<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Stunning Stylized Images of a Most Innovative Artist
Review: Although many people think of Man Ray only as a photographer, his artistic work began with training in drawing. His approach to photography was always that of a painter, seeing photography as a way to create images with light as well as with the hand. He made two major innovations in technique, being the first to learn to expose images on photographic paper to capture their outline (rayographs) and to control the solarization process (where a partial reversal of values occurs in a photograph, accompanied by a characteristic edge) to create a consistent halo appearance. He also developed many ways to affect the surface appearance of the objects he photographed to make them more abstract. Deeply interested in Dadaism and Surrealism (although never formally joining either movement), Man Ray also captured witty titles and everyday objects in his photography to give additional depth to the message of his work. You will find many of his well-known portraits of famous artists in this volume. Before saying more about this outstanding volume, let me caution you (as the cover art surely must) that Man Ray often created images of nude women. If such things offend you, this volume will not be appropriate for you. The essays in this volume as reproduced in English, German, and French. I found them very helpful for providing technical background on the influences on and methods used in Man Ray's work. His approach was very Edison-like in its many unsuccessful experiments and accidents that led to important breakthroughs. A random mouse helped him learn how to do solarization. It is not surprising that Marcel Duchamp and he became instant friends. Their perspectives on art have many points in common. Born as Emmanuel Radnitzky in Philadelphia in 1890, he had moved to New York by age 7, and became exposed there to many important artistic influences. These included the Stieglitz gallery, the Armory Show in 1913, and leading artists in New York. He started as a photographer in 1914 just before meeting Marcel Duchamp. His primary years of productivity were spent in Paris, from which he was driven by the Nazi invasion in 1940. His return to the United States was less than a total joy, and he resided again in Paris after 1951. I believe that this volume is as much a delight for the mind as it is for the eye. Subtle differences in processing of similar images create enormously changed reactions in the viewer. You then move forward to study the reason for your changed perspective and find it in a small detail . . . like a slightly lifted eyebrow. Miror images in positive and negative reproduced side by side on facing pages create a similar reaction. Here are my favorites from these outstanding reproductions of Man Ray's best work: Integration of Shadows 1919 Untitled 1922 La violin d'Ingres 1924 Retour a la raison 1923 Meret Oppenheim 1932 "Beauty in ultra violet" c. 1931 Erotique voilee [Meret Oppenheim] 1933 Le Priere c. 1930 Anatomia 1929 Nusch and Sonia 1935 Untitled 1931 Untitled [hair] 1931 Lee Miller c. 1930 Objet mathematique 1934-36 Les Arums 1039 Untitled [Dancer] c. 1935 Enough Rope 1944 Rayograph 1925 Rayograph 1930 Champs delicieux 1922 Marcel Duchamp 1916 Constantin Brancusi 1933 Max Ernst c. 1934 Andre Breton c. 1930 Marcel Duchamp 1921 Joan Miro c. 1930 Pablo Picasso 1932 If you enjoy the the ultimate in photographic creativity, this is the book for you! After you finish this work, I suggest that you take these insights and begin to create some art of your own. Consider creating composite images by including your own collages with natural objects and photographing them, for example. You can even include your own poems as adjoining commentaries. Expand your mind and your grasp by taking advantage of all the resources at your disposal!
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Portal Into the Work of Man Ray
Review: Aperture's "Master of Photography" collections are economical, well put together samplers of some of this century's best known photographers, and are a good starting point for those relatively unfamiliar with an artist's work. The emphasis is on providing a representative image from all stages in the photographer's career (a long, diverse one in the case of Man Ray)so depth in the era the photographer did his most important work is sacrificed to chronological breadth. The reproductions are good, but not exceptional. Some of the images lacked the glow - the sense of captured light - seen in higher-end reproductions of the images. This slight deadening of the images was most apparent in Man Ray's wonderful solarized photos - images with a which when reproduced well seem to be lit from within. Art and photography books are perhaps the least suited for e-commerce as we know it today. Some of my favorite images were not in the Aperture books, and I would have been able to see this before buying by thumbing through the book at a traditional bookstore. Hopefully, as technology advances, Amazon will allow us to "thumb through" these books of images on-line, by being able to view all the images electronically before buying. All in all, this Aperture series is a good, inexpensive place to get started for someone who would like to see representative images of an artist with whom he or she is unfamiliar. They are not by any means comprehensive works, nor do they have the most beautiful reproductions of some of the mostmemorable images of this century. These books are, however, much less expensive than museum catalogs, have intelligent introductory essays, and are printed passably - they serve a valuable purpose in making the work of these photographers more accessible, and encouraging further exploration into an artist's work.
Rating: 
Summary: kind of disappointing
Review: I bought this book expecting it to be a basic guide on Man Ray's work. The problem is it happens to be a little too basic. You can't find Man Ray's most expressive work, except for "Tears" (only on the cover), "Le Violin d'Ingres", "Mask of Woman", "Le Priere" and a few Rayographs. It seems to be a biographic record instead of an art book, although it doesn't blur the genius of Man Ray's photographs.
Rating:
Summary: kind of disappointing
Review: I bought this book expecting it to be a basic guide on Man Ray's work. The problem is it happens to be a little too basic. You can't find Man Ray's most expressive work, except for "Tears" (only on the cover), "Le Violin d'Ingres", "Mask of Woman", "Le Priere" and a few Rayographs. It seems to be a biographic record instead of an art book, although it doesn't blur the genius of Man Ray's photographs.
Rating:
Summary: The original is still the master.
Review: Man Ray used photography as painterly art, not photojournalism. Time spent with each plate provides a vista to questions, epiphanies, riddles, personality or beauty. His nudes are utterly refreshing in a time when women are photographed as blank "hey baby, what's your number" objects. (Ruth Bernhard also recommended.) Add this book to your collection for the plates alone, but the accompanying essays are terrific. Better yet, visit the mind-expanding collection at the Getty in Los Angeles.
Rating:
Summary: The original is still the master.
Review: Man Ray used photography as painterly art, not photojournalism. Time spent with each plate provides a vista to questions, epiphanies, riddles, personality or beauty. His nudes are utterly refreshing in a time when women are photographed as blank "hey baby, what's your number" objects. (Ruth Bernhard also recommended.) Add this book to your collection for the plates alone, but the accompanying essays are terrific. Better yet, visit the mind-expanding collection at the Getty in Los Angeles.
Rating:
Summary: The guy of art
Review: Some photograhers see a pose and snap it as a statue. Man Ray envisoned etheral impressions through his works. I discovered this beautiful book of 300 duotone photos at a quaint little shoppe by the University. Don't you just love to happen upon old books unmasking new treasures? Me too. And I will definately be seeking out more regarding Man Ray's career as a commercial artist, photographer, and as a colleague of Marcel Duchamp and the New York Dadaists. These poses, these works of art, through Ray's impeccably searching eyes, have a quality of hallowedness. An American, he had moved to Paris in 1921 and quickly became one of the most celebrated experimentalists of his era. Fascinatingly, he used a simple yet efective innovation of solaraization, which bestowed a ghostly silver aura upon his posers. Just truly remarkable! Classic images of Salvador Dali, Breton, Yves Tanguy, Jean Cocteau, and even Gertrude Stein are among this embodiment. Also his creative assembled objects and a selection of fashion spreads for Vanity Fair, Vogue, and Harper's Bazaar. A truly gorgeous photograpy book to be lost in. Thank you for your interest & comment votes--CDS
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not an introduction for beginners
Review: This small book is part of a vague series called Icons by Taschen. They are a dim reflection on some of their larger works. This book is definitely not for beginners, not meant to be an introduction to Man Ray. However, it has some value for people familiar with Man Ray, Andre Breton and/or Dada. Think of it as material for art history or food for thought about the time. Do yourself a favor and don't try to learn about Man Ray from this book or any of the enthusiastic or overblown "reviews" of it. Start with something more comprehensive. If and when you already know about Man Ray and where he fits, get this book and carry it around when you want to feed your head a little. It is nicely done and fills that need very well. For those unfamiliar with Man Ray, he is not primarily known as a photographer and never intended to be. It is probably the ease of publishing his photographs that has distracted people to thinking of him this way. Don't miss the rest of his work, especially his writing. Read his autobiography and use his photographs as a "program" to identify the players, perhaps.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not an introduction for beginners
Review: This small book is part of a vague series called Icons by Taschen. They are a dim reflection on some of their larger works. This book is definitely not for beginners, not meant to be an introduction to Man Ray. However, it has some value for people familiar with Man Ray, Andre Breton and/or Dada. Think of it as material for art history or food for thought about the time. Do yourself a favor and don't try to learn about Man Ray from this book or any of the enthusiastic or overblown "reviews" of it. Start with something more comprehensive. If and when you already know about Man Ray and where he fits, get this book and carry it around when you want to feed your head a little. It is nicely done and fills that need very well. For those unfamiliar with Man Ray, he is not primarily known as a photographer and never intended to be. It is probably the ease of publishing his photographs that has distracted people to thinking of him this way. Don't miss the rest of his work, especially his writing. Read his autobiography and use his photographs as a "program" to identify the players, perhaps.
<< 1 >>
| 
