Book Description
Pioneering work by the great modernist painter, considered by many to be the father of abstract art and a leader in the movement to free art from traditional bonds. Kandinsky's provocative thoughts on color theory and the nature of art. Analysis of Picasso, Matisse, and earlier masters. 12 illustrations.
Download Description
But despite their patent and well-ordered security, despite their infallible principles, there lurks in these higher segments a hidden fear, a nervous trembling, a sense of insecurity. And this is due to their upbringing. They know that the sages, statesmen and artists whom today they revere, were yesterday spurned as swindlers and charlatans.
Customer Reviews:
"to break the bonds which bind". . . "to an impoverishment of possibility".......2007-06-27
Kandinsky had risen to positions of influence in other disciplines (political science/economics and law) before directing his considerable intellect to painting. His insights extended into the historic 'meta' trends of the arts and sciences, including the physical sciences, and had his interests had been directed to the history and philosophy of science instead of the history and philosophy of art, he might have written Kuhn's observations regarding paradigm change a half century before Kuhn did: "Here and there are people with eyes which can see, minds which can correlate. They say to themselves: 'If the science of the day before yesterday is rejected by the people of yesterday, and that of yesterday by us of today, is it not possible that what we call science now will be rejected by the men of tomorrow?' And the bravest of them answer, 'It is possible.'"
Instead, Kandinsky extended the frontiers of painting and authored philosophic writings on the future of art that are among the most important of such works. M.T.H. Sadler, who translated this work into English, was a friend of Kandinsky's and was among his early admirers. The notes he has written in the front of the book (Translator's Introduction) are therefore more helpful than could be the opinions of many other critics, including myself:
"Anyone who has studied Gauguin will be aware of the intense spiritual value of his work. The man is a preacher and a psychologist, universal by his very unorthodoxy, fundamental because he goes deeper than civilization. In his disciples this great element is wanting.
"Kandinsky has supplied the need. He is not only on the track of an art more purely spiritual than was conceived even by Gauguin, but he has achieved the final abandonment of all representative intention. In this way he combines in himself the spiritual and technical tendencies of one great branch of Post-Impressionism.
"The question most generally asked about Kandinsky's art is: 'What is he trying to do?' It is to be hoped that this book will do something towards answering the question. But it will not do everything. This--partly because it is impossible to put into words the whole of Kandinsky's ideal, partly because in his anxiety to state his case, to court criticism, the author has been tempted to formulate more than is wise. His analysis of colours and their effects on the spectator is not the real basis of his art, because, if it were, one could, with the help of a scientific manual, describe one's emotions before his pictures with perfect accuracy. And this is impossible.
"Kandinsky is painting music. That is to say, he has broken down the barrier between music and painting, and has isolated the pure emotion which, for want of a better name, we call the artistic emotion. Anyone who has listened to good music with any enjoyment will admit to an unmistakable but quite indefinable thrill. He will not be able, with sincerity, to say that such a passage gave him such visual impressions, or such a harmony roused in him such emotions. The effect of music is too subtle for words. And the same with this painting of Kandinsky's. Speaking for myself, to stand in front of some of his drawings or pictures gives a keener and more spiritual pleasure than any other kind of painting. But I could not express in the least what gives the pleasure. Presumably the lines and colours have the same effect as harmony and rhythm in music have on the truly musical. That psychology comes in no one can deny."
Some aspects of Kandinsky's color theory are dubious, at best they cannot be universalized, and Kandinsky sees this. But other of his ideas and arguments are widely accepted among artists, even as being self-evident. Stating that "there is no 'must' in art, because art is free," that is, free to address external representations OR "the inner need," to merely chase after material 'objects' OR to wrestle with the mysteriously spiritual, to somehow meld the two visions OR to stay purely to exploration of the spiritual high ground, Kandinsky absolutely rejects the materialistic expectation of an art "explanation" that has been articulated by EO Wilson in his unfortunate daydream 'Consilience' (Wilson knows ants better than he knows humans, and is given to understanding humans to be essentially ant equivalents).
Anyone interested in art history, painting of the past century, or the relationships/correlations/divergences of the various arts (visual, musical, literary), as well as anyone interested in the meaning and purpose of art, or in the philosophy of aesthetics, should read this important book, perhaps more than once.
Amazing.......2007-01-04
Kandinsky throws his ideas out in a slightly esoteric manner. It make take a few rereads to really grasp the quality of discourse he presents. But, in the end, his commentary shines brightly through his comparisons of music to painting. The spiritual triangle is comparable to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. It is important to remember that Kandinsky is not using the term "spiritual" in a religious sense.
This book is a very good read for anyone feeling slumped in their art making. And for anyone who wants to expose themselves to ways of thinking about art. By the third time I had read the material I had underlined and highlighted almost every line and filled all the margins with notes. The book is fantastic. It is especially good when paired with Hans Hofmann's essay "In Search for the Real." Although the ideas in the two books do not parallel. In fact the lines aren't even on the same page. Kandinksky's critiques of other familiar artists are very interesting too. Names like picasso and Cezanne pop up quite a bit.
I'll stop rambling now. Read the book, it is very good.
A fine attention to artistic reflection and analysis........2006-11-06
Wassilly Kadinsky was a 20th century painter and his CONCERNING THE SPIRITUAL IN ART provides a blend of philosophical, spiritual and artistic reflection as it examines the premises and presence of spirituality in art. This new edition is a recommended pick not just for art students of modernism, but for readers of spiritual works: it includes letters between Kadinsky and Sadler, unpublished prose poems, and a fine attention to artistic reflection and analysis.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Good,but very deep.......2005-08-13
I enjoyed reading the book. At times it was over my head,but still it was worth the effort!!!!
Kandinsky, father of abstract art.......2005-07-22
Concerning the Spiritual in Art is the seminal work that destroys the Formalist myth of "art for art's sake" generally held by those who came of age before the 1980s. Kandinsky and his contemporary compatriot Malevich were fervent revolutionaries. While Marxist Leninism saw all human endeavor in terms of dialectical materialism, the Russian avant garde painters undermined Western Civilization on the spiritual level by attacking the very nature of reality. Abstract art, as explained by Kandinsky, is not, as was generally taught, a simple arrangement of lines shapes and colors in a harmonious pattern on canvas, but an attempt to attain and depict a divine gnosis. Kandinsky sets forth in Concerning the Spiritual in art his Oriental Theosophy based on the writings of occultist Madame Helena Blavatsky rather than Judaism or Christianity, both of which religions he openly dispised. Though the writer of this review disagrees strongly with the author's ideology, Concerning the Spiritual in Art is highly recommended to all serious students of both art and religion. Hamilton Reed Armstrong, AGDEI ART
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- Practical and inspiring
- A Little Jewel
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A Traveler's Guide to Painting in Oils
Lynn Leon Loscutoff
Manufacturer: North Light Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 General
| Reference
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
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General
| Instructional & How-To
| Arts & Photography
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Painting
| Instructional & How-To
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General
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ASIN: 1564962504 |
Customer Reviews:
Practical and inspiring.......2003-09-03
This book is fabulous for anyone who wants to get started in plein air oil painting. The author gives guidelines for what and how to pack for painting trips. By following her tips, I was able to get the most out of a recent camping vacation. Not only was I efficiently equipped for day-long painting excursions, but I also was able to have my tools at the ready in a fanny pack for times when I was simply out and about. The book also gives practical inspiration by showing the work of a number of artists of diverse styles. These artists also share their techniques, so you have a lot of ideas for developing your own approach. All in all a great resource to get you out there painting!
A Little Jewel.......2001-12-27
This is just what the vacation artist needs to get a variety of options to make oil painting and travel doable. I'm sorry but my copy of this little jewel of a book will not ever be available for sale as used, as I continue to get ideas for my next painting vacation, or my next workshop. This is a must for dreamers of painting in faraway places. (Enclosing the blank postcards in a back pocket of the book is a class act.)
Book Description
This new book of photographs of semi-nude women and their partners presents a remarkable portrait of breast cancer survivors, of which there are 1.6 million in the US. These photographic subjects are portrayed not as victims but as women of elegance, strength and sensuousness who have transcended their disease and resultant surgery. The women in the book range in age from their twenties to over eighty-three years. Accompanied by original poetry by Maria Marrocchino and subject written vignettes, these women redefine their self-image: breast missing, altered and reconstructed. As Dr. David Spiegel, the nationally recognized specialist in the therapy of women facing life-threatening illness notes in the foreword, "...they present their bodies and themselves with humor, sadness, vulnerability, honesty. They challenge us to look beyond what is missing, beneath the scar. They evoke admiration: of their beauty and their courage. They do not hide their loss, they transcend it."
Customer Reviews:
Winged Victory: Confronting and raw but disappointing.......2007-03-10
I bought this book as I am an artist who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 and am going to produce images that introduce my viewer to my breast cancer journey in a positive, intimate but honest way. I thought the book might assist me in mentally prepare for creating work as the front cover and initial review portrayed imagery that was artistic and provoking. Whilst I absolutely applaud the front cover and find the book haunting, the women photographed in it brave, beautiful and positive, the overall content of the book was a bit disappointing. I don't know if it was the actual printing of the book that caused it, however some of the photos were very dark tonally and some of the impact and composition was lost. I would have liked to have seen more works similar to the front cover within the book. The photos of the women were good, but I would have liked to have seen more. Art Myers obviously has skill, empathy and the ability to communicate with the women he worked with but I felt disappointed. The contributions from the survivors was honest, amusing and well done. I have since bought two other books Turning Heads and Art.Rage.Us and found them more useful. For what this book cost me as an international buyer I was disapponted.
Winged Victory: Altered Images: Transcending Breast Cancer.......2004-08-21
This is a fabulous photo book celebrating women's bodies after mastectomy. The pictures are very well done with great artistic effects.
I would recommend this for anyone going through this procedure and any medical facility providing mammograms, mastectomy and breast cancer treatment.
Courage Personified.......1999-12-07
I first viewed this book as I waited for a retake on a mammogram - a little apprehensive, and very much reminded of my sister, who just marked one year in her fight with breast cancer. I was completely taken unaware by the beauty and courage I witnessed through Art Myers' photography, but was as deeply touched by the bravery of these women of all ages who bared not only their bodies, but their souls. Many of the photographs become portraits not just of an individual, but of their support system, as well. Incorporating husbands (including one of 50+ years), children, and significant others brought tears to my eyes. The text and captions are equally moving, extremely intimate, yet not offensive. By the time I finished, I felt renewed inner peace and strength for what lay ahead for me. I plan to use this as a gift, because I saw my sister on every page - brave, beautiful, and surviving.
Book Description
According to Raybeck, the solitary dictum that best characterizes fieldwork is "Things go awry." In this spirited account of his time spent in Southeast Asia, Raybeck describes several adventures and misadventures involving field research, as well as the understanding, humility and bruises that these experiences leave behind. Since fieldwork is situated, Raybeck's treatment also includes rich descriptions of Kelantanese society and culture, addressing such topics as kinship, linguistics, gender relations, economics, and political structures. Through the lively pages of this narrative, readers gain insight into the human dimension of the fieldwork undertaking, a sense of how the anthropologist builds rapport in a research setting, and how reliable information is obtained.
Customer Reviews:
Professor Raybeck writes for students.......2001-01-08
I think the highlight of this book is that Professor Raybeck writes in a way that introduces anthropology to students as approachable and interesting. It shows the mistakes that a professonal can (and will) make while in the field. While taking Professor Raybeck's class at Hamilton College, "Mad Dogs" was used as a tool and example in his own teaching, but I feel that this book stands alone and can be used for any intro to anthro class, or for anyone looking for a low-key introduction to anthropological field work.
Customer Reviews:
Like pirating a few copies of "Beethoven's 2nd".......2002-10-24
This is the only one of its kind.
How often, on your morning commute in to work, do you see someone on the train reading a bright pink book? It doesn't happen very often, especially if the reader is over the age of, say, eight. Thanks to "Mad Dogs and Englishmen", you too can witness the impossible, if you happen to share your commute with a "Doctor Who" fan. I have to admit that one of the reasons I read this book in a ridiculously fast three days was so I could minimize the amount of time people would see me, an attorney at law, reading a bright pink novel with a pink, cigarette-smoking and pistol-packing poodle, on the cover.
For all that, is it any good?
"Mad Dogs and Englishmen", even though it's the next book in the series after the intense, moody, arc-changing "Adventuress of Henrietta Street", is lighter than air and less serious than a Leslie Nielsen movie. At one point I tried to keep track of notable lines, but quickly ran out of room. The whole thing's a broad satire of the sci-fi fandom culture -- broad riffs on J.R.R. Tolkien, George Lucas, and Ray Harryhausen dominate the book. Noel Coward's also in it. Several times. The book jumps breezily from 1942 London to 1960 Las Vegas to 1978 Los Angeles to Outer Space, and more than gets away with it.
Now, this book is by Paul Magrs, one of the more divisive "Doctor Who" novel writers. Most of his books are parodies, not satires (there's a fine line) of "Doctor Who", and revolve around his own pet character Iris Wildthyme. Not so this book -- in fact, the word "Wildthyme" doesn't appear anywhere within its four corners. Yes, there are the broad pokes at DW stories (the Doctor's descriptions of some of his 1970s TV adventures are drop-dead funny), but this time, Magrs doesn't seem to be trying to show off his Immense Literary Cleverness to the audience. Like I said, it's the broadest and lightest of his books to date and I think even those readers dead set against him, will at the worst be only slightly amused.
And, even though it's light on the arc (the Doctor does still have his goatee), it's the second "fake history" novel in a row -- referring to all sorts of Earth events that, well, never happened. Something very odd is happening with time -- if not necessarily with Wildthyme -- in the 8th Doctor's universe...
More Camp Than A Holiday With John Inman.......2002-04-09
Pity the eyes of the Doctor Who fan. In November of 2001, the BBC published THE ADVENTURESS OF HENRIETTA STREET - a book written in such a small font that it's currently being used as a calibration device for electron microscopes. After numerous readers were spotted literally bleeding from the eyes due to excess squinting, reports of blindness spread throughout fandom faster than casting rumors about Ken Dodd. "The BBC," up-in-arms fans demanded, "will have to do something about this state of affairs! No more janus thorns! No more tiny print! No more making our eyeballs bleed! Have pity on our orbs of sight! Give us something soothing to look at!" And in their wisdom the BBC, upon hearing these pleas of mercy from our optically challenged fans friends (of which this humble reviewer counts himself as a fully paid up member), decided to follow ADVENTURESS with a new book from Paul Magrs. A new book about poodles. A new book with a bright pink cover, featuring a bright pink poodle reclining on a yellow sofa, holding a cigarette and a yellow water pistol. In case there were any optic nerves that hadn't spontaneously combusted upon initial viewing of this cover, there is also a giant reflective Doctor Who logo on the front, that screams to anyone who will listen about how there are now one hundred BBC Doctor Who Novels in existence (I can only assume that a cover claiming that this is the one hundredth book since the BBC took the license away from Virgin didn't go over terribly well in the board meetings). So, in case you missed anything, there's a bright, shiny, reflective gold logo glowing on top of a screamingly bright pink cover published right after November's Hold-The-Book-Very-Close-To-Your-Head fest. Why does BBC range editor Justin Richards hate my eyes so?
Personally, I think the cover is one of the most killingly funny things I've even seen on the front of the book in a very long time. On the other hand, I have absolutely no wish to persuade that of anyone who happens to think that it is the most garish and ugly work that they've ever seen in their life (I would probably only mention the fact that they seem to be completely missing the point). The extreme pinkness of the cover is something that someone is going to either love or abhor and there's absolutely no reason to try to dissuade a person from their opinion on that. While fans will forever be divided on that subject, the book itself is quite a lot of fun. It is the epitome of romp. It is the embodiment of camp. It is the quintessence of silliness. It's great.
For those readers who thought that all books following THE ADVENTURESS OF HENRIETTA STREET would end up being massively heavy books, have no fear. MAD DOGS is possibly one of the lightest books that the Doctor Who range has ever produced. The novel is so light that while I put the book aside during breaks in reading, if it was not for the weight of the bookmark that I shoved into its pages, I would be in eternal fear of the novel being caught on a stray current of air and floating away to some unknown destination. (For any overly sensitive review-reader who is worried about the fate of my copy now that the bookmark has been removed from MAD DOGS' innards need fret no more. My copy is now resting comfortably on my bookshelf next to a copy of ADVENTURESS, and the gravitational pull of that tome will keep MAD DOGS securely anchored to the Earth for many many years to come.)
In addition to be a delightfully quick book to read, it's also a terribly funny one. MAD DOGS is one of the few Doctor Who stories where virtually every joke or bad pun creates a laugh. Not a book to be taken seriously, it succeeds largely because it's written in such a fun and quick style. Paul Magrs' prose style is incredibly engaging; it's Terrance Dicks with a real sense of poetry. While some books get humor all wrong by dwelling too much on the outrageousness of the situational comedy, MAD DOG quickly moves from one insane setup to another. There are some wonderfully described passages that will have you chuckling to yourself for weeks. It's fluffy, but it's not insultingly so. It's vaguely clever enough that I certainly didn't feel that I had wasted my time on something inconsequential. It's amazingly entertaining, and while I wouldn't want to read an entire series of books like this, as a one-off it succeeds magnificently.
MAD DOGS works as a great standalone romp through the weird and wacky world of Who. If you're someone who doesn't like your Who to be horribly serious at all times, then in all likelihood you'll adore this one. But then, you probably realized the lack of inherent seriousness present in the text when you threw your hands over your face to protect yourself from the intense radioactive blast of a cover.
Truly bizarre take on our favourite time-traveller.......2002-03-19
First of all, let me describe the cover, since it doesn't appear on the site. It is bright pink, with a pink poodle lounging on a divan. The poodle has human-like hands, and is holding a ray-gun out of a 50's sci-fi movie in one hand, and a cigarette holder with a smoking cigarette in the other. If that doesn't indicate the tone of the book to follow, I'll eat a horse.
Yes, camp is the word of the day to describe this one. Reginald Tyler (J.R.R. Tolkein, very obviously) has devoted his life to the writing of his master work, The True History of Planets. It is a large story about elves, trolls, goblins, etc. At least, that's the book that the Doctor has always known. However, after arriving at a science-fiction convention in the early 21st century, he discovers that the book is no longer about such fantastical creatures, but instead it's a book about the true events on Dogworld, where the Queen is overthrown and a new Emperor has taken over. A movie has been made of the book, which will make the situation on Dogworld even worse. Thus, the Doctor, Anji and Fitz have to figure out what's going on and how to stop it. They pick up some friends along the way and separate into the time stream in order to do this. The Doctor and one poodle go to the 1940's and infiltrate the Smudgelings, Tyler's elite Cambridge writing group. Fitz and Flossie (another acquisition) go to the 1960's and fall in with the flamboyant torch singer, Brenda Soobie, who's also more than what she seems. Finally, Anji and another poodle go to the 1970's, where work on the film is beginning. What follows is truly, truly...well, bizarre is probably the best way to describe it.
However, this is bizarre in a good way, rather than the weird events of Henrietta Street, the previous book. Paul Magrs has written a very broad comedy, with wonderful parodies of Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, and even George Lucas in a very over the top manner (he acts out his scenes by playing with his toys). There's even a comment on the decline of stop-motion animation and the rise of computer graphics in movies. In fact, that's a major plot point. And you'll never look at Noel Coward the same way again after reading this book.
But is it any good? Oh yeah, it's good. The plot is a bit too thin for this to be a 5-star book and the characters are fairly two-dimensional, but it is definitely up there. The Eighth Doctor series really needed this break in tone after Henrietta Street. It's funny, makes a couple of interesting points and fulfills the promise of the cover. The comedy is so broad that the characters can't help but be two-dimensional. There are no deep thoughts, the regulars don't develop at all, and the plot is flimsy. But that's hardly the point in this book. This is Dr. Who that doesn't take itself seriously, and where's the problem with that once in awhile?
Paul Magrs has written three other Dr. Who books, and each one has been infested (yes, that's the right word) with his character, Iris Wildthyme. This one has her too, but she's not that intrusive or annoying in this book. Thus, it's Magrs' best book of the lot. She's very subdued, or at least she is once you find out who she is. Magrs has also avoided doing some of his literary tricks that he did with his previous books that annoyed me. This book has an ending, for one thing. He has played with the English language, how it's used, and how literature is written in his previous ones, and they've left me cold in the process. However, this time he plays with tone instead, and he's much better for it.
You will laugh at this book. You will laugh *with* this book. You will glory in the wonders of Dogworld, sympathize with some of the poodles, while cursing at the other poodles. You will laugh at an aphid named Professor Alid Jag, who is involved in a wonderful gag right at the beginning of the book. I hope you won't be embarrassed by the cover as you read it on the bus to work. I wasn't. But I'm not easily embarrassed. It is, shall we say, garish. But that's ok. It's well worth it.
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Mad Dogs and Englishmen
Bryn Parry
Manufacturer: Swan Hill Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Comic Strips
| Comics & Graphic Novels
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| Comics & Graphic Novels
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Cats, Dogs & Animals
| Humor
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Sports
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ASIN: 184037232X |
Book Description
Mad Dogs and Englishmen is a collection of Bryn's shooting and dog cartoons. It gives an insight into a world that can really only be understood by a participant for whom it is more than a sport; it is a way of life.
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Mad Dogs and Englishmen: A Bengal Adventure
Michael Pitt
Manufacturer: The Pentland Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Biographies & Memoirs
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Travel
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Pakistan
| Asia
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ASIN: 1858210461 |
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Mad dogs and Englishmen: A study of Noel Coward (The Emporia State research studies)
Clarence Ralph Morse
Manufacturer: School of Graduate and Professional Studies, Kansas State Teachers College
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
General
| Theater
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British
| World Literature
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| 18th Century
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| Letters & Correspondence
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ASIN: B0006CD6IA |
Books:
- Covering + Exposing : Coop Himmelblau
- Daoism Handbook (2 volume set)
- Design Communication: Developing Promotional Material for Design Professionals
- Designing Dreams: Modern Architecture in the Movies (Architecture and Film, 2)
- Designing MIT: Bosworth's New Tech
- Developments in Surface Contamination and Cleaning
- Draping for Apparel Design
- Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes
- Dumbarton Oaks
- Dwelling House Construction, Fifth Edition
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