History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Average customer rating:

Private?
The Private Lives of the Impressionists
An enjoyable read....
Sue Roe makes public the private lives of such artists as Manet, Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissaro and their friends
Enjoyable, Historical Read, Learn about great painters!

The Private Lives of the Impressionists
Sue Roe
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060545585
Release Date: 2006-10-31

Book Description

Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Cézanne, Renoir, Degas, Sisley, Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt. Though they were often ridiculed or ignored by their contemporaries, today astonishing sums are paid for the works of these artists, whose paintings are celebrated for their ability to capture the moment, not only in the fleeting lights of a landscape but in scenes of daily life. Their dazzling pictures are familiar—but how well does the world know the Impressionists as people? The Private Lives of the Impressionists tells their story. It is the first book to offer an intimate and lively biography of the world's most popular group of artists.

In a vivid and moving narrative, biographer Sue Roe shows the Impressionists in the studios of Paris, rural lanes of Montmartre and rowdy riverside bars as Paris underwent Baron Haussmann's spectacular transformation. For more than twenty years they lived and worked together as a group, struggling to rebuild their lives after the Franco-Prussian War and supporting one another through shocked public reactions to unfamiliar canvases depicting laundresses, dancers, spring blossoms and boating scenes.

This intimate, colorful, superbly researched account takes us into their homes and studios, and describes their unconventional, volatile and precarious lives, as well as the stories behind the paintings.

Customer Reviews:

Private?.......2007-09-29

The title of the book is misleading. Most, like me, would believe that it is about the various affaires des coeurs of the Impressionist painters. But it is far from that. It is an insightful look into the struggles of the impressionist painters during the years of 1860-86; this was before they became famous.

The book covers the lives (intimate or otherwise) of the better-known impressionists such as Monet, Manet, Renoir, Degas, Sisley, Cézanne, and Pissarro and the not-so-well-known painters who were in their company Berthe Morisot, Frédéric Bazille, Mary Cassatt and Gustave Caillebotte. The author describes how these painters tried to break the rigid moulds of the Académie des Beaux-Arts, which controlled the technique and subjects of mainstream painting in France.

The author described many of the better-known and the not-so-well-known paintings in such an anecdotal form that the reader is forced to have a look at those paintings somehow (in a coffee table book or online). She brings alive the characters who had posed for the paintings that give a greater depth to the work.

The author has researched this period well and one not only gets an insight of the lives of these painters but also of the world around them. The reader can literally visualize the gradual realization of Haussman's vision of Paris, or the soirées and evenings spent in cafés. The Franco-Prussian War (1870-71) and the siege of Paris are also described in detail - it led to tremendous upheaval in the French society as also the lives of the painters - a large amount of their output was lost during this war and the sense of loss is transferred to the reader.

The author manages to intertwine the lives of the painters - the individuality of each painter is maintained even though all are presented as a collective. Despite the fact that so many characters are being biographed, the author doesn't leave the reader of being overwhelmed with the plurality of characters.

Use of exact addresses and trivial but minute details such as a `thirteen-minute stop for hot chocolate' (238) which Eugène Manet made on way to Paris from Nice. Though the use of French words was rather limited despite the fact that the setting and the painters were French. Most words can be understood from the context - However, some words (cocottes, arrière pensée) do require a bit of looking up to understand the true import of the sentence.

The Private Lives of the Impressionists.......2007-08-05

This book gives insight to the artists and their methods and environment equally interesting reading.

An enjoyable read...........2007-08-01

This is well-researched, extremely readable looks at the interactions and development of the Impressionists. Roe is knowledgeable and handles her subject well.
I found it hard to put down.

Sue Roe makes public the private lives of such artists as Manet, Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissaro and their friends.......2007-05-30

Paris began the nineteenth century as an ancient city of winding streets, dark alleys and dankly dangerous ill lit streets. Due to the architectural genius of Baron Haussman, Prefect of the Seine,it was transformed into the City of Light. The Eiffel Tower! The well lighted boulevards, the enchanting and cool parks, the height of fashion and the charm of beautifully sculpted public buildings made it the apex of urban beauty (although appalling poverty did still exist). Even the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71 when Paris was briefly occupied by Prussian soldiers did not dispel the charm of this world capital.
In mid nineteenth century Paris art seemed locked in a Procrustean bed of classicicism and stody history painting. The French Academy would only show painting approved by its ultra-conservative directors.
Each year bold new artists were seeking to make impressionism the wave of the future. Each year their art was rejected at Academy shows. Each year masterpieces were created as they launched their own art shows to intially hostile and then adoring crowds flocking to see them. Who were these artist beginning the most popular movement in art history?
Among their number were:
Eduard Manet the oldest of the impressionists whose bold colors and views of sea and the life of evereyday Parisians was a bold step in the art world. His painting "A Modern Olympia" picturing a nude prostitute as well as other controversial works such as "Le Dejeuner
sur l'herbe" of 1863 portraying a nude women sitting with two fully clothed male friends was a cause celebre bringing attention to the new trend of budding artists seekiing to portray light, color and air as they caught the "impression" of the evanescent passing scene.
Claude Monet (1840-1926) noted for his water lilies, boating scenes and haystacks at his home in Giverny had to struggle against his family, saw children die and faced years of poverty would, nevertheless, triumph becoming rich and famous. His 1872 painting "Impression: Dawn" gave the word impressionism to the movement he and his friends were launching.
Auguste Renoir (1841-1917) was famed for his portraits, love of abundance feminine nudes and boating and fruit scenes.Like many of the impressionist
his family opposed his painting and his choice of a simple girl as a bride.
Camille Pissaro (1840-1903) was born to a Spanish Jewish family in the West Indies. Pissaro served as a mentor to many of the impressionists.
Edgar Degas (1832-1883) died young of syphillis. The French artist Berthe Morisot married his brother Gustave. She may have been in love with Edgar.
His art is noted for brilliant persective, color and beauty.
Several other leading impressionists are discussed such as the American Philadelphian Mary Cassat: Paul Cezzane (who grew up as a friend of the famed novelist Emile Zola) are profiled.
The group eventually broke up showing ther art in shows with one another but by then the art world had been revolutionized by their genius.
Sue Roe has penned a fascinating study of the impressionists. She shows the mileu of Paris and France at the time they lived; how they interacted; how they loved, supported one another and at times feuded with not only the critics but themselves.
Anyone who strolls through an art gallery wanting to know more about the lives of the artists would enjoy this delightful book.

Enjoyable, Historical Read, Learn about great painters!.......2007-05-27

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. If you are new to learning about impressionism or art history, I think you need another book of pure pictures to follow this up.

I learned so much more about Monet, Manet, Cezanne, Rembrant, Mary Cassat, Degas, Pissaro, and others that I can not accurately name. Of particular interest to me was Berthe Morisot, who, as a woman, was in on the impressionist movement from the beginning. However, she's not so well known, and I wonder if her name is included now in art history classes.

The impressionist painters even struggled with the word impressionst! They struggled with each other and disagreed, made up, then disagreed again. They agreed, then disagreed about when and how to display their work, if they should or should not submit to the Salon, and the list goes on.

The impressionts struggled to live on income soley from their art, and really who doesn't? I was struck with how insistant some were that they paint to live. They had little shame about begging and barrowing from rich patrons. Some of the artists portrayed were really above trying to suppliment an income with teaching. In reading this book I had the sense that they found teaching and work other than painting just plain common and not for them. As a working mother and writer, I found this postion quite privlidged. And some of them, like Degas, were wealthy growing up, and they felt they belong to the "gentleman's class"

If you want to know more about how the impressionists knew each other, realted to one another, hated one another, loved one another and so on, then this is the book for you. It is very much about their relationships. If, on the other hand, you want to know more about their paintings, then you need another book that illustrates thier art, as this one offers little in that way.

All in all, I enjoyed knowing more about these amazing people, their ideas, politics, relationships, and what they wanted from the world. This book will deliver all that and more to you.

Great Artists: The Lives of 50 Painters Explored Through Their Work

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Not for elementary children
Not What I Expected
I hoped for more
Great Artists: Lives of 50 painters
A gorgeous and informative book!

Great Artists: The Lives of 50 Painters Explored Through Their Work
Robert Cumming
Manufacturer: DK ADULT
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 078942391X

Amazon.com

A benchmark for intelligent, engaging nonfiction, this superbly designed book is written and illustrated with a lushness that takes the breath away. Robert Cumming is chairman of Christie's education department: he knows his art history. But he also knows how to seduce you with the sheer beauty of the material, and the well-placed pointer to telling details. Fifty double-page spreads cover artists from da Vinci and Rubens to Monet, Picasso, and Pollock. Each spread is a concentrated master-class on the life, the style, and the influence. Check out the luminous full-color reproductions of "Bacchus" and "The Conversion of St. Paul," then read the opening sentence above them--"One of the few great artists to have a criminal record, Caravaggio was violent, loutish, and frequently under arrest"--and see if you can resist the temptation to read on. Great Artists is a dream of a book that adults and their older children will fight over. (Ages 12 to adult) --Richard Farr

Customer Reviews:

Not for elementary children.......2007-10-05

Take the Young Adult age recommendation seriously. I purchased an updated copy of this book at an elementary school book fair. I'm not squeamish about nudity in art, but the text includes lots of words like "erotic", "homoerotic", "prostitute", "ravished", and "rape". Be aware that this could create a lot of questions that you may not be ready to answer, and your child may not be ready to hear. On the other hand, I quite enjoyed it and would recommend the book for older teens, college students, and adults.

Not What I Expected.......2006-08-12

I bought this book to help in our artist appreciation with my primary children in our home school. I don't have a problem with nudity in art work, and am willing to discuss and explain the reasons for nudity to my children. However, the book is overwhelmingly filled with nudity. At least twenty pages have rather large pictures of nudes and many are in seductive poses. I do not feel comfortable allowing my children to freely browse through this book and felt that the authors could have chosen different pieces of work that could have equally displayed the works of the artists.

I hoped for more.......2005-10-23

I was hoping for a book which helped the reader SEE the actual paintings of the masters. The particular brushstroke that made the painting interesting. The unusual shade or hue of color that made the flower come out of the painting. That sort of book. It is not. Still it has good illustrations and good information about the artists it covers.

Great Artists: Lives of 50 painters.......2005-07-26

This art book is a great bargain for the quality of the reproductions is very good. The writing is excellent.

A gorgeous and informative book!.......1999-03-30

This oversized book has dovoted 2 pages to each important artist from the 1400's to Jackson Pollock. As with all D-K books, the reproductions are wonderful and the information is fascinating. The arthor gives a mixture of facts about the artist's life, painting of the period, key works of the painter, and other events happening in the world at the time. I love this book!

Caravaggio: Painter of Miracles (Eminent Lives)

Average customer rating:

H&J Bailey
The Sinner-Saint
A brief life with no new insights
A good book.....
Great overview for the non Art professional

Caravaggio: Painter of Miracles (Eminent Lives)
Francine Prose
Manufacturer: Eminent Lives
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060575603
Release Date: 2005-10-04

Book Description

Francine Prose's life of Caravaggio evokes the genius of this great artist through a brilliant reading of his paintings. Caravaggio defied the aesthetic conventions of his time; his use of ordinary people, realistically portrayed—street boys, prostitutes, the poor, the aged—was a profound and revolutionary innovation that left its mark on generations of artists. His insistence on painting from nature, on rendering the emotional truth of experience, whether religious or secular, makes him an artist who speaks across the centuries to our own time.

Born in 1571 near Milan, Michelangelo Merisi (da Caravaggio) moved to Rome when he was twenty-one years old. He became a brilliant and successful artist, protected by the influential Cardinal del Monte and other patrons. But he was also a man of the streets who couldn't seem to free himself from its brawls and vendettas. In 1606 he fled Rome, apparently after killing another man in a dispute. He spent his last years in exile, in Naples, Malta, and Sicily, at once celebrated for his art and tormented by his enemies. Through it all, he produced masterpieces of astonishing complexity and power. Eventually he received a pardon from the Pope, only to die, in mysterious circumstances, on the way back to Rome in 1610.

Francine Prose presents the brief but tumultuous life of one of the greatest of all painters with passion and acute sensitivity.

Customer Reviews:

H&J Bailey.......2007-05-13

We purchased "Caravaggio: Painter of miracles" in preparation for a tour to ITALY dedicated to the works of Caravaggio that we found in Rome, Naples and Florence. It was an excellent preparation.
Excellent sketch of Caravaggio's life, and overview of his opus. The author's clear and aggressive prose fits Caravaggio to a T. The text was easily read and exciting in it's coverage of things Caravaggio.
I recommend the book to any person interested in Caravaggio and I intend to pursue other works by the author Francine Prose.

The Sinner-Saint.......2007-02-28

Francine Prose's "Caravaggio: Painter of Miracles" is part of a series of short biographies called "Eminent Lives" in which famous authors write about great historical figures. The aim of the series is not be produce scholarly or definitive works; instead it is to offer the reader a gateway into the works and importance of the subject to inspire further exploration and thought.

Francine Prose is best-known as a novelist. She offers in this book an elegant short guide to the great Italian painter Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1573 -- 1610). Caravaggio's story is one of the most romantic and tantalizing in art. He moved to Rome as a young man of 21 and established his reputation as a painter of importance, turning early in his career to paintings of religious themes. But Caravaggio's life was tumultuous, violent, and brutal. He was never without his dagger, even when he slept. He brawled and fought and consorted with the low life of Rome, and was forced to flee the city after killing a man in a dispute that involved a bet over a game of tennis. In exile, Caravaggio continued to live violently, to flee from place to place, and to paint masterpieces. Prose captures the tension between Caravaggio's tortured life and his artistry. She writes:

"The life of Caravaggio is the closes thing we have to the myth of the sinner-saint, the street tough, the martyr, the killer, the genius -- the myth that, in these jaded and secular times, we are almost ashamed to admit that we still long for, and need. .. Each time we see his paintings, we are reminded of why we still care so profoundly about this artist who continues to speak to us in his urgent, intimate language, audible centuries after the voices of his more civilized, presentable colleagues have fallen silent". (p. 13)

Prose did not get me very far into Caravaggio's life. She is much more successful in describing the paintings, which she does in good detail for a short book. The book includes 11 color plates of some of Caravaggio's masterpieces, from the beginning to the end of his career. Prose has helpful things to say in helping the reader to understand these works and the circumstances of their creation -- she helps the nonspecialist learn to look at and respond to a painting. I found her especially good in discussing Caravaggio's paintings of the "Calling of Saint Matthew" -- where she eloquently shows the artist depicting a conversion experience -- and its companion work, "The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew." Prose also discusses well many paintings that are not reproduced in the book. In order to get the most from these discussions, the reader will need to find these paintings in another source -- this book has as its goal, after all, encouraging further exploration of Caravaggio.

Prose finds Caravaggio's greatness lies in his honesty, directness, and naturalism. She stresses how is works communicate directly with the viewer. Prose also emphasizes how Caravaggio used common people and places and the tough street life with which he was familiar in his paintings, including the use of rough laborers, common dwellings, gypsies, and prostitutes. Caravaggio's work combined elements of violence and low life with deep spirituality as he explored the mysteries of faith, conversion experiences,loneliness, and martyrdom. Caravaggio's brilliance as a painter, and the highly modern tension his work suggests between the spiritual and the mundane, are reasons why many people will continue to be fascinated by his work.

Prose's book doesn't capture fully the reasons why Caravaggio's work continues to live and to move people. But her book will encourage reflection upon and further exploration of the work of this great and troubled artist.

Robin Friedman

A brief life with no new insights.......2006-12-08

Francine Prose writes well and with a light ironic touch but this slim volume adds little to what we already know about Caravaggio. At a little over 100 pages and with only a handful of color illustrations the book amounts to little more than an extended essay of Ms. Prose's reactions to Caravaggio's major works. There are very many better books showing the paintings and Prose doesn't go into the camera obscura technique that Caravaggio undoubtedly used, giving his paintings an almost photo-realistic representation of his subjects.

That Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was a brawler with a passion for picking fights worthy of "Fight Club" who combined erratic behavior with some sublime paintings is hardly an insight. A much better treatment of the life and psychology of the artist appears in Peter Robb's 1998 "M: The Man who Became Caravaggio" which curiously is unreferenced by Prose.

Although Prose notes that Caravaggio broke away from the stylized poses and unearthly lighting of the mannerists, I don't think she clearly explains his genius.

A good book............2006-11-03

This was a good book because it made me curious about Caravaggio. I subsequently bought another book that was a much more thorough biography of Caravaggio.

Great overview for the non Art professional.......2006-06-10

A great little book that covers what is known about a true bad boy of art, a tormented genius that challenged the accepted art of his time and changed the direction of painting, not something lightly done in those times. For this he was applauded, sought out, paid very well; he respond with bad judgment and madness. This book hits all the highlights and story points a non-art professional would want with being bogged down in too much 'art philosophy' that books on artists sometime drop into making it hard for an amateur to wade through. This is an excellent intro to Caravaggio. You should read this and then follow it up with The Lost Painting: A Quest For A Caravaggio Masterpiece, the amazing and true story of how one of Caravaggio's lost paintings was found in the 1990s.

Snapshots of Bloomsbury: The Private Lives of Virginia Woolf And Vanessa Bell

Average customer rating:

Intimate and stylish
I'm in between

Snapshots of Bloomsbury: The Private Lives of Virginia Woolf And Vanessa Bell
Maggie Humm
Manufacturer: Rutgers University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0813537061

Customer Reviews:

Intimate and stylish.......2006-08-08

I really enjoyed this book. I could pore over the fashions, the interior decoration - it satisfied my desire to see all the details! At the same time, I got a sense of the passage of time in Virginia and Vanessa's lives. Read as a companion to any of Woolf's novels, I think the book would also convey a sense of the writing process.

It evokes the time and place beautifully, and the text is not intrusive: the images are allowed to take centre stage as works of art in their own right.

Fine choice, Sweetpea!

I'm in between.......2006-04-17

Nutty yet poignant

Have we found the smoking gun here? I doubt it

Bloomsbury has a posse!

Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera: Their Lives and Ideas, 24 Activities (For Kids series)

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Latin American Culture and Art

Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera: Their Lives and Ideas, 24 Activities (For Kids series)
Carol Sabbeth
Manufacturer: Chicago Review Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1556525699

Book Description

Children will find artistic inspiration as they learn about iconic artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera in these imaginative and colorful activities. The art and ideas of Kahlo and Rivera are explored through projects that include painting a self-portrait Kahlo-style, creating a mural with a social message like Rivera, making a Day of the Dead ofrenda, and crafting an Olmec head carving. Vibrant illustrations throughout the book include Rivera's murals and paintings, Kahlo's dreamscapes and self-portraits, pre-Columbian art and Mexican folk art, as well as many photographs of the two artists. Children will learn that art is more than just pretty pictures; it can be a way to express the artist's innermost feelings, a source of everyday joy and fun, an outlet for political ideas, and an expression of hope for a better world. Sidebars will introduce children to other Mexican artists and other notable female artists. A time line, listings of art museums and places where Kahlo and Rivera's art can be viewed, and a list of relevant websites complete this cross-cultural art experience.

Customer Reviews:

Latin American Culture and Art.......2007-07-12

Great resource for teaching about Latin American artisits and culture. The project ideas were original and the background information was very helpful.

Lives of the Painters, Sculptors and Architects (Everyman's Library)

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Fantastic book on Renaissance art and architecture.

Lives of the Painters, Sculptors and Architects (Everyman's Library)
Giorgio Vasari
Manufacturer: Everyman's Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0679451013
Release Date: 1996-11-05

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic book on Renaissance art and architecture........2006-04-29

This is possibly one of the best reads for anyone studying or interested in Renaissance art and architecture. Vasari lived in the times of the people he describes and knew many of them personally. He watched them working on their masterpieces.
For example he was a dear friend of Michelangelo's. What better source than someone who worked and dined with the master?
His writing style is very casual and conversational rather that scholarly or academic, which together with plenty of anecdotes and personal remarks makes for an exciting read. And I mean EXCITING. Unlike any history book ever.
His historical accuracy is sometimes questionable, but current editions of the books are properly footnoted with all of Vasari's mistakes corrected.

A Pre-Raphaelite Marriage: The Lives and Works of Marie Spartali Stillman & W

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A Pre-Raphaelite Marriage: The Lives and Works of Marie Spartali Stillman & W
David B. Elliot
Manufacturer: Antique Collectors Club Dist A/C
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1851494952

Book Description

This is the first biography of Marie Spartali Stillman and is based on full access to her family's archives. As much of her work can only be found in private collections, many of the works illustrated here have not been seen by the public since 1908.

Average customer rating:

inspiring
It Should Have Been So Much More

Between Lives: An Artist and Her World
Dorothea Tanning
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Surrealism | Schools, Periods & Styles | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0393050408

Book Description

The life and times of one of our most enchanting artists; a twentieth-century fairy tale, lovingly remembered and luminously told. Fourteen years ago, the artist Dorothea Tanning published Birthday, a collection of reminiscences. Now she has expanded it into a memoir of her journey through the last century as confidant, collaborator, and muse to some of its most inspired minds and personalities: a diverse assemblage that ranges from the fathers of dada and surrealism to Virgil Thompson, George Balanchine, Alberto Giacometti, Dylan Thomas, Truman Capote, Joan Miró, James Merrill, and many more. At its center is the relationship, tenderly rendered, between Tanning and her famed husband, the enigmatic surrealist Max Ernst. Whether recalling the poignant presence of her friend Joseph Cornell or simply the facades along a Venice canal, "their filmy reflections fluttering in the dirty canal like fragile altar cloths hung out to dry," Tanning's writing is beguiling, wry, and shot through with the same eye for pregnant detail and immanent magic that marks her art.

Customer Reviews:

inspiring.......2006-08-26

I love this book. Ms Tanning writes with such a zest for life and creativity that I find it just spills over and communicates to the reader.
She lived an amzing life and came a long way from sleepy small town America. There was obviously a determination or a restless something at work.
Mosty of all I just enjoy the way she writes - it's a lively quircky style but to me it got across the kind of person I imagine Dorothea Tanning to be.
A work of character by a character -

It Should Have Been So Much More.......2003-05-04

Indifferent writing, a surprising lack of insight into the incredible milieu in which she moved, and gratuitously catty remarks towards the great Leonora Carrington (an earlier Ernst protege who Tanning apparently feels threatened by 50 years after the fact) mar what should have been a very interesting memoir of a remarkable life. Tanning, Max Ernst's companion of 30 years and a compelling painter in her own right, was at the heart of one of the great artistic movements of the 20th Century, but this work reads like a flat travel log of places gone to and roll call of persons met. The paucity of detail,personal anectdotes, and characterization of any of the luminaries mentioned mark Tanning's bio as a great disappointment.
--A two star book with one star added because any information on this artistic epoch provided by an active participant has to be considered an important contribution.

Giovan Pietro Bellori: The Lives of the Modern Painters, Sculptors, and Architects: A New Translation and Critical Edition

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Giovan Pietro Bellori: The Lives of the Modern Painters, Sculptors, and Architects: A New Translation and Critical Edition
Giovan Pietro Bellori , and Hellmut Wohl
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0521781876

Book Description

Including Annibale Carracci, Caravaggio, Rubens, Van Dyck, and Poussin, this first complete translation of the biographies of fifteen artists by Giovan Pietro Bellori will be a fundamental source of seventeenth-century Italian art and artistic theory. With detailed descriptions of extant and lost works of art, the importance of Bellori's Lives of the Artists lies in the scrupulous documentation of the artists (many of whom he knew personally) which includes detailed descriptions of their works as well as his exposition of the classic theory of art.

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