Quote:
Originally posted by CoolArtiste
The other book is Carlson's Guide to landscape painting by John Carlson. I got the book because it got very good reviews on Amazon.com. But it looks like a mediocre book or worse. The paintings & illustrations don't look very good. It's only 144 pages. The text is in large, widespace print. It doesn't look very informative. I have a bad feeling about this book.
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I think sometimes what we extract from a book is relative to what we are indeed looking for at a specific time in our growth and such.
I too own John Carlson's book on landscape painting.
I perhaps enjoy it for different reasons. You'll note it was first copyright in 1929.
Of course...modernism, technology, coursework that studies how to communicate and reach readers that has been developed to the n'th degree...these have all happened since John's day.
The thing though...is that John is part of that early American legacy and history of painting.
Heck...color photograph was just coming into its own when I was in high school...and my graduation picture was yet black and white. That was in 1972...and this book done in 1929 is of course more or less going to show black and whites. To me, that is part of the charm.
What we get from Carlson is a look into the mind and thru the eyes of the original American landscape painters and teachers. As a landscape plein airist, alla primist and art educator I found this quite interesting indeed. John....is our predecessor, and a pioneer. John worked with the Student Art League in New York with Frank DuMond...and earned many distinctions at a time also of the popularity of the Cape Cod School, and the Buck County school in Pennsylvania.
I found many things he has shared useful, and insightful. Further...we have the advantage of paintings done in that era still around today to see if things stack up.
For example, John saw no need because of using oil of copal, that as soon as the painting was indeed dry to touch it couldn't be final varnished right away. Thus...a simple thing would be to look at his canvases and those of his students to see now if 80 years later they show signs of holding up or cracking & yellowing.
My interests have now come to seek and prefer the older out of date books for what gems they might provide, and to firm up that sense of connectedness I now have with the past.
I own Charles Hawthorne's book... a few others, and am hoping to add one by Edgar Payne...Emile Gruppe...and so forth.
Again...it is relative to one's needs...and so I hope you'll find something from it to feel positive once you've had a good opportunity to look thru it.
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