Illustrated 2003 Building Code Handbook

Fred Otnes Collage Paintings
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The Elegance of Otnes

magnificent art; disappointing book production

a book for all artists

Fred Otnes Collage Paintings
Jill Bossert
Manufacturer: Madison Square Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Artists, A-Z | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0942604938

Book Description

In the hands of collage artist Fred Otnes, control merges with chance to create works of subtle, refined beauty that are designed with such assurance as to appear inevitable, works that are infused with a mystery that is both fleeting and eternal. Otnes's gifts are powerfully displayed in the 126 full-color images reproduced in this book.

Born in 1930 in Junction City, Kansas, Otnes trained at the Art Institute of Chicago, where he first encountered Cubist works by Braque and Picasso. The Modernist commitment to form without the illusion of depth captured his imagination, though it would be some time before he incorporated it into his own work. Otnes first pursued a career in traditional, realistic illustration in Chicago, and then, from 1953, in New York. While working for national magazines and advertising clients, he and his wife, Fran, built a house in Connecticut designed by architect John Johansen in the International style and furnished it in classic Modernist mode.

By the mid-1960s, aware of the shrinking market in magazine illustration, Otnes made a bold change in his method of working, finally putting into play the ideas that had dictated his taste and interest for years. Using newly-honed printing, photo-transfer, and collage techniques, he pioneered a unique look: multiple images across a one-dimensional plane. This was the perfect form in which to depict some of the more complex concepts of the era such as the war in Vietnam and the Civil Rights movement. At the top of his field, Otnes received more than two hundred awards for his work.

Once again sensing a change in the business in the mid-1980s, Otnes committed himself solely to creating gallery work. Fully able to explore the art of collage on his own terms, he has continued to push at the boundaries of scale and abstraction in his work, as is clear in the catalogue section of this book. The text describes his motives and motivations with each transition in his life, especially what artist Mark English describes as Otnes's "metamorphosis" from realist illustrator to collage artist. Otnes also discusses some of the many and disparate artists and art forms he admires, from Piero della Francesco to Richard Diebenkorn to Outsider Art. He speaks of the challenges of work, the nearly fugue-like state he sometimes achieves when in the studio, and considers the never-ending difficulties that the medium itself imposes, as well as those he imposes upon himself so that he remains interested and the work continues to grow.

With elements as diverse as appropriations from Renaissance and Old Master works, eighteenth-century engravings, bicycle patent diagrams, sheet music, feathers, fabric, and flowers, Otnes demonstrates in image after image a subtle, elegant world where imagery and surface interact, where tonal and textural shifts delight, and where secrets and mysteries emerge from the torn paper and scraped away paint. A world where beauty and meaning hover in wordless communication between artist and viewer.

Customer Reviews:

The Elegance of Otnes.......2006-11-17

I have followed Fred Otnes' career for years, beginning with his work as an illustrator throughout the 70s. He eventually transitioned into fine art collage, and his work never fails to inspire and thrill me. Having seen a definitive exhibit of his work, I can understand the difficulties involved in achieving good reproductions of his subtle and layered collages for this volume. On balance, I think the publisher has done a credible job, and hopefully this book will entice many devotees of mixed media and collage to seek out Otnes' work for themselves. For any artist who has ever struggled with the issue of how to achieve a strong "signature" without an ounce of "formula" -- Mr. Fred Otnes is a master. A "must have" for anyone interested in collage.

magnificent art; disappointing book production.......2006-07-04

This book includes about 9-pages-worth of narrative covering Otnes biography, career, and evolution as an artist. Although brief, the narrative is engaging and informative. A 2-page list of awards, exhibits, commissions, articles and reviews rounds out the text. There are 126 plates spanning about a decade, from 1992 to 2003. No explanation is provided for the selection of works and their order; as such, both appear random.

Otnes' work is sophisticated, elegant, and often, quite sumptuous; each composition tells its own story, full of both real and metaphorical layers. There's an old-world feel to many of his works, with classsical composition, images, texture, and mood. The ghosts of others are often felt: della Francesco, Rembrandt, Picasso, Miro, Rivers. Although Otnes painting, printmaking and assemblage skills are all masterful, his drawing is at the heart of everything, something he readily admits. You can't help but feel it, and its wonderful.

For work that's so freighted with history and depth, one would expect a high quality book. Unfortunately, the Jill Bossert imprint and Madison Square Press is disappointing. The images are serviceable but better photographic precision is needed to faithfully render the layers and textures of collage. Plus, the book binding is so shoddy it's separating from the leaves. And on a practical level, a Table of Contents and Index are both lacking; locating a known work is frustrating. I can't shake the feeling this was a cheaply and hastily produced book. Given the $50 price tag, I expected more and better.

Having said this, I'd still encourage any art lover, student or practicing collage/multimedia artist to buy this book. (better yet, put it on your gift list) Otnes is an artist worth knowing and knowing well. There's enough visual fuel here to send anyone into the stratosphere.

a book for all artists.......2004-05-06

Even though you may not of heard of Fred Otnes, this is a beautiful book that any artist and especially artists that use collage should enjoy and derive inspiration from. Mr. Otnes, an award winning illustrator, has made a masterful leap into the fine art world and we view this development with work from the mid 70's to the present.The reproductions are large and very well done so that we can fully appreciate his unique vision.

Book Description

This new edition of an all-time best-seller is completely revised and updated and details the components and step-by-step use of over forty of the most widely used film cameras. Significant new topics include time code and time code slates, video assist, and the Steadicam film stabilizing system. Among a few of the new camera systems are the Aaton 16mm; Arriflex 535, 35-3, 35-BL3 and -BL4, and 16BL; Fries 35R3; and the all new Panavision Panaflex 35mm and 16mm. The book teaches basic film camera procedures and troubleshooting techniques. It also looks at all the components, accessories (including lenses), and support systems.

Details the step-by-step use of most film cameras.
Updated to cover the newest cameras.
Describes both the technique and equipment necessary to be an efficient cameraman.

Customer Reviews:

Good.......2006-03-22

A fairly, good guide to Cinematography, the fourth edition has many gaps and needs technological update, perhaps the fifth edition will be excellent, specially to students.

Best source for camera specs.......2000-04-26

Because it hasn't been updated Professional Cameraman's Handbook is missing some newer equipment, but it is the best source for information for pre-1994 camera equipment. I'll buy the 5th edition as soon as it is available.

EXCELLENT ,BRILLIANT AND A REAL HELP.......1999-09-04

I have bought this book in 1995 and it was a real help for me.I live in greece and most of the times d.o.p. stands as a camera operator too.I have made lot's of films since then but there was two of them with second-hand 16 mm Eclair bought from two old filmakers.(no operators manual in it and i have never heard this machines before!).As cinematographers know, many things depend of the expirience someone have on specific equipment that is using.this cameras was one Npr and one Acl (S16patend).My assistand get scared when he saw the Acl!! I JUST GIVE HIM THE BOOK AND EVERYTHING GO PERFECT!! THE AUTHOR IS A REAL PRO AND WE GET TOO THRU HIS KNOWLEDGE.THANK YOU.

Book Description

Luann delights readers with her teenage problems. This book peers into her hilarious life, revealing humorous moments of unstable adolescence. Luann is syndicated in more than three hundred newspapers.

Customer Reviews:

Great Read.......2002-05-24

I really enjoyed the storylines in each strip as well as the fun drawings Evans put in alongside the strips. I am on my way to ordering another Luann book.

I loved this book.......2001-08-31

I really loved this book, I usually hate reading, but once I started reading this book, I just couldn't put it down. I really can compare myself to Luann because Evans makes her so realistic!

Look into the teen mind.......2000-06-08

I think this Luann book was so much fun to read. Sometimes it could be like a soap opera, and other times it had me rolling in laughter. It's an honest, down-to-earth comic series. I know you'll enjoy it if you love Luann.

Could not put down until finished!.......2000-06-02

This book was so good, I didn't want to put it down until I'd finished it. I also didn't want to finish it because it was so good! Now I want more Luann books to come out. Hurry up!

If you are a tennager read it, if not read it!.......1999-11-26

I'm Luann fan since I read it for the first time in 1996 on-line. I bought the last edition of Luann comic and it is great and this one is,too. The title is right for the book.

First Rough Draft A Journalist's Journal of Our Times
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First Rough Draft A Journalist's Journal of Our Times
Chalmers M. Roberts
Manufacturer: Praeger Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000W8I24G

First Rough Draft: A Journalist's Journal of Our Times
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First Rough Draft: A Journalist's Journal of Our Times
Chalmers McGeagh Roberts
Manufacturer: Henry Holt & Company, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Journalists | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0275330605

Book Description

A difficult older woman comes to terms with herself and her grown son on the back of a motorcycle named the Dove, on an arduous journey through the backroads of memory and the American West.

"Trail of the Dove" is full of ruby sunsets and starry nights, roadside neon and steaming expanses of desert wildflowers after a cloudburst, blue spruce and wheeling hawks viewed from the sheer drop of a narrow mountain road, and weather suitable for King Lear. Like Lear, Dorothy Friedman must do battle with the eclipses of advancing age, and learn to trust the love of her grown child. This is a powerful and quirky road memoir - and the last hurrah of a lifelong uppity woman.

Customer Reviews:

A book in search of a niche.......2005-09-12

This is a good little book about relationships, and series of events that happens because of a motorcycle trip. It's not a great book for mothers about how to cope with their sons, for sons to cope with their mothers, and it's not a book about how to do motorcycle touring. It's just a story that happens in a particular setting.

I bought the book after having read Storm and thought I'd see what else is around in this genre besides Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenenace. If you're looking for a "biker book", let Dove go, but if you're looking for a story with good insight, commentary, and just plain an account of one phase of personal relationships, and you want a smattering of bike stuff, Dove is well worth reading.

A Crisis of Love.......2000-07-01

This beautifully crafted story warms the saddened heart. It reveals a grieving heart that risks pain to find love again. This true adventure of a sensitive soul is both a revelation of deep pain and of deep joy. Mrs. Friedman is able to express the decisive moments in which we either continue old habits or venture into deep emotional waters in search of love. Her grief and her triumphs promise hope in a world of loss.

Never Grow OLD!.......2000-06-28

Trail Of The Dove is an eloquently written story, every word flowing like a midwestern breeze. Here is a senior citizen, adventurous,forever youthful and somewhat opinionated, embarking on a cross-country motorcycle trip with her grown son, both of them learning along the way. I found it delightful, easy reading. Recommended for all ages!

trail of the dove.......2000-06-03

Hang on it's going to be a bumpy and very wet ride! A sincere and moving story of a mother and her relationship with her sons. I felt as though I was riding along with Dorothy and living her experiences.

Book Description

Bring the magic of storytelling into your child's life using the everyday world around you. Lavishly endowed with over 100 original, hands-on activities for children aged three to ten, this book teaches parents to incorporate storytelling into household activities and to address real-life situations. In addition to folklore from our own and other cultures, it features a rich sampling of tales actually invented by children and their parents—stories that will inspire readers to invent their own.

Customer Reviews:

makes storytelling easy and meaningful.......2000-10-05

This book is an easy, entertaining read and a reminder of the profound importance of family members TALKING to each other. Storytelling, and storymaking, allow kids and parents to express real feelings to one another and grapple with difficult issues all while PLAYING a game! In addition, she gives you lots of stories and story starters; this was lots of fun to read.

I'm not a parent but I do work with kids. I'm pretty sure that if you try this book, you'll like it. I've already purchased two copies for friends of mine with children!

Creative fun for the whole family.......2000-09-27

I am a personal friend of the author Lisa Lipkin is not only a great story teller, she haswritten a wonderful book that shows us how we too can learn to spin a great yarn, and more importantly, why we should. Storytelling for Lisa is a mission to bring families closer together and at the same time fuel their creative imaginations. Now, whenever my children ask me to tell them a story I use some of Lisa's fun and easy suggestions to help them make up their own. For instance, when we are sitting around the dinner table I ask them to pretend they are a fork and ask them what it is like to be a fork. They love it. It really gets them thinking or as Lisa would say, "strenghthens their imaginative muscle".

In addition, Bringing the Story Home is chock-full of anecdotal information, references from other sources as well as stories from her personal experiences performing in workshops across the country. I highly recommend this book to parents who want to strengthen their familial bond and inspire their children's creativity.

A Must Have.......2000-09-07

I bought this book while on vacation with my three young children. In the moments of tiredness or boredom, when my children usually start to fight with each other, I quickly tried some of the simple activities described in the book. To my amazement, the children loved every minute of it, turning what would have been exasperating times for all of us, into wonderful, giggle filled vacation memories. I needed no crayons, no gagdets, no batteries. We had blue sky, each other and our imaginations.

This book is a wonderfully entertaining read, with exquisite excerpts from many sources, and tons of ideas on how to uncover our inner creativity through the age old craft of storytelling.

Book Description

From its very first page, the American infantryman is the hero of this magnificent account of men at war.

Customer Reviews:

Rings True To Someone Who Was There..........2005-12-22

My father landed on Utah Beach in the second wave on June 7, 1944 (D-Day +1). His unit was attached temporarily to the 28th Division, as reinforcements. Later they rejoined their real unit, the 1st Platoon, 2d Battalion, 120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division.

After having defended Hill 314 for four days, out of ammunition and food, my father and three comrades were captured by German SS forces at Mortain on August 11, 1944. He spent the next 11 months in a German POW camp.

Yes, I'm proud of his service. However, I recounted all of this to establish his authority to comment on this book.

A man of few words, he shared that accounts of the aspects of the battle of which he had first-hand knowledge were very accurate. This book enabled my father to finally understand the full scope and nature of the battle, and reinforced for him (and his wife and five children) how amazing it is that he survived the experience.

We continue to pass this book from one family member to the next. We have all found the book to be an excellent read.

A Classic Account of a Forgotten Battle..........2003-02-08

What a superb book. Featherston, a journalist by trade, made himself into a first rate military historian with this, his first published work. He even outdoes the mighty Stephen Ambrose here. His focus is the 30th Infantry Division's lone stand at Mortain, as it bore the brunt of the German last great Panzer assault in France.
Much has been written about Mortain, how the Germans threw away their last bit of armored strength in this hopeless, Hitler ordered counterattack (Operation 'Luttich', the German word for Liege, a city in Belgium) and its subsequent repulse. Far too much credit has been given the Allied air forces in this battle and not enough to the infantrymen who faced the onslaught on the ground.
That fact was, that despite air support, the Old Hickory Division met the Germans head on, and this was some of the best German military units, the Waffen SS in addition to other Panzer divisions, and it beat them cold.
Featherston, interviews the veterans and they tell their story with pride, as I think they should. They took on the best Hitler had, and stopped the vaunted German Panzer force dead in its tracks.

This is a must have for any ETO fan.

Two stories under one cover........2000-06-13

Great book. I personally liked to read divisional histories, and this is in my top five. The writer takes you throught he divisions pre war history, European deployemnt, and combat history. The reader gets two stoies here, one is a history of a Army National Guard unit going to war, and the other is the Battle of Moritain, a pivital conflict in the conquest of France. I read it in a weekend, you will find it hard to put down as well.

An Informative fast paced read.......2000-05-08

As a current member of the 30th Mechanized Brigade I found this book to be an extremely interesting look into the roots and history of a forgotten Division. The author provided a great deal of insight into this critical battle through the personal experiences and recollections of the actual soldiers who fought against some of the best German troops at that time. This book was very informative and details a battle that very few people had heard of, which is a shame considering what these everyday soldiers accomplished under such exteme conditions. I would highly recommend.

Saving the Breakout The 30th Division's Heroic Stand at Mortain, August 7-12, 1944

Average customer rating:

Saving the Breakout The 30th Division's Heroic Stand at Mortain, August 7-12, 1944
Alwyn Featherston
Manufacturer: Presidio Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000W0EPTA

Book Description

Illustrated with a wealth of archival material, including the previously unpublished film programme, this is a unique, personal account of the skills, talents and documentary evidence that made A Night to Remember, the definitve film of the sinking of the Titanic.

Book Description

In Neurotherapeutics: Emerging Strategies neuroscientists, clinicians, and industry-based pharmacologists and chemists review emerging approaches for the treatment of diseases of the central nervous system. The contributors-all key investigators of novel therapeutics-focus on developing rational strategies for drug design based on the new understanding of the underlying pathophysiology of central nervous system diseases. In the process, the contributors review the efficacy and mechanisms of current treatments as well as the latest research results and their potential therapeutic impact. Common to all chapters is the promise held out by newly cloned receptor subtypes of therapeutics with improved selectivity and potency. Also explored is the potential for novel therapeutics from a developing understanding of signal transduction. The diseases discussed range from affective disorders and Alzheimer's disease to Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia, as well as anxiety, panic disorders, stroke, epilepsy, and Huntington's disease.

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