Concerning the Spiritual in Art


Wassily Kandinsky - 1947
    Written by the famous nonobjective painter Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944), it explains Kandinsky's own theory of painting and crystallizes the ideas that were influencing many other modern artists of the period. Along with his own groundbreaking paintings, this book had a tremendous impact on the development of modern art.Kandinsky's ideas are presented in two parts. The first part, called "About General Aesthetic," issues a call for a spiritual revolution in painting that will let artists express their own inner lives in abstract, non-material terms. Just as musicians do not depend upon the material world for their music, so artists should not have to depend upon the material world for their art. In the second part, "About Painting," Kandinsky discusses the psychology of colors, the language of form and color, and the responsibilities of the artist. An Introduction by the translator, Michael T. H. Sadler, offers additional explanation of Kandinsky's art and theories, while a new Preface by Richard Stratton discusses Kandinsky's career as a whole and the impact of the book. Making the book even more valuable are nine woodcuts by Kandinsky himself that appear at the chapter headings.This English translation of Über das Geistige in der Kunst was a significant contribution to the understanding of nonobjectivism in art. It continues to be a stimulating and necessary reading experience for every artist, art student, and art patron concerned with the direction of 20th-century painting.

Widow Basquiat: A Love Story


Jennifer Clement - 2000
    A hotbed for hip hop, underground culture, and unmatched creative energy, it spawned some of the most significant art of the 20th century. It was where Jean-Michel Basquiat became an avant-garde street artist and painter, swiftly achieving worldwide fame. During the years before his death at the age of 27, he shared his life with his lover and muse, Suzanne Mallouk. A runaway from an unhappy home in Canada, Suzanne first met Jean-Michel in a bar on the Lower East Side in 1980. Thus began a tumultuous and passionate relationship that deeply influenced one of the most exceptional artists of our time. In emotionally resonant prose, award-winning author Jennifer Clement tells the story of the passion that swept Suzanne and Jean-Michel into a short-lived, unforgettable affair. A poetic interpretation like no other, Widow Basquiat is an expression of the unrelenting power of addiction, obsession and love.

An Invitation to Freedom: Immediate Awakening for Everyone


Mooji - 2011
    These simple yet profound instructions, questions, and contemplations will lead you directly into the heart of truth and absolute freedom. This could be the greatest discovery you make in your life. Also available as an audiobook read by Mooji.

The NPR Listener's Encyclopedia of Classical Music


Ted Libbey - 2006
    No music lover can pick up this one-volume compendium without becoming a more knowledgeable, discerning listener. • The sonata form revealed, and why it's been deeply satisfying for three centuries. • What to listen for in Brahms, a self-described Classicist who was one of music's great innovators. • Pizzicato, fioritura, parlando, glissando. • The transformative power of Toscanini–who earned more conducting the New York Philharmonic than his contemporary Babe Ruth made with the Yankees. • And throughout, more than 2,000 recommended recordings.Log on and listen. Created with Naxos, the world's largest classical music label, the book includes a unique Web site featuring more than 500 examples cited in the text. Look up barcarolle. First read about its swaying 6/8 meter and Venetian origins; then log on to the music Web site and hear it performed in Act IV of Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffmann. If that whets your curiosity about Offenbach, click to hear the cancan in his La vie parisienne. All online samples are marked by an icon in the text.

Agnes Martin: Her Life and Art


Nancy Princenthal - 2018
    Martin identified with the Abstract Expressionists but her commitment to linear geometry caused her to be associated in turn with Minimalist, feminist, and even outsider artists. She moved through some of the liveliest art communities of her time while maintaining a legendary reserve. I paint with my back to the world, she says both at the beginning and at the conclusion of a documentary filmed when she was in her late eighties. When she died at ninety-two, in Taos, New Mexico, it is said she had not read a newspaper in half a century. No substantial critical monograph exists on this acclaimed artist the recipient of two career retrospectives as well as the National Medal of the Arts who was championed by critics as diverse in their approaches as Lucy Lippard, Lawrence Alloway, and Rosalind Krauss. Furthermore, no attempt has been made to describe her extraordinary life. The whole engrossing story, told here for the first time, Agnes Martin is essential reading for anyone interested in abstract art or the history of women artists in America."

Charley Harper: An Illustrated Life


Todd Oldham - 2007
    The definitive monograph of artist Charley Harpers work, lovingly edited by Todd Oldham.

The Shape of Content


Ben Shahn - 1957
    He talks of the creation of the work of art, the importance of the community, the problem of communication, and the critical theories governing the artist and his audience.

Walden and Other Writings


Henry David Thoreau - 1854
    B. White Naturalist, philosopher, champion of self-reliance and moral independence, Henry David Thoreau remains not only one of our most influential writers but also one of our most contemporary. This unique and comprehensive edition gathers all of Thoreau's most significant works, including his masterpiece, Walden (reproduced in its entirety); A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers; selections from Cape Cod and The Maine Woods; as well as "Walking," "Civil Disobedience," "Slavery in Massachusetts," "A Plea for Captain John Brown," and "Life Without Principle." Taken together, they reveal the astounding range, subtlety, artistry, and depth of thought of this true American original.Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide

Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs


Henry Carroll - 2014
    • A bestselling photography book with over 300,000 copies sold! • Learn top photography tips from 50 famous photographers • A must–have guide for amateur photographers and professional photographersRead This if You Want to Take Great Photographs contains no graphs, no techie diagrams and no camera–club jargon. Instead, it inspires readers through iconic images and playful copy, packed with hands–on tips.Split into five sections, the book covers composition, exposure, light, lenses and the art of seeing. Masterpieces by acclaimed photographers – including Henri Cartier–Bresson, Sebastião Salgado, Fay Godwin, Nadav Kander, Daido Moriyama and Martin Parr – serve to illustrate points and encourage readers to try out new ideas.Today's aspiring photographers want immediacy and see photography as an affordable way of expressing themselves quickly and creatively. This handbook meets their needs, teaching them how to take photographs using professional techniques.Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs is part of the internationally–bestselling 'Read This' series, which has sold over half–a–million books worldwide and has been translated into over 20 languages.More titles in the 'Read This' series:Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of People by Henry Carroll (9781780676241)Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of Places by Henry Carroll (9781780679051)Use This if You Want to Take Great Photographs: A Photo Journal by Henry Carroll (9781780678887)Read This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing by Selwyn Leamy (9781786270542)Use This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing by Selwyn Leamy (9781786274052)Read This if You Want to Be Great at Drawing People by Selwyn Leamy (9781786275127)Read This if You Want to Be a Great Writer by Ross Raisin (9781786271976)Read This if You Want to Be Instagram Famous edited by Henry Carroll (9781780679679)Read This If You Want to Be YouTube Famous by Will Eagle (9781786275134)

Clear Seeing Place: Studio Visits


Brian Rutenberg - 2016
    Brimming with the joy of process and a love of art history, Brian Rutenberg reveals the places, people, and experiences that led to the paint­ings for which he is well known today. This book is packed with ideas, observations, techniques, and career advice all thought­fully arranged into six sections designed to inspire artists of all levels, as well as anyone interested in creativity.Clear Seeing Place is a companion to the artist's popular YouTube series, "Brian Rutenberg Studio Visits," and is a love letter to painting written by a painter.

Where the Heart Beats: John Cage, Zen Buddhism, and the Inner Life of Artists


Kay Larson - 2012
    Many writers have grappled with Cage’s music—which used notes chosen by chance, randomly tuned radios, and even silence—trying to understand what his music means rather than where it came from. An unprecedented and revelatory book, Where the Heart Beats reveals what actually empowered Cage to compose his incredible music, and how he inspired the tremendous artistic transformations of mid-century America.Where the Heart Beats is the first biography of John Cage to address the phenomenal importance of Zen Buddhism to the composer’s life, and to the artistic avant-garde of the 1950s and 60s. Zen’s power of transforming Cage’s troubled mind, by showing him his own enlightened nature—which is also the nature of all living things—liberated Cage from an acute personal crisis that threatened his life, his music, and his relationship with his life-partner, Merce Cunningham. Caught in a society that rejected his music, his politics, and his sexual orientation, Cage was transformed by Zen from an overlooked and somewhat marginal musician into the absolute epicenter of the avant garde.Using Cage’s life as a starting point, Where the Heart Beats looks beyond to the individuals he influenced and the art he inspired. His circle included Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, Merce Cunningham, Yoko Ono, Jasper Johns, Morton Feldman, and Leo Castelli, who all went on to revolutionize their respective disciplines. As Cage’s story progresses, as his students’ trajectories unfurl, Where the Heart Beats shows the blossoming of Zen in the very heart of American culture. Both an innovative biography and a ground-breaking cultural history of the American Century, Where the Heart Beats is the work of acclaimed art critic Kay Larson. Following her time at New York Magazine and The Village Voice, Larson practiced Zen at a Buddhist monastery in upstate New York. Larson’s deep knowledge of Zen Buddhism, her long familiarity with New York’s art world, and her exhaustive original research all make Where the Heart Beats the definitive story about one of America’s most enduringly important artists.

Do Fly: Find Your Way. Make a Living. Be Your Best Self


Gavin Strange - 2016
    Sounds simple, doesn't it? But the reality can be quite different. Whether you're just starting out or simply ready to head in a new direction, you're going to need some help turning your natural skills into success-seeking missiles of radness.On hand is Gavin Strange, a creative working by night under the name of JamFactory and, by day, at Aardman Animations – the Academy Award-winning studio behind Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep.With advice, encouragement and a reminder that life's too short to not pursue your passion, whatever your age or position – from school leaver or graduate just starting out to CEO ready to head in a new direction, Do Fly will inspire you to:Change your perspective and revamp your mindsetDevelop creative side projectsStay optimistic and resilientDiscover skills and passions you never knew you had!Do Fly is your all-in-one guide, ticket and passport to a new destination. Are you ready for take off?

Show and Tell: Exploring the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustration


Dilys Evans - 2008
    In 1980 she foundedThe Original Art, an annual exhibition in New York featuring the best children's book illustration of the year. Now, in thisfascinating exploration of children's book illustration, she focuses on the work of 12 contemporary illustrators. Lookingat the wide variety of artistic genius in children's books, Show and Tell teaches the reader how to look for the perfect marriage of art and text, and is an invaluable guide for anyone interested in children's books and the art of illustration.Illustrators include:David WiesnerTrina Schart HymanLane SmithBrian SelznickBryan CollierDavid ShannonPetra MathersPaul O. ZelinskyHilary KnightDenise FlemingHarry BlissBetsy Lewin

The End of Print: The Graphic Design of David Carson


Lewis Blackwell - 1995
    His tortured typography prompted a vocal camp of critics to accuse him of being flippant and of destroying the communicative basis of design. But now the techniques of David Carson (and those of his countless imitators) dominate advertising, design, the Web, and even motion pictures. With 35,000 copies of the original sold, this revised edition of The End of Print includes a striking new cover and first chapter that puts Carson's work in context. The rest is vintage Carson—cutting edge and explosive. The End of Print tracks his career from skateboard and surf magazines, to the landmark Beach Culture magazine and his groundbreaking grid-breaking work for Ray Gun, and finally to handling major corporate identity accounts. The End of Print marks a turning point in design that ushered in the look of today.

Tending the Heart Fire: Living in Flow with the Pulse of Life


Shiva Rea - 2013
    Tides, breath, and blood flow in rhythm. We are born into a universe of currents, and our heart is the great conductor of the body, orchestrating our flow."The mystical foundations of all the world's spiritual paths meet in a single, sacred place: the heart of the seeker. We have reached a time when scientific understanding mirrors the teachings of the great wisdom traditions in revealing our energetic heart as the light of consciousness, the fire of love, a field of intelligence. Tending the Heart Fire, the first book by pioneering yogini Shiva Rea, is an invitation to embody our extraordinary potential at this turning point in time, to reconnect your life to the rhythms of your body and the natural world—to live in flow with the pulse of life.Weaving together wisdom from the great world traditions—including yoga, Ayurveda, Tantra, and modern science—Shiva presents an essential resource for becoming a firekeeper of the sacred heart. This diverse treasury is filled with mediations, life guidance, seasonal rituals, and daily practices, including:Insights for harmonizing with the sacred junctures of time—the daily, weekly, lunar, and solar cycles of manifestation and renewal• Aligning with the seasons—how to adapt your diet, exercise, and yoga rhythms throughout the annual cycle Ways to honor the great sacred holidays, rites, and festivals• Awakening of sahaja—the natural flow at the origins and source of yoga asana and sacred embodiment at the heart of yoga and Tantra• Skills for tending your inner fire in every aspect of life and healing imbalances that can support a renewable energy lifestyle• A visual teaching with over a hundred full-color images, including reference charts, diagrams, illustrations, and ancient poetry for inspirationThe legacy of the Heart Fire is more than eight hundred thousand years old—and in our modern world, we need more than ever to consciously reconnect to the radiant field that transcends time, space, and culture. "The direct awakening of the heart often happens when we are at a crisis point, when the armor of our heart has to crack," writes Shiva Rea. "Let us return to the power and magnificence of our hearts—as living fire, as intelligent energy and electromagnetic radiance, and as our illuminating guide toward love, creativity, and deep knowing of our true sacred nature."