Design & Decorative Arts Books - Page 2

Scrapbooks: An American History

Jessica Helfand

Amazon Price: $29.70 List Price: $45.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Yale University Press Amazon Marketplace: 41 new & used starting at $27.82

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Combining pictures, words, and a wealth of personal ephemera, scrapbook makers preserve on the pages of their books a moment, a day, or a lifetime. Highly subjective and rich in emotional content, the scrapbook is a unique and often quirky form of expression in which a person gathers and arranges meaningful materials to create a personal narrative. This lavishly illustrated book is the first to focus attention on the history of American scrapbooks—their origins, their makers, their diverse forms, the reasons for their popularity, and their place in American culture.

 

Jessica Helfand, a graphic designer and scrapbook collector, examines the evolution of scrapbooks from the beginning of the nineteenth century to the present, concentrating on the first half of the twentieth century. She includes color photographs from more than two hundred scrapbooks, some made by private individuals and others by the famous, including Zelda Fitzgerald, Lillian Hellman, Anne Sexton, Hilda Doolittle, and Carl Van Vechten. Scrapbooks, while generally made by amateurs, represent a striking and authoritative form of visual autobiography, Helfand finds, and when viewed collectively they offer a unique perspective on the changing pulses of American cultural life.

 

Published with assistance from Furthermore: a program of the J. M. Kaplan Fund

PERFUMES: THE GUIDE

LUCA TURIN

By: The Viking Press Amazon Marketplace: 16 new & used starting at $25.10

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 73 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Use this book As An Interactive Guide to Exploring and Collecting Perfumes 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I'm older now, and I have a little more disposable income (and a lot more self-confidence), so I have had great fun using this book's witty reviews to guide me in trying and purchasing perfumes. I never had more than one or two bottles of perfume on my vanity table before. Now I have several dozen because this book has made me see perfume in a whole new way.

Yes, the book is a delight to read, but I have found it much more fun to actually use. Interestingly, I discovered just how interactive this book can be because I am a book lover.

I was intrigued by the book's description of a perfume by L'Artisan Parfumeur called Dzing! The authors likened the perfume's scent to a "secondhand bookstore." I purchased a bottle on a whim when I happened across it on a trip to New York. It was only when I was browsing at my favorite used bookstore days later that it struck me. The vanilla overtones in this fabulous scent do indeed evoke the wonderful aroma of old paper. I smelled my wrist, I sniffed the terrific, familiar book-laden air around me, I felt a happy sense of discovery and I was hooked.

Since reading this book, I have stuck it into my tote whenever I plan to be in a major department store. The book's vignettes ignite my curiosity and imagination.

Take, for example, Thierry Mugler's Angel. The authors deem this scent a masterpiece. They tell the reader the history behind the scent -- that it started as a joke which combined the elements of a masculine and a feminine fragrance, but that in making that joke the perfumer came up with a truly new kind of scent. The authors point out that Angel exists in a "high energy state of contradiction. Many perfumes are beautiful or pleasant, but how many are exciting?" Then the authors deliver the zinger, which gives me a mental image for placing the perfume into my own life context. They say that Angel evokes that " woman in a film who seethes "He's so annoying!" and marries him in the end." I got that! I could then smell the contradiction and the attraction in the scent. I purchased a bottle because the scent now "speaks" to me in a way it never could have before I read this book.

Is perfume necessary to my existence? No. When my children were small and we had meager time, money or energy, perfume was simply that handy bottle of Chanel No. 5 my mother had sent me for Christmas which I sprayed on to feel pretty on those infrequent dinner/movie dates with my husband (when we could get a babysitter.) Do I agree with everything the authors say about the various perfumes? No, but that's part of the fun.

This book has opened a pleasant door for me. Perfume has become a fascinating foray into sensual exploration. I enjoy reading the metaphors and similes, the creative adjectives and backstories describing these perfumes, and then experimenting with the truth of them for myself.

The authors have done something wonderful with this book. They have taken the mystique which advertising has always made sure surrounded fragrance and swept it away. But they have replaced that mystique with something better -- little personalities, if you will, for the different scents. Now browsing at the perfume counter has become like attending a cocktail party filled with famous people. Some will speak to you immediately. Some will stand back, but become friendly if you approach. Some are dull as dishwater. Some you will dislike. But being an insider at the party is exciting. I love that I have an invitation.

An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers

Danny Gregory

Amazon Price: $11.99 List Price: $19.99 Not yet published By: How

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Editorial Review:

An Illustrated Life offers a sneak peak into the wildly creative imaginations of top illustrators, designers and artists from around the world through the pages of their personal visual journals. Popular visual journalist and author Danny Gregory reveals how and why keeping a consistent, visual journal leads to a more fulfilling creative life. Designers and artists working in all mediums will find creative inspiration from these insightful interviews and stunning examples.

Design of Everyday Things

Donald A. Norman

By: MIT Amazon Marketplace: 9 new & used starting at $16.71

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 149 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Vey fast delivery very prompt service 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 3 people found this review helpful.

very nice delivery very fast response. One of the best sellers at amazon.
will do business any time with them.

It's OK - but how can this be the seminal book on usability...? 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Having heard that this was the seminal work in usabiliy, my expectations were probably too high.

Some of the principles laid out are indeed excellent and well illustrated.

The structure of the book is - ironically - not crystal clear. As I am reading the book I find myself looking back at the table of contents to understand the structure.

The writing style is slightly entertaining at first and you sympathize with the author hanging out himself as a clumsy and spacey academic. However, after the first 30 pages the rambling style and the somewhat unstructured content makes the book really boring. I had to push myself to finish it.

What strikes me is the lack of other books in this topic. Despite my criticism I'd be curious to read Norman's new book.

One of the best books any designer could read 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

So often "design" books seem to go on about looks and "feel" yet only brush over the physiology of design. This book shows you how to think like a user, explorer like a user, error like a user and design for helping the user love your product.

Anyone reading this book will instantly appreciate truly good design over the average mud we currently live in.

Envisioning Information

Edward R. Tufte

Amazon Price: $34.56 List Price: $48.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Graphics Press Amazon Marketplace: 64 new & used starting at $23.97

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 52 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A Continually Rewarding Gem 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Every time I go back to this book I get something more out of it. Over the past 10 years I've been through my copy a couple of dozen times. If communicating information is important to you, you should take a look at this classic.

A very good resource 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Nutshell review - This is a beautiful resource on presenting information in a myriad of ways with many examples of good and bad design. Beautifully illustrated.

Portable affordable art 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Tufte follows up his debut classic with an even more beautiful piece of graphic art disguised as a guide to ways to display three (and more) dimensions on a flat surface.

While even more beautifully crafted than The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 2nd edition, it has less in the way of practical guidance. Tufte's principle here can be reduced to this far-reaching but not so simply-implemented statement: increase the resolution of "flatland" (paper or computer screen) to show more data to increase clarity.

As usual, the principle is lavishly illustrated with beautifully-reproduced examples of good and bad ways of envisioning information. In fact, I have found Tufte's principle and illustrations are useful ways of thinking about how to improve my own graphics, but I find my ability to implement them frustrated by the limitations of the design tools I use most: Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Word, wikis. That is a negative reflection on the tools, not on Tufte.

In any case, enjoy Tufte's books now for the portable affordable art that they are, and hope for the tools to catch up soon.

Editorial Review:

A remarkable range of examples for the idea of visual thinking, with beautifully printed pages. A real treat for all who reason and learn by means of images. -- Rudolf Arnheim

J.C. Leyendecker

Laurence S. Cutler, Judy Goffman Cutler

Amazon Price: $31.50 List Price: $50.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Abrams Amazon Marketplace: 36 new & used starting at $29.28

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Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Fashion -> History

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

One of the most prolific and successful artists of the Golden Age of American Illustration, J. C. Leyendecker captivated audiences throughout the first half of the 20th century. Leyendecker is best known for his creation of the archetype of the fashionable American male with his advertisements for Arrow Collar. These images sold to an eager public the idea of a glamorous lifestyle, the bedrock upon which modern advertising was built. He also was the creator instantly recognizable icons, such as the New Year’s baby and Santa Claus, that are to this day an integral part of the lexicon of Americana and was commissioned to paint more Saturday Evening Post covers than any other artist.

 

Leyendecker lived for most of his adult life with Charles Beach, the Arrow Collar Man, on whom the stylish men in his artwork were modeled.

 

The first book about the artist in more than 30 years, J. C. Leyendecker features his masterworks, rare paintings, studies, and other artwork, including the 322 covers he did for the Post. With a revealing text that delves into both his artistic evolution and personal life, J. C. Leyendecker restores this iconic image maker’s rightful position in the pantheon of great American artists.

The Art of Kung Fu Panda

Tracey Miller-Zarneke

Amazon Price: $29.70 List Price: $45.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Insight Editions Amazon Marketplace: 32 new & used starting at $28.21

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Prepare for AWSOMENESS! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Fellow readers, go with all the above 5 star comments of PRAISE! This "Art of" book has met and exceeded all my requirements to be a fantastic and worthy book. Art! Color! Foldouts! Character design and story development galore. I have to go back and watch the film now when it comes out on DVD. I never spotted that the markings on the character "Viper" were Chinese poetry!! ! Kudos to Dreamworks for this film AND this absolutely wonderful book. It will hold an honored place on my shelf along with my other "Art Of" film books. *unlike the shameful and empty *Art of Madagascar 2" which was the first book I ever returned to Amazon. :(*

BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT!

The Wonderful World of Kung Fu Panda 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I love the photos and illustrations of this book.
I am a Kung Fu Panda Fan and this book is a wonderful addition to my collection from the movie. The price Amazon offered saved me money!
Highly recommended!

Fantastic "Kungfu Panda" 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

It's so fantastic to have this artbook! I could enjoy the world of "Kungfu Panda" again. All the detailed and beautiful illustrations, and it's also good to read film making stories. I think it's the best artbook I've ever had:)

How to Draw 101 Funny People (How to Draw 101...Books)

Dan Green

By: Top That Publishing PLC Amazon Marketplace: 2 new & used starting at $64.40

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Perfect for Children 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 8 people found this review helpful.

Very pleased with this How to Draw Book. Our Grandchildren--ages 5 and 7--- sat down and immediately started drawing people from the book. I was amazed! Easy directions for them to understand.

Great for Art Class 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.

I use this whole series in my Art Class to Elementary children. They love this extra activity. It builds their confidence that they can draw identifible things. They even take multiple instructions and create a whole picture. I ripped the book apart and laminated the pages into easy to use cards. Works great!

Makes drawing easy 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I bought it because my son like to draw but needed a few ideas that were easy to do on his own as opposed to copying. The books format allows kids (and adults) to really do some cute things with pictures.

Good drawing book for 8 and up 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

My eight year old daughter loves this book and I love it as well. But it is too frustrating for my six year old son.

Basic Drawing 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book is pretty good if you're looking for basic drawing ideas. It's easy to follow along. Lots of characters.

Ductigami: The Art of the Tape

Joe Wilson

List Price: $7.95 By: Boston Mills Press Amazon Marketplace: 9 new & used starting at $20.99

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Duct tape -- it's everywhere. At the hardware store, the grocery store, in secret agents' briefcases, at the Scouts' den, in Uncle Mert's golf bag. There are duct-tape clubs and cults. University engineering departments use it in competitions. There are dozens of websites devoted to it. Red Green calls it the handyman's secret weapon. NASA has a policy stating that every space shuttle mission must carry at least one roll of "the gray tape." The humble tape has hit the bigtime. In this wonderful, hip and downright funny book, Joe Wilson (a comedian with lots of time and tape on his hands) shows us how to make 14 amazing projects using ordinary duct tape. Projects include wallets, baseball caps, toilet roll covers, cell-phone holders, raingear for pets, and much more.

Ductigami is more challenging than a crossword puzzle, more useful than a welder's certificate, more durable than a Duracell, more invigorating than Viagra (when used correctly), and as long as you have duct tape, you'll never be caught short of a gift for any occasion.
- excerpt from Ductigami

The Lucky Shopping Manual: Building and Improving Your Wardrobe Piece by Piece

Andrea Linett, Kim France

Amazon Price: $18.90 List Price: $30.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Gotham Amazon Marketplace: 114 new & used starting at $4.94

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 122 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

What to wear, how to buy, where and when to spend: These are the topics covered each month by the exceedingly plugged-in staff of Lucky, whose circulation rocketed from 500,000 to 800,000 in just two short years. For Lucky's devoted fans, and anyone devoted to dressing better and shopping smarter, The Lucky Shopping Manual will be the über-find. Finally, there is a book that does away with the inconsequential information in previous fashion books and presents only the most useful tips and imperative information for how to dress better for less. Filled with tips that will appeal to shopaholics and disciplined bargain hunters alike, this enticing guide is packed with over 1,000 full-color photos and illustrations, with a ribbon marker and flexi-cover so women can take it shopping with them.

With great advice on every uniquely designed page, The Lucky Shopping Manual includes features such as:
* Building a wardrobe you love, with cross-referenced sections on everything from skirts, tops, dresses, pants, and suits, to shoes, bags, belts, and what looks best for your body type
* How to spot great finds at the local flea market or the best boutiques
* What to spend your money on and where you can scrimp
* Cool stores coast-to-coast to check out when you're traveling
* Practical tips for fabric care, shoe maintenance, and stain remedies
* Shipping just in time for the holidays, The Lucky Shopping Manual makes a luscious gift-a fantastic shopping spree under the tree.