2 comments about Print In The Western World: An Introductory History.

1. The book I got was in great condition, no marks, and I got it right on time, in time, to use for my class!



2. This book is a must-buy for those seriously interested in taking up print collecting or indeed wishing to gain experience in appreciating prints. Its coverage is magnificent in its breadth and detail. When I purchased from Amazon, I bought two copies - one copy was requested by an art historian - high praise indeed!

2 comments about Warman's Hull Pottery: Identification and Value Guide (Warman's Hull Pottery: Identification & Value Guide).

1. I just love Hull pottery so I was excited to receive my book. I couldn't wait to look up some pieces I had when it came. I received the book in a few days as promised. Excellent service!!!



2. Great addition to my resource library for Hull Pottery. Must have if you are thinking about collection Hull Pottery and a must have if you will be sell Hull Pottery.

3 comments about Pervy Girls: Erotic Fashion Photography.

1. This collection of photography from photographer Christine Kessler is a powerful artistic statement. It's strengths lie in the incongruity of its many different parts that taken as a whole, raise the entire specter to nitrogen heights. Beautiful women explode across its 100+ pages in a frenzy of naked flesh and a wide assortment of sexy attire and makeup.
   
   The downside here is that Kessler's models are almost too beautiful - her lighting too perfect - her scenarios and locations somewhat over-staged. Plus, there is a rawness missing here that's often prevalent in this genre. Perhaps Kessler is unaware of these qualities. Or disregards them. It is after all, just this viewers perspective and opinion. But whatever the reason, she blasts through these "shortcomings" in a transcendent soiree of spectacular composition, unique style, and masterful photography. She does it HER way. And the results are most excellent. Additionally, one cannot fail to see the beautiful and unique chemistry Ms. Kessler has with her subjects. It lends an interesting, unparalleled quality to her work that other photographers lack.
   
   All in all, these are wonderful images to breeze through or get lost in. This is a book of nudes that all but the most misanthropic will find appealing. Most fans of fashion, fine art, and glamour will find something to succor from this ravishing vision.



2. Pervy Girls more than lives up to its title. Bondage, latex, and pinup fans will find much to drool over here. Each photo is colorful, luscious and simple in its way; the beauty is in the girl, the clothing, and the setting. Kessler doesn't need to adorn her models with over-the-top makeup or anything else, because the clothes and their bodies speak for themselves. Set against colorful, textured walls, or in hallways (there's a great catwoman set where the woman is posed in a windowsill, bent over in extremely tall shoes and head-to-toe black latex. What's great is that right beforehand, there's a girl in a bra, and pulled-down jeans that reveal a tatttoeed ass, thong, and fishnets on a patio, exhibitionism at its finest.
   
   Even something as simple as a topless woman wearing only very sheer stockings, pressed up against her bare p-ssy, where you're able to see everything, are amazing. Torn purple fishnets, see-through latex, corsets, a hot shower scene; this is elegant, beautiful perversion, where the glamour of the fashions being displayed is matched only by the lustful stares of the entrancing models. I really liked how wide a range of colors, styles, and models were used, and that this book is portable. Some of the best shots do more hiding than showing, like one model wearing only knee-high lace-up black boots, with her legs spread, hand place judiciously between them, eyes closed, blonde hair tossed over one eye. Each photo tells an elegant, sexy story, and Kessler captures her models from various angles that make the most of their bodies. The occasional two girl sets are fabulous, too; especially worth checking out are pages 28-29 for the all-black-clad suspension and then red rope bondage.
   
   This will appeal to dedicated perverts and those who just like to look at pretty girls. I like that while it's kinky, it's not crazy over the top; the poses seem pretty natural, and the bondage isn't extreme, more sensual than anything else (there's one great shot of a woman tied up while wearing a kimono). This is definitely a book I'll return to again and again, to lust over the photos and get ideas for clingy outfits to covet.



3. I would probably say that it is between 3 and 4... around 3.5. Things I disliked about it:
   
   * The size. The book in my opinion is a bit too small.
   * The shoes. Almost all the shoes in the photos are, in my opinion, horrible.
   * The latex. Not even half, but still, many of the pictures on the book are basically about women dressing latex.
   
   Beyond that, the book is pretty good. I generally prefer collections with attractive but yet real women. This is not the case. These women are, with no doubt, professional models, with almost perfect bodies, but if you are interested in a book that mainly shows beautiful bodies, it may be the book for you!

5 comments about Teach Me! An Erotic Journey.

1. The cover looks very nice, even physically and I was attracted to the book. I was expecting a similar if not the same artistic quality on the content. I am very particular with the graphic presentation and the comics need to have certain quality to "turn me on" (not sexually ).
   
   I was looking for graphics with thin and clear line work, just as what displayed on the cover. I am a little disappointed that the artist uses thick marker as the tool for his work. The drawing is not very consistence and more work is needed to improve. The book also comes in black and white, different from the mainstreams which are now more or less in color.
   
   There are 2 stories, one set in the present day while the other in the past ( early migrants to USA ). Due to the slight dis-oriented presentation of the content, the stories are a little confusing and need some re-organization to have better understanding of what the artist trying to convey.
   
   Erotically it is mildly entertaining as I was quite put off by the artwork. The technique would be better applied to work meant for teen contents.



2. This book I rate minus zero. It contains extremely degrading sadistic text and illustrations through-out without any redeeming qualities.
   Amazon should practice greater disclosure when it comes to presenting products with so much abusive content(perhaps a rating system) so those reasonable carefull in there selections do not purchase such dehumanizing content unknowingly. Greater and clearer discloser would benifit both the buyer and seller avoiding uncessary resentment as well as benifit society as a whole.
   PS I not religously oriented and liberal in my viewpoints within limits.



3. I'm not really an expert on this kind of media, but I found the art to be passable, it would have been better in color. The storyline was good, not exceptional.
   
   All in all this was decent beginning for my collection.



4. This book has two stories.
   The first is fun and I enjoyed it..it is silly and sexy.
   The second one one is only for those whose fetish is torture, not SM, but just torture. I like kinky sex. I do not like debasement. Do not read this if you have any Sexual abuse issues.



5. It's got straight sex, lesbian sex, a LOT of anal sex, gay male sex, domination, rape, murder, B&D, S&M and bestiality. One of the rape victims is constantly worried about what might be happening to her "little girl," though the girl in question turns out to at least LOOK over 16. What it doesn't have is any hint of affection between the players. I was hoping for something that focused on the type of sex I like, rather than trying to please every preference under the sun. At least the male member is pleasingly present, though often attached to men no vanilla-romantic would touch with gloves on!

2 comments about Art of Midway: Before Pixels and Polygons.

1. I found there to be too much character & creature creation - aren't you glad we're all different? I really liked the landscape & environmental work - especially since the current push in video games is to make them more cinematic I see a need for vast improvement in landscapes & environments, needed by me to draw me into the game. And I really enjoyed the comments by the artists.



2. Lots of background for each individual painting is done by the artist who created the painting. They try to describe the mood, atmosphere, and feeling desired for each painting. Emphasis is given to environments and backgrounds, although there is a fair amount of character development and creature creation. Most paintings are finished work and not much preliminary work is shown.

1 comments about Looking at Greek Vases.

1. This was a gift to a 14 yr old collector who lives in Rome Italy, He says it is wonderful, read the whole thing right thru. He actually finds this stuff (parts of)in fields near Rome!

1 comments about Athenian Red Figure Vases: The Classical Period : A Handbook (World of Art).

1. This is another John Boardman book covering Greek Art. This style starts during the late 6th century BC, flourishing in the 5th century BC. It was started by the Athenians, and some of the most famous Greek artists are Red Figure Vase painters. John Boardman is a master storyteller, and he is able to tell the story of the Red Figure painters without sounding too distant. His knowledge of such matters shows and he talks as if he really understands the motives of the artists. His dissemination of different artists and their schools will certainly help the layperson or the student of history. This is a Must Buy!

2 comments about Erte Postcards in Full Color: 24 Ready-to-Mail Postcards (Card Books).

1. The quality on these postcards are not to be missed. They're glossy, and printed on a sturdy weight of paper. The details are so crisp and the colors so vibrant, I'm having some framed to hang in my bedroom. This was a great purchase overall



2. Unique and brillan in colors, Every detail is clear and just a wonderful little work of art!
   Would purchase and will purchase again.

No comments about Working with Clay: An Introduction.

3 comments about Prints and Visual Communication.

1. Anyone interested in media, printmaking, publishing, or photography, should read this book. An indispensable history of print media that should be read alongside Walter Benjamin's "Short History of Photography" and "The Work of Art in the Age of its Technological Reproducibility." Though Ivins knew of neither, this book provides a necessary counterpart to Benjamin's work.



2. Book recommended by art instructor. Author is very erudite in words used and concepts presented. Much of what was presented was of little value to me. I did learn that there were different styles of engraving developed in different countries. Author's major concern seemed to be to have a consistently, accurately presentation of an idea or technique, which in his view was performed by photography. In terms of making my own prints, I learned very little.



3. This is one of those wonderful books. It's written by a contrary, crotchety old man, full of opinions you won't hear anywhere else, and incredibly well-informed. The author was retired from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where he had been curator of prints. I listen when he talks on the topic of prints, and I think I hear why he waited until retirement to write this book.
   
   It starts with a diatribe against classical Roman culture as derivative from Greek, and against classical Greece as `predatory'. He argues that much of the Western classical period was powered by a steady stream of slave labor. As a result, the captors shunned practical arts as demeaning to free men (slave owners). Printed replication of text was well within their technology and would have suited their needs as a reading intelligentsia. The problem was that the presence of slave labor had weakened the slave-owners so much that they couldn't be bothered to carve a printing block. As a result, they created a weakened intellectual heritage, founded on what sounded good instead of what replicated the features of nature. Ivins ties the history of technological innovation to the history of the printed images that educate the innovators. Pictorial information, he argues, enabled the scientific and engineering efflorescence that started in the Renaissance.
   
   Ivins supports that premise with a brilliant tour of the history of pictures on paper. He treats the hand-copied and re-copied manuscripts as the prehistory of true image capture. He traces that history forward through the many technologies of image-making, including woodcut, wood engraving, and intaglio print, on up through photos distributed by machine printing. He offers a number of historical anecdotes, some from traditional sources and some from his personal knowledge of the early 20th century.
   
   Along the way, he thoroughly debunks the mystique of printmaking. It has, overwhelmingly, been a practical art. Much too much has been made of the artificially limited edition, of the false mystique around specific processes and practices. Back in the 1950s, when this was written, that may have been an especially important message. It's still true, to some extent, but I think it undercuts the modern printers who choose printmaking because of its unique expressive capabilities.
   
   Still, it's a clear, well-directed discussion, and illustrated with a rich assortment of demonstrative prints. This book is a treat for anyone interested in the history of prints and pictorial communication; it's a confection for everyone who likes their sacred cows cooked well done.
   
   //wiredweird