > "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> > > news:tex_driver-B16B5...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
> > >
> > > >
> > > > <snip before my head explodes>
> > >
> > >
> > > Damn it...I was counting on your head exploding for my next review
> "SteveR's
> > > head, a study in goo"
> > > Bastard!
> >
> >
> > My head just exploded.
>
> Send pictures and six dollars for a "unbiased" review of the explosion and
> the resulting artwork created on your wall.
It'll be on al-jazeeera next week. Please don't download from P2P, I
wanna make prophet.
Chris
Make prophet? Or make a profit? Is there profit in prophets? Or prophets of
profit for that matter?
SteveR
"Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:tex_driver-A55D7...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
> > In article <l4bne.3489$s64....@newsread1.news.pas.earthlink.net>,
> > "Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> >
> > > "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> > > news:tex_driver-66C22...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
> > > > In article <baRme.4169$MI4....@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net>,
> > > > "Chris" <vscoote...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > "SteveR" <tex_d...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> > > > > news:tex_driver-B16B5...@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
> > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > > <snip before my head explodes>
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > Damn it...I was counting on your head exploding for my next review
> > > "SteveR's
> > > > > head, a study in goo"
> > > > > Bastard!
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > My head just exploded.
> > >
> > > Send pictures and six dollars for a "unbiased" review of the explosion
> and
> > > the resulting artwork created on your wall.
> >
> > It'll be on al-jazeeera next week. Please don't download from P2P, I
> > wanna make prophet.
>
> Make prophet? Or make a profit? Is there profit in prophets? Or prophets of
> profit for that matter?
When I make prophet, than it all starts to pay off.
Chris
I made a prophet once....but the plaster of paris made a damn mess of the
garage...