Art Books
I'm at Eliott Bay Books browsing the art books. There are a lot of boring books about art. This amazes me. When I open these books on every page extraordinary images stare out at me. They are full of authentically new images that no one ever though of putting into art before. I can't think of anything else more exciting. But the text is universally boring, obtuse, and meaningless. How can you write about something so interesting in such a sterile way? I think the only interesting book I've read about art in ages is Matthew's Collings' Blimey. Anyone know of any other good ones?
Labels: art
posted by Unknown at
6:00 AM
8 Comments:
I've never thought about it before, but damn, you're right! I'll ask my wife, she's an art teacher.
October 21, 2011 at 7:38 AM
Another thought - check out books on archeology. They have great art, and lots better stories to go with them...
October 21, 2011 at 7:39 AM
Oh yeah, I grew up reading archaeology books. That's fascinating stuff!
October 21, 2011 at 7:46 AM
I've found a number of books that seemed like 'broad treatments' of subjects that interest me, like outsider art, especially if they were heavy on the pictures, tended to hold my interest more than the more serious, scholarly works on a single artist. maybe because such books are a good way to find out about works I might never encounter otherwise. I bought a book on Henry Darger a year ago --- the pics are great but I can't make heads or tails of the text --- too academic for my puny mind.
October 21, 2011 at 2:26 PM
I might have seen the same book! I got a couple of books on Darger out of the local libarary and the pictures were fabulous. The text was mostly unhelpful.
October 21, 2011 at 3:10 PM
You know, I think it's a lot like philosophy (which I spent a lot of time studying). There's a tendency to make the layperson feel like an idiot for venturing an opinon on the subject, intentionally or not. It always turned me off about talking to philosophers.
October 21, 2011 at 3:11 PM
My wife reccommends The Spirit Within, a publication of the Seattle Art Museum detailing northwest coastal art, design and mythology.
October 22, 2011 at 10:29 AM
Cool - library request sent!
October 22, 2011 at 10:31 AM
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home