Monacelli Press Products

All products from this brand (11 total)

A straight-to-the-point ?everything-you-need-to-know? guide to the world of professional illustration for aspiring artists and recent art-school graduates?not only the technical essentials (the difference between narrative versus conceptual illustration, diagramming a composition, mastering negative space, and the impact of different mediums from watercolor to digital to textiles), but industry insights, real-world insider advice, and honest personal development tips from an experienced teacher (?if you say your style is ?manga? or ?anime? then you have no style?). <br /> <br />From a <i>Newsweek</i> cover depicting the Bush family as characters on <i>Game of Thrones</i>; to the Sistine Chapel (the complete illustrated bible)?visual storytelling through illustration has been an important mode of communication in every culture since ancient times. Unlike a fine artist, an illustrator creates images that serve a specific purpose, and successful illustrators need much more than just talent. <br /> <br />Drawing on a decade of teaching, including at Maryland Institute College of Art and as cofounder of the new Baltimore Academy of Illustration, along with over three decades of professional experience as an illustrator for clients like Marvel Comics, Relapse Records, and <i>The Village Voice</i>?Greg Houston places aspiring artists and recent graduates squarely in the current marketplace, and inspires them to pursue work in the large and lucrative field of professional illustration in a way that will be personally and professionally rewarding for years to come. <i>Illustration that Works</i> demonstrates exactly why illustration is so important to the way we see and communicate today, and how it can be done effectively in an infinite number of styles. <br /> <br /> <b>Includes: <br /></b> <br /> <b>Thought-provoking assignments</b> <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Illustrate an op-ed that?s either pro or against religion in the public sphere <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Create 3 posters for an HBO documentary series on sex (that can still be displayed anywhere) <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Illustrate a pair of identical twins whose lives have veered apart dramatically <br /> &nbsp; <br /> <b>400 examples of artwork</b> <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Assignments completed by talented students <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Pieces from 50 classic and contemporary master illustrators including Brian Sanders, Marshall Arisman, Roberto Parada, Steve Brodner, Paul Rogers, and Greg Spalenka <br /> -&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Houston?s own pieces, both finished and failed
Award-winning photographer Kerri McCaffety looks at the city's most innovative and iconic interiors in a quest to define the essence of the unique New Orleans style. Sumptuous fabrics, elegant architectural details, intricate collections, bold abstract art, and fresh, contemporary lines are all captured in her stunning photographs. <br /> <br />What makes New Orleans different from everywhere else? The answer is its history: three centuries of complex cultural influences?French, Spanish, and African?converging in a unique climate and a strategic location at the mouth of the Mississippi River. It?s an alluring but elusive m&eacute;lange of sophisticated and primitive, elegant and raw in a sultry, seductive atmosphere of faded glory. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> But as New Orleans recovers from the devastation wrought by Katrina, there is an infusion of contemporary energy, manifest in all dimensions?political, social, cultural, culinary, artistic. Interior design is moving toward a fresh elegance while still embracing the extravagance of the past. The grandeur of the Greek revival architecture and the drama of the live oaks are tempered by a fresh, more relaxed elegance that respects classical proportions and details but introduces a more contemporary vocabulary in furnishings and accessories. <b> </b> <br /> &nbsp; <br />More than forty houses and apartments are featured from all parts of the city?the French Quarter, the Warehouse District, the Garden District, and the multiple neighborhoods that comprise Uptown. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> Social commentator and <i>Vogue</i> contributor Julia Reed?s introductory essay surveys the traditions of the city, placing its style in a cultural and historic context. Commentary from interior designers, scholars, and antiques dealers creates a rich tapestry of perspectives and opinions on a perennially fascinating place.
Plein air painting, the art of painting outdoors, offers possibilities artists can?t find inside the studio. When painters set up easels outside, they put themselves in direct contact with nature. Responsiveness to the landscape?s changing light, forms, and colors yields work that?s lively and spontaneous. However, plein air painting also poses a set of challenges not encountered in the studio. There are matters of choosing a location, rationing the number of supplies to bring, working within a time limit, adjusting to sudden changes in weather, and possibly even testing physical endurance when transporting equipment to a painting site. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> <i>The Art of Plein Air Painting </i>presents the full picture of what painting <i>en plein air </i>requires. Devoted plein air artist M. Stephen Doherty guides readers through how to choose the best spot, which materials and tools to bring, and the basics of mixing colors and preparing canvases and panels ahead of time. Sidebars and step-by-step demonstrations cover topics that range from sketching out a composition to starting a painting with washes or lines, toning a surface, and doing a cityscape. Doherty even teaches how to do a nocturne?a painting made after the sun has gone down. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> Works by famous plein air painters, such as Claude Monet and John Singer Sargent, are discussed, along with works by some of today?s best plein air artists. Doherty interviews contemporary masters Mark Boedges, Clyde Aspevig, Kathryn Stats, Michael Godfrey, Joseph McGurl, and Clive C. Tyler to gain a deeper insight into the plein air process. Finally, the book contains information on plein air events?workshops, county festivals, and juried shows?now being held across North America, as well as advice on selling finished work.
The Winterthur Museum?s richly illustrated history of British and American fabrics made or used from 1700?1850 is a visual reference for designers and a definitive contribution to textile studies. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> From slipcovers that belonged to George Washington, to bedhangings described by Harriet Beecher Stowe, Delaware?s Winterthur Museum holds some of the finest cotton and linen textiles made or used in America and Britain between 1700 and 1850. One of the fastest growing and potentially most lucrative trades in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, on the forefront of developments in science and engineering, chemistry and technology, the textile industry is a fascinating lens into international trade relations and cultural exchange over nearly two centuries.&nbsp; <br /> &nbsp; <br /> <i>Printed Textiles</i> is a major update to the classic text published by Winterthur in 1970?a sourcebook compiled by celebrated curator Florence Montgomery that detailed all aspects of the fabrics? lifespan, from their design and method of manufacture to their use and exchange value. Linda Eaton, Director of Collections and Senior Curator of Textiles, updates the classic with a particular focus on furnishing fabrics?referred to as ?furnitures.? Building on research that has come to light since 1970 and benefiting from the technical and scientific expertise of the conservators and scientists at Winterthur, Eaton presents a thorough and sweeping study enriched by the diverse approaches to material culture today. <br /> &nbsp; <br /> With hundreds of beautifully photographed samples?engagingly contextualized with iconic figures in American history including Betsy Ross and Benjamin Franklin?this significant addition to textile scholarship allows for a full appreciation of these fascinating fabrics. <i>Printed Textiles </i>is destined to become an essential reference for interior designers, fashion and textile design students, conservators, collectors, and anyone with an interest in the textile industry.&nbsp;