On Weathering: The Life of Buildings in Time

Book Description

On Weathering illustrates the complex nature of the architectural project by taking into account its temporality, linking technical problems of maintenance and decay with a focused consideration of their philosophical and ethical implications.

In a clear and direct account supplemented by many photographs commissioned for this book, Mostafavi and Leatherbarrow examine buildings and other projects from Alberti to Le Corbusier to show that the continual refinishing of the building by natural forces adds to, rather than detracts from, architectural meaning. Their central discovery, that weathering makes the "final" state of the construction necessarily indefinite, challenges the conventional notion of a building's completeness.

By recognizing the inherent uncertainty and inevitability of weathering and by viewing the concept of weathering as a continuation of the building process rather than as a force antagonistic to it, the authors offer alternative readings of historical constructions and potential beginnings for new architectural projects.

Mohsen Mostafavi is Associate Professor of Architecture and Director of the Master of Architecture I Program at the Graduate School of Design, Harvard University. David Leatherbarrow is Chairman of the Department of Architecture and of the Program in Urban Design at the Graduate School of Fine Arts, University of Pennsylvania.

Customer Reviews:

A Fresh New Approach on Materiality.......2004-07-12

This book provides a fresh new approach on how architects and/or designers should view the use of materials. The ingeneous approach on how the natural weathering process of materials can be a phenomenon that may enrich a material's physical property, provides a great insightful approach for a 'responsible' use of materials in architecture. This book is a MUST read for all those architecture students that have a great interest in materials.

Book Description

The simplest of sketches can be a work of art that ultimately leads to a better understanding of drawing and painting. This progressive course provides an inspirational route from sketching with colored pencils right through pastels and inks to paint. The author demonstrates that sketching should not be confined to the traditional black lead pencils and shows how to venture into other media. From a simple still-life study to on-the-spot sketches, start-to-finish demonstrations covering a wide-ranging base of subjects provide the inspiration to get started in painting or to further develop existing skills. Enthusiastic text, coupled with a no-nonsense approach presented in unique and detailed Artstrips, guides artists through the various techniques and media. This is just what everyone needs to progress and build confidence in drawing and painting.

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The Sketch in Color
Robert S. Oliver
Manufacturer: Van Nostrand Reinhold
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Drawing | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0442272057

Sketches in Color: Seven Pieces for Piano

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Sketches in Color: Seven Pieces for Piano

Manufacturer: Hal Leonard Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Songbooks | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0793506972

Book Description

Seven songs arranged for piano by this late modern era classical composer: Black and White * Bright Orange * Crimson * Grey * Pink * Purple * Shades of Blue.

1877: Plains Indian Sketch Books of Zo-Tom & Howling Wolf

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1877: Plains Indian Sketch Books of Zo-Tom & Howling Wolf
Mrs. Thomas (Dorothy Dunn, Intro) Curtain
Manufacturer: Northland Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000VWHLDQ

Art Techniques for Sketch & Color (Art Techniques from Pencil to Paint)

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Art Techniques for Sketch & Color (Art Techniques from Pencil to Paint)
Paul Taggart
Manufacturer: Sterling
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 140270240X

Book Description

From a simple still-life study to on-the-spot sketches, start-to-finish demonstrations covering a wide-ranging base of subjects provide the inspiration to get started in painting or to further develop existing skills. Enthusiastic text, coupled with a no-nonsense approach presented in unique and detailed “Artstrips,” guide artists through the various techniques and media. This is just what everyone needs to progress and build confidence in drawing and painting.

Beyond the Color Line: Pan-Africanist Disputations : Selected Sketches, Letters, Papers and Reviews

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Beyond the Color Line: Pan-Africanist Disputations : Selected Sketches, Letters, Papers and Reviews
K. K. Prah
Manufacturer: Africa World Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

African Studies | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

Political | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Black Writers: A Selection of Sketches from Contemporary Authors (Black Writers)

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Black Writers: A Selection of Sketches from Contemporary Authors (Black Writers)

Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0810327724

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Cacti and Succulents
Walther (Kemp, E. E. Translated and Revised) Haage
Manufacturer: Studio Vista
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0289276527

Caleb West Master Diver [Vol. 6 of The novels, Stories and Sketches of F. Hopkinson Smith [The Works of F. Hopkinson Smith [spine title]]

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Caleb West Master Diver [Vol. 6 of The novels, Stories and Sketches of F. Hopkinson Smith [The Works of F. Hopkinson Smith [spine title]]
F. Hopkinson Smith
Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000K6ZOSC

Carnack The Life-Bringer the story of a Dawn Man Told by Himself ( Life Bringer )

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Carnack The Life-Bringer the story of a Dawn Man Told by Himself ( Life Bringer )
with foreword Dr. Alfred V. Kidder, illustrations in Color by Armstrong Sperry, Pictolith Sketches Olive Otis, colored frontispiece Interpreted by Oliver Marble Gale
Manufacturer: Wm. H. Wise
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000JD5GH0

Book Description

The cowboy of the Wild West has been forced to adapt his life to cope with the inevitable advances of a new millennium. The dramatic images in this book show a way of life on the verge of disappearing.

Customer Reviews:

An English photographer visits the American West . . ........2004-08-29

The point of view of English photographer, Jon Nicholson, is that the traditional cowboy is being crowded out by the 21st century because urban sprawl, interstates, drought, environmentalists, and intrusive government are making ranching a thing of the past. So it's interesting to see what this Englishman sees in the viewfinder of his camera. In general, the 250+ color and sepia-tinted photographs in this collection don't really bear out his thesis. What we see is hard-working men and women with cattle, horses, and open countryside, much the same as it's all been for decades. This world may be vanishing, but it's hard to tell that from the photographs.

Nicholson visited the Texas Panhandle, New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Wyoming, as well as a ranching state we don't normally think of - Hawaii. There are pictures of branding, riding, herding, feeding cattle, rodeoing, playing pool, playing music, boot making, sitting by the campfire, eating chow, and standing around talking or just waiting. Most of the pictures are what you'd expect. But there are exceptions . . .

You pretty rarely see a cowboy's tan lines, but Nicholson has caught them in a shot of a rancher who's cooling off by sitting in a stock tank. In a winter picture, the same man is seen fully dressed, standing in snow and chopping ice from a water trough. A picture taken from behind a herd of cows and calves moving into the distance gives an idea of what it was like on an old-time cattle drive day after dusty, scorching day across the open range.

A few photographs of distance capture the vastness of the Western landscape: heavy clouds hanging over the upright poles at each side of a double wooden gate, a windmill against a far-off ridge, jagged lightning striking from storm clouds along a flat, straight paved road aimed straight at a vanishing point on a flat horizon. Meanwhile, in Amarillo, the stockyards have the same effect, stretching out flat in all directions.

There are a few indications that times are changing. In Arizona, hand-lettered signs advertise a ranch for sale. A Wyoming rancher stands in a feedlot in a black cowboy hat while his 18-year-old son sits on the tailgate of a Dodge 4x4, wearing boots and a Bulls ball cap. A cowboy sits at a table drinking a longneck bottle of light beer. In another shot, a pickup with a stock rack heads off into endless, empty rangeland with the horse in back and the rider driving.

There's a lot to look at and enjoy in these pictures, whether you think the world of cowboys is vanishing or not, and I'm happy to recommend it.

cowboys: a vanishing world.......2002-01-24

This book goes beyond the surface of the hollywood myth and the media spin in order to profile images of cowboys at work and at play. His images are modern but show the timelessness of the occupation of tending cows. I am espically fond of the final image in the book: two buddist monks in red scarlet robes with saffron sashes eating a hamburger. It is not the best image but it does give hope that the cowboy will remain so long as people consume the object of the cowboy's existence. Beef.

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Cowboys: A Vanishing World
Jon Nicholson
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTIWCK

Book Description

This book collects the first solo work by Evan Dorkin, described by the man himself as Star Wars meets It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, with a ska/punk soundtrack and a cheap beer buzz. Featuring the original Eternity Pirate Corp$! issues one through four, plus new pages, pinups, rare art and promo material.

Customer Reviews:

Not the best volume, but still fun........2007-02-24

Yikes! The [...] is a little hard on this book, in my opinion. While it's definitely not as funny or as character-driven as the later volumes, it's still worth reading if you're a Dorkin fan. The second half picks up considerably, and while it's probably not strictly necessary in order to understand/appreciate the later volumes, it's still worth a look.

Substandard Stuff; For Die-Hard Dorkin Fans Only........2002-05-23

I'd read some of Evan Dorkin's Hectic Planet shorts in Dark Horse Presents a few years ago, and was impressed by the touching, funny, relationship-driven stories. So I decided to buy the 3 collected volumes of Hectic Planet. So far it's mostly a dud.....

The first volume revolves around an uninteresting bunch of petty crooks called a "Pirate Corp$", as they fly around space stealing things and making enemies. (The first half of the book is a poor man's Star Wars...) Things start to look up in the second half, as the team gets stuck on a planet, and Dorkin starts to actually develop his characters. Still, I found nothing even remotely interesting about the characters and situations, and, to make matters worse, the book is VERY poorly bound; It almost completely fell apart in the hour and a half it took me to read it.

I'm sure that the later volumes will improve; After all, Dorkin is one of the modern masters of comics. But maybe only Dorkin fanatics should pick this up.....Try Dork! or Milk & Cheese instead.

Book Description

It has long been known that Edith Wharton had an intense love affair around 1908. For years readers assumed that it was with Walter Berry, her friend since youth, until it was revealed that her lover was not Berry, but rather Morton Fullerton, an American living in Paris. Until now little has been known of Morton Fullerton except that he was a Harvard graduate, a Paris correspondent for the Times of London, and a friend of Henry James.

In this unusual detective story, Marion Mainwaring unfolds for her readers her pursuit of Fullerton and of the people, both high and low, who were part of his checkered life in France, America, and England. Her far-flung investigations take her to slums and chateaux, to talks with counts and viscounts, concierges, engineers, sculptors, diplomats, and, in the end, to the astonishing figure of Morton Fullerton.

Talented, intelligent, sophisticated, and ambitious, Fullerton also proved to be egotistical and unscrupulous, a cad and a con man, but his overwhelming personal charm attracted friends and lovers of both sexes. Mysteries of Paris uncovers, one by one, the details of his career as a writer and a spy, his love affairs with Wharton and other women, his close friendship with James, and his relations with Oscar Wilde, George Santayana, Paul Verlaine, Theodore Roosevelt, and many others.

Customer Reviews:

Biography auto and otherwise.......2002-11-26

This is both the story of Elizabeth Wharton's cad of a lover, and the earnest researcher exploited and spurned by the Scholar in the Field, who she won't even deign to name! Hot stuff, to those who care about such things.

The scholar-cad dismissed her earlier cries de coeur as attempts to elicit publicity for this work, but you have to have read the LRB review to know this.

Literary hearts are broken all around. If you understand this for what it is, it's one of the best books ever, but a bit of an objet trouvee, if you know what I mean.

A fascinating life but a tedious book.......2002-07-28

Basicly, this book is an account by Marion Mainwaring about the research she did to write it. She goes to the south of France, she reads some old letters, she talks to some people who knew Morton Fullerton late in life. Etc. etc. Along the way she gives a somewhat confused account of the slanging match she got into with Wharton's official biographer (about how she did all the research for his book but got no credit, blah blah blah). All of it's pretty tiring and you get the feeling that Mainwaring is desperately trying to pad out an already thin book.
Having said that, Fullerton led a fascinating life, something straight out of a Henry James novel. To anyone interested in Edith Wharton or even about expatriate life in early 20th century Europe, this book is a must read.

A great vacation book.......2001-07-05

I greatly enjoyed this book after I realized it was not a quick read of connecting the dots/facts and racing to a conclusion. The joy of this book is that it offers the reader the chance to join Mainwaring as she roams through Paris seeking out the truths of rogue M. Fullerton's life. I loved the descriptions of Paris, the street scenes and the old buildings with their old bureacrats serving as gatekeepers to the dusty stacks of information in the registries of births, deaths and marriages. In her quest for the facts she encounters characters ranging from counts to charwomen and her style, humor and voice make me feel there with her, mulling the facts and planning the next step in the detective work.If you need a vacation from your life, read this book. I now open it to any page and just dive in and quickly become captivated again. Mainwaring is an artist in her impeccable choice of words. Enjoy the process of her quest, indulge yourself and you will find that you will forget about the mundane matters of your life. An instant vacation, what a relief!

The Ultimate Mystery--How This Got Published........2001-06-23

A virtually impossible read, this book pretends to be like Richard Holmes' wonderful "In the Footsteps of A Romantic Biographer" but it most assuredly is NOT. Here, instead of footsteps, we have sink-holes. No sooner does a paragraph begin to entice interest, than it degenerates into incomprehensible ramblings. Rather than learning bit by bit in an engaging way about the wonders of turn of the century Paris and it's denizens--particularly Edith Wharton and her rakish secret lover, we learn only that the would-be biographer is an eccentric (not in a good way) confusing and addle-pated researcher who has no success with delivering the literary goods. A frustrating and disappointing waste of time. Avoid it like the plague!

The Ultimate Mystery--How This Got Published........2001-06-23

Book Description

A warm and engaging memoir of beekeeping. (SEE QUOTE.)

Customer Reviews:

Bees and life.......2004-02-26

I love reading books about someone passionately engaged in something new, and this book is exactly that. Author Rosanne Daryl Thomas tells a tale of becoming a beekeeper almost on a whim, but it goes deeper than that. Clearly, there was something that drew her to the bees. It simply took circumstance to bring it forward. More importantly, she triumphs over the setbacks that occur with an honesty that seems missing in many books today. Reading this story was like listening to her tell it over coffee in her honey-covered kitchen.

Thomas' tales of learning the beekeeping trade from the bottom up are humorous, enlightening and presented in a conversational tone that kept me turning the pages. So much so that I finished the book in 1 day! She also throws in a few lessons about life and love, without being heavy handed or bogging down the story.

Even as someone who knew a little bit about beekeeping, I learned new stuff about the processes involved. For the gardener in me, it is great to learn a little more about how my garden helps bees to survive and thrive. My neighbor has a single hive on top of his garden shed and I can sit in my garden swing, watching their comings and goings. He makes sure we get some honey each year, too. Tasty! Even more so since part of it arose from my garden.

Several of my favorite books are based around the cycle of the year's passage. I think growing up on a farm certainly plays a part in this, but we all instinctively relate to the passing of the seasons in some way.

A HONEY OF A BOOK.......2003-01-29

While most of us give a wide berth to stinging insects, memoirist Roseanne Daryl Thomas cozies up to bees, affectionately calling them "my girls." - quite an about face for one whose prior knowledge of apian life consisted of "They buzzed. They stung. They were yellow."

Following a divorce Ms. Thomas, her then 7-year-old daughter, August, and Ruffy, a geriatric cat, sought new life in a small New England community populated by 3,000 inquisitive souls.

There she met Farmer Tom; farmer being an unlikely sobriquet for a man with clean fingernails and a business card. Another unlikelihood was Ms. Thomas's out-of-nowhere comment that she might like to keep bees. At this, her daughter smiled, and Farmer Tom offered his land.

Smitten with the idea of having a mother who was a bee keeper, August "danced jubilantly about the house, composing beekeeping songs, drawing beekeeping pictures." Not wishing to disappoint her daughter, and just a little enthralled by the idea herself, Ms. Thomas began a task about which she knew "a teaspoonful more than absolutely nothing."

She visited a master beekeeper who introduced her to a hive body or deep super where bees live. Inside the deep super would be wax covered moveable frames where honey is made. . To her chagrin these did not come ready made, but had to be assembled - a daunting task for one who was not sure she owned a hammer. She bought three unassembled hives.

Another necessity was "The Outfit," first of all, gloves, elbow length cotton covered with yellow latex. Gloves did not come in a 7 ½; the smallest size in the white beesuit was a men's 42 regular. Finally, the hat. She was hoping for something in "a pale gold closely woven straw." Instead, she was handed "a hard white plastic pith helmet with ventilation grates at the temples."

There was no time for second thoughts as she had also ordered six living pounds of Italian honeybees. (According to the Bee Master Italian honeybees had the best dispositions). After many bruised fingers, considerable help from a friend, and countless visits to True Value, the hives were ready. Named Har, Jafenhar, and Thridi for the mythic trio who guard Valhalla, they were placed on Farmer Tom's land.

Weeks passed as Ms. Thomas tended her bees, sloshing through the field in Wellingtons bearing Ball jars of sugar water and toting other necessities in a lavender Bergdorf's shopping bag. With each visit she felt a deepening affinity for that spot of earth. Her respect for the natural world grew as she observed a blue heron seeking sustenance, and heavily laden black ants climbing ant mountains.

After a year the author had survived numerous stings and slings of fortune. She harvested her first crop with the observation that she had learned much but not enough.
Readers will find that they have learned much about bee keeping but not enough about Rosanne Daryl Thomas. "Beeing" is a memoir oddly lacking in emotional intimacy. Her marriage is dismissed with several lines, and there is scant reference to personal feelings. As "Motherhood" is found in the subtitle, one wonders what August's response was to the breakup of her home, and moving to a new community. Did Ms. Thomas ever address these issues with her daughter?

Practical matters also prove puzzling. With no apparent income how does one undertake a costly hobby that requires full time attention? Questions remain unanswered.

Nonetheless, "Being" is fluidly penned, at times lyric in descriptions of the changing seasons. And, there are lessons to be learned in this memoir, not the least of which is, "If you want to get honey, you have to be prepared to get stung."

There's no question at all about that.

- Gail Cooke

Completely Charmed by BEEING.......2003-01-14

I love this book!!! It is sweet, funny, touching
and completely charming. (also inspiring: makes you
want to keep bees and appreciate them more.)
This is a "keeper" for the personal favorites library.
It is the gift I want to give my favorite friends and
relatives. The only thing possibly better than reading
this story would be to see Sandra Bullock make this into
a movie!
******Sandra Bullock please make this into a movie...
it is PERFECT for you!!!!!****************************

Honey and Charm.......2002-12-31

What a great read! Thomas breezes us through a year in the life of an unstoppable single mom, as seen through the lens of a novice beekeeper. She braves the vicissitudes of her first year of beekeeping with pathos, humor, intelligence and grace. As she interweaves her care and tending of the bees and their hives with the care and tending of her daughter, herself and their memorable home, I turned page after page with an ever-widening smile. Many thanks to the author for granting me a glimpse into her personal and universal world.

Beeing.......2002-12-07

What a deeply satisfying book, rich in character, witty and warm, reflective without being ponderous, a marvellous read that holds your attention. Recounting her troubles and travails as a novice beekeeper and single mother in a quaint New England town, Rosanne Thomas creates a vivid collection of characters full of quirks yet helpful and kind as she struggles to juggle the challenges of three buzzing hives, a number of unsuitable suitors and the vagaries of nature with the needs of her sensitive, bright young daughter. In the process she paints a panorama of life and death, courage and perseverance with such intelligence, humor and charm and renders the beauty of nature with such deft but delicate strokes that I laughed, spilt a tear, and will never again spread honey on my toast without acknowledging the painstacking labor of love it takes to produce. Beeing offers us by example the gift of true being.

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