October 2023 MBR The Art Shelf

The Art Shelf

The History of Color
Neil Parkinson
Frances Lincoln
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
www.quartoknows.com
9780711288843, $28.00, HC, 256pp

https://www.amazon.com/History-Color-Universe-Chromatic-Phenomena/dp/0711288844

Synopsis: Color is fundamental to our experience and understanding of the world. It crosses continents and cultures, disciplines and decades. It is used to convey information and knowledge, to evoke mood, and to inspire emotion.

With the publication of "The History of Color: A Universe of Chromatic Phenomena", Neil Parkinson explores the history of our understanding of color, from the ancient world to the present, from Aristotle to Albers. This is interspersed in the historical story with numerous thematic essays that examine how color has been used across a wide range of disciplines and fields: in food, music, language and many others.

The illustrations are drawn from the Royal College of Art's renowned Colour Reference Library which spans six centuries of works and nearly 2,000 titles, from a Gothic manuscript on the composition of the rainbow to hand-painted Enlightenment works on color theory and vibrant 20th-century color charts, including many fascinating examples not seen in other books.

Delving far and wide in this fascinating and varied subject, "The History of Color: A Universe of Chromatic Phenomena" will help readers find new layers of meaning and complexity in their everyday experiences and teach them to look closer at our colorful lives.

Critique: A seminal, fascinating and informative study that will be appreciated by academia and non-professionals alike, "The History of Color: A Universe of Chromatic Phenomena" is exceptionally well illustrated, impressive well written, and thoroughly 'reader friendly in both organization and presentations. While also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $21.49), "The History of Color: A Universe of Chromatic Phenomena" is a unique, effective, and unreservedly recommended contribution to personal, professional, community, college, and university library Art History and Graphic Design/Illustration collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.

Editorial Note: Neil Parksinson (https://www.rca.ac.uk/more/staff/neil-parkinson) manages over 30 different special collections at the Royal College of Art, providing access to the College's unique heritage materials and supporting a wide range of research projects and enquiries from staff, students and the external research community. The College's special collections include the RCA archives and art collections, the photographic record of student work, and the internationally renowned Colour Reference Library, one of the largest collections of material on color in the world.

No Ordinary Magic: The Art of Laurie Swim
Carol Bruneau
Goose Lane Editions
www.gooselane.com
9781773103457, $40.00, HC, 104pp

https://www.amazon.com/No-Ordinary-Magic-Laurie-Swim/dp/1773103458

Synopsis: Laurie Swim is an artist of extraordinary range and vision. For more than forty years, she has been among the most capable and passionate practitioners of textile art.

In her chosen art form, Swim captures the essence of the seacoast. For the ocean, she works with silk, pulling stitches until they pucker to create gentle ripples. For vegetation and seaweed, she combines quilting, embroidery, painting, dyeing, and other seemingly opposing techniques.

With the publication of "No Ordinary Magic: The Art of Laurie Swim", author Carol Bruneau showcases both Swim's unconventional use of materials that is so distinctive, and her gift for narrative that makes her art both resonant and endlessly intriguing. This a retrospective, large format (0.75 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches, 1.6 pounds) volume in which Bruneau deftly explores Swim's history, her defiance of convention, and her reinvention of quilts as paintings-made-of-fabric. The result is a profound exploration of Swim's sometimes monumental yet astonishingly intimate work.

Critique: Beautifully illustrated in color throughout, "No Ordinary Magic: The Art of Laurie Swim" is impressively informative and a pure pleasure to simply browse through in full appreciation of a truly gifted textile media artist. "No Ordinary Magic: The Art of Laurie Swim" will prove to be an immediate and enduringly appreciated and highly valued addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library Textile Art collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.

Editorial Note #1: Carol Bruneau (https://carolbruneau.com) is the award-winning author of nine books. Her reviews, essays, and articles have appeared across Canada, and she has previously taught courses on writing for the arts at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.

Editorial Note #2: Laurie Swim has worked as an artist for forty years, developing unique and innovative treatments to fashion her imagery in textiles with fabric and thread. She is the author of five books, including The Joy of Quilting (with an introduction by Alex Colville), Quilting, Rags to Riches: The Quilt as Art (with an introduction by Mary Pratt), and a children's book entitled Hope and Survival on the Halifax Explosion. Swims's works grace many private and public collections, including the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Art Bank, Nova Scotia Designer Craft Council, the City of Toronto Art Collection, and the Museum of Arts and Design in New York.

Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold
Carmen Hermo, et al.
Getty Publications
www.getty.edu/publications
9781606068588, $45.00, HC, 216pp

https://www.amazon.com/Mar%C3%ADa-Magdalena-Campos-Pons-Carmen-Hermo/dp/160606 858X

Synopsis: Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons (b. 1959) makes powerful works of art that holds and beholds the stories of historically silenced peoples and urges societal change. Her journey as an artist, teacher, and activist has taken her from Cuba through the United States, and her autobiographical compositions honor her Nigerian and Chinese ancestors while also facing the future.

With an artistic practice that crosses boundaries, intertwines media (from photography to sculpture, film to performance) and references traditions and beliefs ranging from feminism to Santeria, Campos-Pons's work is deeply layered and complex.

Published by the J. Paul Getty Museum, "Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold" is the first critical look at the artist's oeuvre in nearly two decades, and surveys the concerns, materials, and places invoked throughout her forty-year career. Thoughtful essays by contributors deftly explore her vibrant, arresting artwork, which confronts issues of agency and the construction of race and belonging and challenges us to reckon with these issues in our own lives.

This unique volume (co-published with the Brooklyn Museum) accompanies an exhibition on view at the Brooklyn Museum from September 15, 2023, to January 14, 2024, the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University from February 15 to June 9, 2024, the Frist Art Museum from September 27, 2024, to January 5, 2025, and the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from February 11 to May 4, 2025.

Critique: Deftly compiled and edited by Carmen Hermo and featuring informative contributions by Mazie M. Harris, Amalia Mesa-Bains, Jenee-Daria Strand, Philip Townsend, and Selene Wendt, this large format (9 x 1 x 10.5 inches) hardcover coffee-table style edition of "Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold" is a singular informative, visually stellar, memorably impressive, and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, college, and university library Individual Artist Monographs and Mixed Media Art collections. It should be noted by students, academia, artists, art collectors, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $42.75).

Editorial Note: Carmen Hermo (https://brooklynmuseum.tumblr.com/chermo) is associate curator at the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum.

Bold and Beautiful Watercolor Skies
Zaneena Nabeel, author
Quarry Books
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
www.quartous.com
9780760382943, $22.99, PB, 152pp

https://www.amazon.com/Bold-Beautiful-Watercolor-Skies-Beginners/dp/0760382948

Synopsis: Art challenges are a popular way for artists at all skill levels to learn about and master a medium and establish a consistent creative practice. Written and illustrated by Zaneena Nabeel, popular Instagram artist and online art instructor also known as Aurora by Z, "Bold and Beautiful Watercolor Skies: Learn to Paint Stunning Clouds, Sunsets, Galaxies, and More - A Master Class for Beginners" teaches aspiring artists how to master simple techniques to create inspiring images of striking skies through 30 sky projects.

"Bold and Beautiful Watercolor Skies" covers the essential supplies, techniques, and color knowledge through easy exercises that give you the skills you will need to create the projects and provides 30 DIY projects. You can follow the 30 step-by-step tutorials to create a range of stunning, colorful skies and light effects, from a bright blue morning to a fiery red sunset, from a starry night to the aurora borealis.

Whether you follow the program to make a painting a day or choose to create your paintings over a longer time frame, "Bold and Beautiful Watercolor Skies" will teach you how to master basic techniques to create amazing images through the support of a structured approach.

Critique; An ideal and effective DIY introduction to painting with watercolors, "Bold and Beautiful Watercolor Skies: Learn to Paint Stunning Clouds, Sunsets, Galaxies, and More - A Master Class for Beginners", while unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and art school collections, is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.99) as well.

Editorial Note: Zaneena Nabeel, aka Aurora by Z, is an architect by profession and an artist by vocation. She returned to artmaking after completing her architecture studies, finding healing and happiness through drawing, painting, and playing with color, inspiring her to start and Instagram page, where she shares her work. In addition to teaching many classes on Skillshare, she hosts art workshops and organizes exhibitions both locally and internationally. Originally from India, she is currently based in Dubai. To see more of Zaneena's work, visit www.aurorabyz.com, @AurorabyZ on YouTube, and @aurorabyz on Instagram.

Watercolor Made Simple
Nicki Traikos
Quarry Books
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
www.quartous.com
9780760383193, $24.99, PB, 144pp

https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Made-Simple-Techniques-Encouragement/dp/0760383197

Synopsis: Watercolor is a wonderful medium to explore your creativity, unwind, and have fun. Whether you're new to watercolor painting or looking to expand your skills, with "Watercolor Made Simple", artist and watercolor expert Nicki Traikos will deftly guide you to connect more personally with your watercolor practice and build your painting skills in a relaxing, welcoming way. Nicki (who teaches popular watercolor classes through life i design), will help you avoid the struggles and frustrations she experienced when first learning to paint with watercolors by providing encouraging instruction, easy tutorials, and beautifully illustrated step-by-step projects.

Consider this your invitation to the world of watercolor as you: Get familiar with paints, brushes, and papers; Learn fundamental watercolor washes and brush strokes; Explore simple color theory and color mixing; Use a sketchbook to gather inspiration; Paint more than 15 popular subjects, such as flowers, leaves, feathers, still lifes, and simple landscapes, step by step.

"Watercolor Made Simple" also includes: QR codes that link to helpful video tutorials; Traceable line drawings that allow you to jump right into painting; Charming papercrafting projects to feature your watercolor paintings; Tips for storing and displaying your art -- and even what to do with paintings you don't love.

With gentle encouragement and techniques she has honed through teaching tens of thousands of watercolor students, Nicki will soon have you painting your favorite subjects with ease and enjoyment.

Thoroughly novice and aspiring watercolor artist friendly in organization and presentation, "Watercolor Made Simple" is an ideal and comprehensive introduction to the medium and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and art school instructional reference collections. Of special note is that "Watercolor Made Simple" is also readily available for the personal reading lists of art students and amateur watercolorists in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.99).

Editorial Note: Nicki Traikos is the founder of life i design, through which she teaches thousands of students to paint in watercolor, produces books, and inspires people to live their most creative lives. A self-taught artist who has also worked in the corporate world and as a makeup artist, she has taught more than 50,000 students from around the world in her Watercolors Made Simple courses. Nicki and her work have been featured in a number of magazines, including Where Women Create, In Her Studio, and UPPERCASE magazine's Compendium. Nicki has published two books of trace-and-paint images and also teaches monthly live classes on the Michaels website. Currently residing in Unionville, Ontario, Canada, she has a website at www.lifeidesign.com and can be followed on: Instagram: @lifeidesign, YouTube: Nicki Traikos @lifeidesign, Facebook: life i design @lifeidesign, Pinterest: life i design @nickitraikos

EDITOR'S NOTE:

The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.

The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com

Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:

James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129

To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number, and list price).

James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review