Art Deco Graphics, Surrealist & Louvre

Art Deco Graphics

Here is the first full-scale study of the dynamic graphic design created in the three decades before World War II, when economic and political upheaval mixed with a wild pursuit of gaiety, luxury, modernism, and elegance to produce a style that came to be known as Art Deco. Art Deco style grew in several distinct directions out of an extraordinarily rich cultural melting pot. Breaking sharply with its predecessor, Art Nouveau, Art Deco assimilated the ideas of the vibrant avant-garde art movements such as Cubism, Constructivism, and Futurism; the early modernist applied-arts groups like the Vienna Secession and Bauhaus; and the leading fashion designers - Paul Poiret, Coco Chanel, and others.
A flavor of Orientalism from Diaghilev's sensational Ballets Russes; the influences of American jazz, primitive art, and Egyptian culture; and the new world of machines all contributed to the development of a design style that radically changed the way visual communication is perceived in most of the world. By the time the great Paris Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes opened in 1925, the masters of modern art - Picasso, Léger, Kandinsky, and others - had transformed the graphic arts. Their visual tactics - abstractions, multidirectional views, distortion, extreme contrasts, and striking color juxtapositions - were put to use by a rising generation of brilliant graphic designers such as Cassandre, Jean Carlu, Herbert Bayer, and E.McKnight-Kauffer to create superb graphics for both commerce and social purposes. With chapters on posters, magazines, commercial design, books, and fashion and costume, Art Deco Graphics is both a sourcebookand an inspiration for designers, illustrators, art directors, photographers, scholars, collectors, and anyone interested in the graphic style of one of the most exciting periods in history. 476 illustrations, 248 in color.
Art Deco Graphics by Patricia Frantz Kery and Alain-Rene Hardy
ISBN: 0500283532

Graphic Design: A Concise History

From its roots in the development of printing, graphic design has evolved as a means of identification, information and promotion, to become a profession and discipline in its own right. This authoritative documentary history begins with the poster and goes on to chart the development of word and image in brochures and magazines, advertising, corporate identity, television and electronic media, and the effects of technical innovations such as photography and the computer. A new final chapter in this revised edition covers the international developments and leading practitioners in graphic design over the past ten years, exploring the revolutionary impact of digital technology. With over 800 illustrations fully integrated within the text, this indispensable account is uniquely clear, comprehensive and absorbing.
Graphic Design: A Concise History by Richard Hollis
ISBN: 0500203474

History of the Surrealist Movement

From Dada to the Automatists, and from Max Ernst to Andre Breton, Gerard Durozoi provides the most comprehensive and fascinating history of the surrealist movement to date.
Tracing the movement from its origins in the 1920s to its decline in the 1950s and 1960s, Durozoi tells the history of surrealism through its activities, publications, and reviews, demonstrating its close ties to some of the most explosive political, as well as creative, debates of the twentieth century.
For anyone who wants to know more about practically any aspect of surrealism, from its vexed relations with communism to its exquisite corpses, Durozoi's History of the Surrealist Movement will be an indispensable reference.
History of the Surrealist Movement by Gerard Durozoi
ISBN: 0226174123

Treasures of the Louvre

As the largest museum in the world, with a history that spans eight centuries, the Grand Louvre has been described as a museum, a palace, and a monument. Now, Treasures of the Louvre explores both the masterpieces and the rich history of the Grand Louvre in all of their splendor.
The first section presents an historical overview of the Lourvre - ts earliest days as a medieval fortress under Philippe Auguste, its transformation in the sixteenth century under Francois I, the public opening in 1793, and the modern restoration - culminating with the debut of the Grand Louvre in 1993. Also discussed are the key patrons, the political backdrop, and the circumstances surrounding the most prestigious acquisitions.
The balance of the book is devoted to a magnificent display of the artwork housed in the museum itself. There are chpaters - each with its own introudction - on antiquities, sculpture, French painting, European painting, prints and drawings, and the decorative arts. Full-color image of more than 100 of the masterpieces are included, accompanied by incisive commentary. Treasures of the Louvre celebrates the Grand Louvre as a living institution, reflecting both the history of art and of humanity.
Treasures of the Louvre by Alain Nave
ISBN: 0760710678

The Louvre

In this stunning book, Alexandra Bonfante-Warren has chosen representative masterpieces from each of the Louvre's seven departments - Egyptian Antiquities, Oriental Antiquities, Greek and Roman Antiquities, Decorative Arts, Sculpture, Paintings, and Drawings - and made them available to armchair visitors in 300 color plate reproductions. Here are tomb paintings and sarcophagi from the Valley of the Kings, devotional altarpieces expressing the religious fervor of the Middle Ages, and masterpieces by Giotto, Raphael, Leonardo, Rembrandt, Rubens, Delacroix, David, Vermeer, and Ingres. The Louvre also contains photos and historical drawings of the architectural development of the fortress-turned-palace-turned- museum, as well as an engaging account of French history that helped form one of the most spectacular collections in the world.
The Louvre by Alexandra Bonfante-Warren
ISBN: 0760734909

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