Book Description
This magnificent book is the key to understanding one of the world's most important architectural traditions, one that spawned major masterpieces throughout the near east, and particularly in Persia, India, Turkey, North Africa, Southern Russia, and Spain. As human representation is forbidden in Islamic religious monuments, design and ornamentation reach unparalleled heights of expression through mosaics, stucco, brickwood, and ceramic. Brilliant colors are used everywhere to enhance design.
This monumental study is a close collaboration between Dominique Clevenot, a distinguished scholar of art, and Gerald de George, a renowned photographer. Together, they visited and photographed hundreds of monuments, selecting their most noteworthy features. Unlike other books, which divide the subject geographically or chronically, the authors have approached this complicated topic from four different and interconnected angles: the history of Islamic architecture, materials and techniques, ornamental design, and the aesthetics of ornamentation.
Each of these topics is presented through a number of outstanding examples and comparable monuments from all over the Islamic world. Travelers overwhelmed by the Taj Mahal or the Alhambra will gain greater understanding. Architects and designers will find endless inspiration and ideas. Historians will be illuminated. Anyone interested in the vast world of Islam will find new knowledge in this magnificent full-color publication.
Customer Reviews:
Discovery.......2007-09-28
This is a thorough and scholarly exploration of a fascinating subject - the world of Islamic Design. The work covers all the main areas of the field, from al Andalus to India. The text is clearly written, yet scholarly in its approach, while still being accessible to the amateur. The excellent photographs serve to illustrate this magnificint work well.
Terrific Photography; Turgid Prose.......2007-03-28
The 325 photographs in this book--all in color--merit every superlative reviewers have given them. And the subject is indeed presented in a unique way. However, the text is so grandiloquent that I, a seasoned English teacher who is also well read in the field of Islamic architecture, had to spend far too much time trying to decipher it. So why did I pay $40 for a used copy of this book? Quite simply because none of the many other books I examined taught me nearly as much about the decoration and design of Islamic architecture. So illuminating are the photographs, in fact, that one can learn much even without plodding through the prose.
For those unable to find a copy to preview, what follows is a more specific summary of its contents.
SECTION 1--which focuses on the variations in Islamic architecture in one part of the world--devotes 8 to 10 pages of text and photographs to each of the following: the Dome of the Rock, the Alhambra, the Taj Mahal and Persia's Shah Mosque. Eight pages of smaller photographs of other significant monuments from the Arab lands, Turkey, India, Iran and Central Asia follow.
SECTION 2 focuses on the use of brick, stucco, mosaics and ceramics in design. Additional photographs illustrate the use of bronze, wood and painted wood.
SECTION 3 focuses on the decorative use of mathematically defined forms (e.g. stars/hexagons), vegetation, calligraphy and even occasionally the human figure.
SECTION 4 focuses on how the elements in Sections 2 and 3 combine to create surfaces that resemble textiles. Specifically discussed are a) the division of flat surfaces into panels and bands, b) the multi-layering of textures and c) the use of repetition to create geometric designs. The use of ornamentation to disguise supporting forms and embellish supported ones is also well covered.
The APPENDIX has been detailed in Library Journal's review.
A must companion.......2001-02-16
If you are someone who is involved in arhitect or interior decoration, this book is a must to guide you in creating something splendor from the Islamic culture, and it's a good refrence on a cofee table top.
Four different approaches to Islam architecture.......2001-02-15
Islam expanded quickly within a few centuries, embracing a wide area and altering the political and cultural heritage of the entire region. Splendors of Islam examines the visual effects of Islam, considering the structures in contrast with other architectural traditions and examining the role given to various decorative choices and styles. Four different approaches to Islam architecture provide an exceptionally well-rounded view, with color photo examples packing an oversized coverage.
Book Description
Judy Balchin demonstrates, with clear step-by-step photographs, how easy and exciting it is to transform old bottles, flowerpots, plates, mugs, bowls and vases using simple decorative techniques. Learn how to paint on glass, how to decorate ceramics without using a kiln, and how to enhance metal objects. Techniques covered include free painting, outlining, stamping, sponging and stencilling using a ranger of paints. You can even adorn your designs with beads and stones. Projects include transforming flowerpots, plates, mugs, tiles, perfume bottles, bowls and vases. Templates are included showing all the designs featured in the book.
Customer Reviews:
Decorative Painting on Glass, Ceramics, and Metal.......2007-03-08
The book was in excellent condition and arrived very quickly.
Decorative Painting on Glass..........2006-03-30
Beautiful book and projects. You won't go wrong with this one.
The best craft book that I have ever come across.......1999-08-14
As the author, I send a message to all decorative painters.... buy this book!... it is packed with easy, inspirational ideas for your home. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Average customer rating:
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The Curious Mr. Sottsass: Photographing Design and Desire
Ettore Sottsass
Manufacturer: Thames & Hudson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Collections, Catalogues & Exhibitions
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| Arts & Photography
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General
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ASIN: 0500279195 |
Book Description
Sage of postmodernism, architect, furniture and product designer, and most widely known as the leading figure of the Memphis design studio in the eighties, Ettore Sottsass is one of the few postwar figures who could justly be referred to as a polymath. Among his many achievements and activities, his photography is one of the least known, yet it is certainly of unique importance in any understanding of the man, his work, and his visual vocabulary.Sottsass the photographer has created a prodigious body of work from which this personal selection is drawn. Recording his reactions to the detail and debris of the exotic and familiar, the images reveal an inquisitive sensibility finding a new way to describe the surrounding world, whether the location is India, China, Egypt, or New York.
Customer Reviews:
Cathy in Japan. Some things are universal!.......2006-10-03
This series is delightful. The humor is light observations on the foibles and troubles of Japanese "office ladies", both at work and home. It's remniscent of the famous series "Cathy" in its girlishness, but to be honest, I like this series a lot better. A few of the jokes are somewhat specific to Japanese culture (there are footnotes explaining), but most of them are just as applicable to the young woman juggling work and romance in America or Europe.
Fantastic!.......2004-12-19
I picked up a translation of this series while living in Japan. The entire series is fantastic. I could relate very well from my past experiences working as a temp and as an administrative assistant. Things aren't so different in the US from how women are treated in business environments in Japan. There are sharp jokes about the way that women are under valued and how the OL's adapt to deal with it. The girls are also hung over in every third strip. Very VERY funny!
Comical gag cartoon with black humors.......2000-01-23
A.K.A. "OL Shinka-Ron". "OL" is Japanese "English" stands for "office ladies," usually means women office clerks. This is popular gag cartoon series, which shows the daily business scenes in Japanese companies with satire and black humor. If you are doing business with Japanese companies, this book will give you some understanding of what Japanese business persons are thinking and doing at their office.
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic!.......2004-12-19
I picked up a translation of this series while living in Japan. The entire series is fantastic. I could relate very well from my past experiences working as a temp and as an administrative assistant. Things aren't so different in the US from how women are treated in business environments in Japan. There are sharp jokes about the way that women are under valued and how the OL's adapt to deal with it. The girls are also hung over in every third strip. Very VERY funny!
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic!.......2004-12-19
I picked up a translation of this series while living in Japan. The entire series is fantastic. I could relate very well from my past experiences working as a temp and as an administrative assistant. Things aren't so different in the US from how women are treated in business environments in Japan. There are sharp jokes about the way that women are under valued and how the OL's adapt to deal with it. The girls are also hung over in every third strip. Very VERY funny!
A fun and educational read.......2003-04-14
This series of comic strips is a light-hearted look at life as a 20-something "office lady" in Japan.
While the girls are pre-occupied with enjoying life, their parents are worried about obtaining the best possible husband-provider, their bosses are worried about them falling asleep on the job after playing too many computer games the night before, and their easily-dumped boyfriends are all-too often confused and manipulated. It's like a less ... focused comic version of "Sex And The City".
The 5-volume bilingual collection has the original Japanese to help those wishing to learn, but it's a fun read in any event.
Too bad Kodansha don't plan on continuing the series after the 5th volume.
Customer Reviews:
Hilarious!.......2004-12-19
I picked up a translation of this series when I was living in Japan. The entire series is fantastic. I could relate very well from my past experiences working as a temp and as an administrative assistant. Things aren't so different in the US from how women are treated in business environments in Japan.
This volume gets a little bit darker and makes more direct jokes about the way that women are under valued and how the OL's adapt to deal with it. The girls are also hung over in every third strip. Very VERY funny!
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic!.......2004-12-19
I picked up a translation of this series while living in Japan. The entire series is fantastic. I could relate very well from my past experiences working as a temp and as an administrative assistant. Things aren't so different in the US from how women are treated in business environments in Japan. There are sharp jokes about the way that women are under valued and how the OL's adapt to deal with it. The girls are also hung over in every third strip. Very VERY funny! Horribly addictive.
Average customer rating:
- Insightful, but tedious in the end
- The Billy Wayne Sinclair Story
- A compelling and sad story
- A Life In The Balance
- Light in Darkness
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A Life in the Balance: The Billy Wayne Sinclair Story
Billy Wayne Sinclair
Manufacturer: Arcade Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1559705906 |
Amazon.com
We all know that life in prison ain't grand, but the utter horror of it springs from the pages of this autobiography, written by a one-time death-row inmate. Billy Wayne Sinclair is now serving a reduced 90-year sentence for murdering a Baton Rouge convenience store owner in a robbery gone wrong more than three decades ago. His story of an adult life spent in one of Louisiana's harshest prisons is amazing, not only because he has survived with his soul intact, but because it provides such a raw look at the inner workings of a system bent on revenge, not rehabilitation. Sinclair claims he was brutally beaten by his father as a child. But that abuse has been upstaged by the stabbings, suicides, and rapes he has witnessed while in custody of the state. His descriptions of lives lost behind bars are gripping and tragic. Along the way, Sinclair also chronicles bloody integration battles, drug dealing, and political corruption. And he falls in love. Coauthor and wife Jodie Sinclair was a TV reporter working on a death-row story when the two met. Their unlikely pairing consumes much of the latter half of the book, although the story falls short in conveying the emotional depths of the relationship. The Sinclairs may not win the sympathy of every reader, but they have succeeded at providing a rare view of what happens to prisoners long after the crimes and court dates are over. --Jodi Mailander Farrell
Book Description
We all know that life in prison ain't grand, but the utter horror of it springs from the pages of this autobiography, written by a one-time death-row inmate. Billy Wayne Sinclair is now serving a reduced 90-year sentence for murdering a Baton Rouge convenience store owner in a robbery gone wrong more than three decades ago. His story of an adult life spent in one of Louisiana's harshest prisons is amazing, not only because he has survived with his soul intact, but because it provides such a raw look at the inner workings of a system bent on revenge, not rehabilitation. Sinclair claims he was brutally beaten by his father as a child. But that abuse has been upstaged by the stabbings, suicides, and rapes he has witnessed while in custody of the state. His descriptions of lives lost behind bars are gripping and tragic. Along the way, Sinclair also chronicles bloody integration battles, drug dealing, and political corruption. And he falls in love. Coauthor and wife Jodie Sinclair was a TV reporter working on a death-row story when the two met. Their unlikely pairing consumes much of the latter half of the book, although the story falls short in conveying the emotional depths of the relationship. The Sinclairs may not win the sympathy of every reader, but they have succeeded at providing a rare view of what happens to prisoners long after the crimes and court dates are over. --Jodi Mailander Farrell
Customer Reviews:
Insightful, but tedious in the end.......2006-04-29
This book shows the reality of a prison life. It is written by Billy Wayne Sinclair, who manages to show insight as well as the reality. His story of fighting against the administration and for reform reminds me a bit of my own experiences, although it is in a much grander scale in this book.
The problem is, it gets tedious after a while. All the names, first names, last names, nicknames, initials, events, places, nicknames for location, gangs, nicknames for gangs, et cetera, gets hard to track and becomes confusing. It begins to really show up in the last third of the book, which is why I'm downgrading it to a 4.
The Billy Wayne Sinclair Story.......2004-01-07
The Billy Wayne Sinclair Story
Reviewed by: Richard R. Blake
From the first page to the last, the reader is drawn into the life of Billy Wayne Sinclair. Sinclair relates how he was beaten and abused as a child, entered a life of crime as a teenager, and was convicted of murder, in 1965 at the age twenty. The writing is superb. Descriptions are graphic.
Sinclair was originally sentenced to death. His sentence was reduced to life in prison in 1972 after the U.S. Supreme Court voided then-existing death penalty laws. Gov. Buddy Roemer commuted his sentence to 90 years in 1992.
Events that span over thirty-five years are related in a narrative that details multi layers of political corruption in the Louisiana State Prison System. After years of operating on a code of loyalty established by prison inmates, the author took on a personal code of ethics. Sinclair, at great personal risk has been unwilling to compromise these new values and has exposed avarice, crime, and corruption within the parole and corrections community.
This is must reading for all elected officials in community, state, and national politics and anyone involved in prison administration, prison reform or prisoner's rights. I highly recommend this book.
A compelling and sad story.......2002-11-04
I tend to read a lot of nonfiction, at least in the last few years, but I have read lots of fiction and enjoy a great story. I mention this because much of this book reads as if the author was writing a fictional story about prison, yet was doing a poor job of it. The fact that it is a personal memoir and meant to be a true account of the struggles of the author makes it a fascinating read and I'll admit that I was able to tune out the outside world for a few reading sessions over a couple a days as I burned through the pages.
What made some of the reading difficult was keeping up with all the names and events and the general time line. It got confusing at times.
But the actions of people that interacted with the author were clear enough to present an engaging story, and anyone that is interested in the world of prisons and criminals doing hard time during the period of the book will find this work interesting. Most of the hard core story telling happens from the mid sixties through the seventies and into the eighties. There is stuff going on in the nineties here but the story starts to lose some of its steam.
As for the politics of the story and the expose' of the corruption, if the author is to be believed, and I think he presented a very strong case (although alternative arguments are not really here) then the conclusion can be clearly drawn; there is and has been a lot of corruption in the Louisiana prison system. As for my personal feelings after my reading I think that I mostly chose to believe what the author has to say, the prison system is filled with corruption and the justice system is filled with unfairness.
That being said, although I agree that the author is a "changed man", I didn't change my opinion of the death penalty after reading his story. While I don't think he needs to be singled out for special punishment now, I think that the first unfairness was that he didn't receive the death penalty shortly after conviction. Using a gun while committing a felony should carry the death penalty. Life is precious and valuable and we show complete disrespect to the victims of violent crime when we as a people fail to administer fair and impartial justice.
The author complains that many murderers have been released while he was passed over for parole. And I agree that there is an injustice here, but it isn't to him, it is to the victims and the victims families of those predators being released. Life in prison should mean life and the death penalty should mean the death penalty.
All in all I recommend this book to anyone interested in a story about prison life and the struggle of one man that was sent to prison yet still found a way to bring something redeeming to this world. I was disappointed that even though he grew up, matured, came into a realization that he had devastated many lives by killing someone that was loved and found a way to stand up to prison injustices he doesn't mention any help from God or at least a "higher power". It seems that he healed and cured himself. If this is not true than the book left out some important details. I am not saying he should have made something up, of course, but if his redemption was "self willed" than reading about it has little value as the vast majority of us simply aren't that great.
In either case the book is an entertaining and compelling story and I wasn't disappointed in the time I spent reading it.
A Life In The Balance.......2001-11-25
This is the best book I've ever read, hands down. It gave all the facts, good or bad, along with the consequences. I do not usually have sympathy for prisoners but this is an exception. This is a perfect example of the people in charge being more corrupt than the prisoner. It shows that trying to do the right thing after making a mistake in your youth only results in more punishment and the corrupt people win. It is a sad thing to know that our leaders in politics are so often more corrupt than the prisoners. I would love to read another book by the Sinclairs telling "the rest of the story". I admire Jodi Sinclair and I'm not sure anyone else would have this dedication after all the "knockdowns" in her life. I wish them the best life has to offer in their future. They have paid enough.
Light in Darkness.......2001-03-02
Billy Wayne Sinclair murdered a store clerk in a robbery in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1965. The clerk was a former football star, and the "politically powerful football fraternity" made his initial imprisonment as deprived as possible, and for thirty-five years has acted against any parole actions. Sinclair tells his life story in _A Life in the Balance: The Billy Wayne Sinclair Story_ (Arcade Publishing). It is full of distressing events during his upbringing and during his decades of imprisonment, but it is devoid of self-pity. Sinclair landed on Death Row in Angola, "the bloodiest prison in America." He became a "fanatic devotee" of self discipline. He began studying law on a daily schedule. "I learned to lock my mind on living, to believe that I had a future... The Row taught me patience. It burned away my habit of recklessness when I grew frustrated in the pursuit of a goal."
Readers who can stomach Sinclair's descriptions of an abusive upbringing by a sadistic father and his descriptions of prison life will find some bright light in this dark tale. Angola was "a world of racial strife and hatred; homosexual rape and slavery; protection rackets that provided a way for the strong to live comfortably at the expense of the weak; and widespread drug trafficking that brought its dealers tremendous profits and its users an escape from the bitter reality of their failed lives." In this dismal environment, Sinclair continued to study, and became a jailhouse lawyer, helping many of the other criminals. He became an editor of the penitentiary's newsmagazine, _The Angolite_, and helped change it from an innocuous newsletter to a serious prison publication with journalistic standards. It won journalism awards and played its part in bringing reforms to Angola. Sinclair continued his life as a whistle-blower, and while it gained him respect, it also led to recriminations from the authorities and continued balking at his parole attempts. When he challenged the corruption within the inmate society, his life was at risk.
He wrote the book with his wife of nineteen years; it is clear he loves her, but it is a mystery why she, a television news reporter, entered into a jailhouse marriage. Nonetheless, they have produced a book that is graphic, powerful, and unforgettable. As Sinclair went through losses within the prison system, he gained empathy about the loss of life he had caused in a punk robbery decades ago. He has seen the worst of humanity as captors and captives, but he also has distinct admiration for some of the exemplars on both sides. He has had decades with no disciplinary write-ups, has served prisoners and prisons with needed reforms, and has seen multiple murderers begin their sentences and end them while he trudges on. His disturbing and inspiring book is a tale of redemption, but the redemption is incomplete. If nothing changes, he will be eligible for release in 2011.
Book Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1853 edition by John Murray, London.
Customer Reviews:
Two Titles Are Essentially the Same Book.......2006-07-10
Well-written and detailed first-hand account by an adventurous British horticulturalist of nineteenth century tea cultivation in China and India. (Note: The two Robert Fortune titles from Elibron Classics, A Journey to the Tea Countries of China, and Two Visits to the Tea Countries of China and the British Tea Plantations in the Himalaya Volume II, are virtually the same works in fascimile with very minor differences in just the first chapter and in the back matter: A Journey... has a few color plates, and Two Visits... has a 1853 bibliography of works published by the original British publisher of these two titles.)
Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1853 edition by John Murray, London.
Average customer rating:
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Ice-bound heights of the Mustagh;: An account of two seasons of pioneer exploration in the Baltistan Himálaya,
Fanny Bullock Workman
Manufacturer: C. Scribner's sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
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Mountain Climbing
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ASIN: B000855A0M |
Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1876 edition by Longmans, Green, and Co., London.
Average customer rating:
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One and Two Halves to K2
Jim Ballard
Manufacturer: BBC Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
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General
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Mountain Climbing
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ASIN: 0563387459 |
Books:
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- Structural Engineering Handbook
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- The American Builder's Companion
- The American Houses of Robert A. M. Stern
- The Architecture Traveler: A Guide to 262 Key Modern American Buildings, Revised Edition
- The British Stable (Studies in British Art)
- The Gothic Cathedral: The Architecture of the Great Church 1130-1530
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