The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher/a Revealing Look into the Life and Work of the Most Astonishing Artist of Our Time

Customer Reviews:

Great book about MC Escher.......2006-12-22

Probably the best book written about dutch graphic artist MC Escher (by Bruno Ernst, an admirer of Escher that would become a close friend). Not only the book contains a great deal of graphic material, but there are also details about Escher's life not known elsewhere. The books covers a great deal about his early life, his travels to Italy in the 1920s, his life there, his exile into Switzerland after the fascists imposed uniforms on his children, his return to the Netherlands right before the Second World War. Remarkably, this artist revered by mathematicians for his representations of different types of symmetry and mathematical concepts, knew little math himself. He was a rather introverted artist, who had an ambivalent opinion about his own work.

The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher/a Revealing Look into the Life and Work of the Most Astonishing Artist of Our Time

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The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher/a Revealing Look into the Life and Work of the Most Astonishing Artist of Our Time

Manufacturer: Parkwest Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0317564765

Book Description

In the early 1930s Henri van Abbe began to dream of building a center in Eindhoven where its people could be introduced to the mysteries of contemporary art--a place where they could enjoy art. In 1936 he realized this dream by donating to the city the Van Abbemuseum, which, at that time, still consisted primarily of artworks purchased and placed on loan by Henri van Abbe himself. Sixty years later, the Stedelijk Van Abbemuseum has grown into one of the most prominent museums for modern art in the world. Through the course of its history, the visionary acquisition policies of its often distinguished directors have given rise to an impressive collection that includes works by modern masters such as Picasso, Braque, Chagall, Kandinsky, El Lissitzky, and Mondrian, as well as by contemporary artists like Douglas Gordon, Pierre Huyghe, Mike Kelley, and Marijke van Warmerdam. This publication of this first reference work on the Van Abbemuseum's collection marks the opening of the museum's new building in January 2003. A lavishly illustrated book, it offers detailed descriptions of the collection, the history of the museum, and its collecting policies. Each chapter examines a theme, such as De Stijl, CoBrA, conceptualism, and minimal art, and considers works from the collection in their historical context. The catalog offers a representative overview of the Van Abbemuseum collection, but also serves as a general introduction to the art of the 20th century. Published in conjunction with Stedelijk Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven.

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"Photography is nothing, it's life that interests me." With his ever-present Leica camera, Henri Cartier-Bresson captured the raw and the sweet, the comic and the profound moments of lives that were lost in the grind or relegated to someone else's memory--the coincidental moment at which a reflection in a puddle of water mimics a poster on a nearby wall or when lovers kiss, oblivious to the not-so-pristine world around them. It is the familiar beauty and cruelty of the day-to-day that is so engaging in his photographs: two cosmopolitan woman chat nonchalantly while surrounded by empty lettuce crates; mourners at a funeral stare directly into the camera; postwar Paris awakens in the fog. Cartier-Bresson was the master of the "decisive moment," that fleeting instant for which a picture really is worth a thousand words, which is the essence of photojournalism. In no place is this more exemplified than in his images of Paris.

Cartier-Bresson personally selected the more than 130 black-and-white photographs of Paris for this publication. With photographs taken over a period of 50 years, the work is beautifully and generously printed in duotone. The accompanying essays, both short and unobtrusive, are also familiar and personal. One essayist captures the essence of Cartier-Bresson's camera work: "When life calls, he is always there, to assist, or to admire; to rebel, or to say no to exploiters and imposters, and to all those who demean its value." --Manine Golden

Customer Reviews:

My Favorite HCB Book.......2007-04-17

I have many of Cartier-Bresson's books, but this is the one I find myself drawn to.

Time and again I thumb its pages and find something in the photographs that I never before noticed.

This isn't some book full of "pretty" pictures in the conventional sense. One has to look at each picture to understand what inspired HCB to capture it.

I have a few favorites photos from this book, but those that stand out in my mind are of the picnic by the Marne and of the little boy carrying two large bottles of wine.

The Marne photo is so well layed out that, if one didn't know better, it would seem staged. That simply wasn't Cartier-Bresson's way. Although their faces are not seen, I "know" what each of the people look like.

The opposite is true of the little boy. His face is there for all to see and interpret. What is he thinking? Is he happy? Is he proud to be showing off for the little girls in the background?

Many of HCB's photos force us to read his mind and the minds of his subjects. These seemingly impromptu snapshots not only depict what HCB saw, but also depict it geometrically.

To someone like myself who has dabbled in "street photography", HCB epitomizes the genre.

Highly recommended.......2005-03-21

This book is one of two Henri's books I have and the best one. The book to go through again and again. Then go shoot some pictures and go through it again. You'll be surprized how many fresh impressions you'll get every time. Very inspiring book. Highly recommended for practicing fotographers.

Amazing!.......2003-01-24

As my favourite photographer, Cartier-Bresson has some kind of impayable discernment. His gallery of Paris is his magnum opus. His Leica, his 50mm lens, his mysterious face... all made him a monumental legend. I bought this gallery (hardcover) in 1995 for the price of $US 50 in Hong Kong. What are you waiting for? Just click it and buy it immediately, you will never regret buying this book.

Amazing!.......2003-01-24

Henri Cartier-Bresson: A Propos De Paris

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Henri Cartier-Bresson: A Propos De Paris
Henri Cartier-Bresson , Vera Feyder , and Andre Pieyre De Mandiargues
Manufacturer: Little Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Collections, Catalogues & Exhibitions | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Photo Essays | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Artists, A-Z | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0821220640

Book Description

Since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, sustainability has emerged as an overarching policy goal in the OECD Secretariat and in its Member countries. Real progress depends on the integration of environmental and social goals with economic ones. This publication provides an overview and analysis of trends and identifies policy gaps and trade-offs that have been encountered and points to future options. The authors document positive trends which have emerged signalling greater sustainability, as well as areas where progress has proved more elusive. While the main focus is on the OECD region, expanding linkages - among all countries and regions - form an important part of the story. The coverage of this volume reflects OECD's divers subject matter expertise and some of the interdisciplinary synergies that the Organization can generate. Part I of this two part volume concentrates on socio-economic issues, including the integration of economic and the environment changing production and consumption patterns assessing environmental performance development cooperation and the evolution of aid agencies since Rio. Part II takes an in-depth look at nine sectoral issues including energy, transport, agriculture, toxic chemicals, climate change, nuclear energy, urbanization, biotechnology, and education.

Book Description

Three issues shape the current debate on asset management: the restructuring of the management process to integrate new investment products, the necessity to reform pension schemes, and the achievement of a globally coordinated regulatory framework. These challenging tasks benefit from objective guidance by scientifically substantiated asset management standards. The current discussion's main focus on governance issues matches the established structural components of the asset management standards systematic classification. Numerous innovations called for a nearly complete revision. Main topics are now: Enhancement of the regulatory framework and co-ordination between the US and the EU and among EU members. Securing sustainable funding for retirement provisions after the dot.com bubble and the ongoing debate on reforming PAYG schemes. As a consequence the new edition offers again a reliable source of information on the major issues in asset management.

Banking, Capital Markets and Corporate Governance

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Banking, Capital Markets and Corporate Governance

Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Banks & Banking | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | International | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Banking, Capital Markets and Corporate Governance explores the fragility of the banking system, corporate governance, and the increasing securitization of corporate finance. The contributors address the following issues: The impact of banking during a crisis in providing an incentive for the managers of failing banks to restructure their assets; the way in which economic and legal institutions can control the management of banks and firms; and the effects of increases in the securitization of corporate finance and the amount of financial innovation.

Corporate governance in transition economies.: An article from: Finance & Development

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Corporate governance in transition economies.: An article from: Finance & Development
Masahiko Aoki , and Hyung-Ki Kim
Manufacturer: International Monetary Fund
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Finance & Development, published by International Monetary Fund on September 1, 1995. The length of the article is 2522 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the supplier: It was widely assumed that the transition from a socially planned economy to a market economy can be readily achieved by privatizing state-owned enterprises combined with introducing an equity market. However, experience shows that the privatization process results in strong insider control which, in turn, blocks the development of an equity market. It is therefore necessary for cash-starved transition economies to strive to develop a workable system of corporate governance. The case of Japan after the Second World War shows how this can de done. Postwar Japan addressed the problem by using banks to monitor enterprise performance in transition in a way compatible with insider control. In the same way, modern-day transition economies will benefit from the establishment of a transition system that provides external financing and a governance structure suitable for all enterprises.

Citation Details
Title: Corporate governance in transition economies.
Author: Masahiko Aoki
Publication: Finance & Development (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 1995
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Volume: v32 Issue: n3 Page: p20(3)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Financial Sector Governance: The Roles of the Public and Private Sectors (World Bank/Imf/Brookings Emerging Markets Series)

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Financial Sector Governance: The Roles of the Public and Private Sectors (World Bank/Imf/Brookings Emerging Markets Series)

Manufacturer: Brookings Institution Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Macroeconomics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Public Finance | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Debt & Deficits | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Banks & Banking | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 081575289X

Book Description

A financial system is only as strong as the governing practices and institutions of its participants. The challenge to build efficient and accountable financial institutions that promote confidence is a problem that financial sector executives and policymakers confront together. In this context, Financial Sector Governance takes a clinical approach to governance challenges in emerging and developed markets in each industry: capital markets, private banks, state owned banks, asset management companies, public pension funds, and mutual funds. It also explores the linkages between public and private sector governance, and the policy implications for strengthening both sides.

Financial Sector Governance is a product of the Financial Markets and Development conference organized by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Brookings Institution. The conference was the fourth in an annual series of meetings studying financial markets and development. This program draws together senior policymakers from the public and private financial sectors of emerging and developed markets to exchange complementary perspectives on policy challenges and contribute to an expanding dialogue on key policy concerns.

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The Japanese banking crisis of the 1990s: Sources and lessons (IMF working paper)
Akihiro Kanaya
Manufacturer: International Monetary Fund, Monetary and Exchange Affairs Dept
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Banks & Banking | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006RBMV8

Book Description

Designed to prepare readers for employment in today's office environment, the principles and techniques presented in this book provide readers with the essential skills they need to understand basic office procedures, enhance their professional value, and manage their jobs with greater confidence and less frustration. Readers become aware that each office worker is a communication link: in person, over the telephone, via computer, and in writing. The authors provide easy-to-read guidelines for successfully negotiating the working environment, processing information, working with the office team and preparing for your future. For office professionals.

Procedures for Administrative Support in the Automated Office

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Procedures for Administrative Support in the Automated Office

Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0137241623

Procedures For Administrative Support In The Automated Office (3rd Edition)

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Procedures For Administrative Support In The Automated Office (3rd Edition)
Rita C. Kutie , and Joan Rhodes
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Textbook Binding

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Secretarial Aids & Training | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Secretarial Aids & Training | Business Skills | Reference | Subjects | Books

Shorthand | Business Skills | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Finance | New & Used Textbooks | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0137164572

Book Description

M->CREATED

PROCEDURES FOR THE AUTOMATED OFFICE WITH FLOPPY DISK

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PROCEDURES FOR THE AUTOMATED OFFICE WITH FLOPPY DISK

Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H2G7S0

Secretarial Procedures for the Automated Office

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Secretarial Procedures for the Automated Office
Lucy Mae Jennings , and Lauralee Kilgour
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0137984715

Secretarial Procedures: Office Administration and Automated Systems

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Secretarial Procedures: Office Administration and Automated Systems
Emmett N. McFarland
Manufacturer: Reston Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Shorthand | Business Skills | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0835969576

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Sm Procedures Automated Office
BURTON
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0136186793

ADP modernization : IRS' Automated Examination System, troubled past, uncertain future : report to the chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight, Committee on ... Representatives (SuDoc GA 1.13:IMTEC-89-54)

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ADP modernization : IRS' Automated Examination System, troubled past, uncertain future : report to the chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight, Committee on ... Representatives (SuDoc GA 1.13:IMTEC-89-54)
U.S. General Accounting Office
Manufacturer: The Office
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B000106TYA

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Procedures for Administrative Support in the Automated Office
Joan L. Rhodes Rita C. Kutie
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OIYNNS

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Procedures for the Automated Office
Sharon, Shelton, Nelda Burton
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OIMFEM

Book Description

In the spring of 2000, Lori Gottlieb was lured away from Stanford Medical School to become editor-in-chief of Kibu.com, a high-profile Silicon Valley startup dubbed at various times in the make-it-up-as-you-go-along Internet Zeitgeist as anything from a "digital lifestyle brand" to "Yahoo! for Gen Y, with an estrogen slant." But after her comically unceremonious "unhiring" three months later, upon the CEO's return from her elopement in Bali, Gottlieb published an exposé in The Industry Standard. Her essay inspired hundreds of emails in response, including one from Jesse Jacobs, then the head of content for IFILM.com, the Net's leading online film site.

They clicked, so to speak, and embarked on a journey to produce a very personal collective memoir of the New Economy. The result is a one-of-a-kind backstage pass to a world of extremes: brilliance and inanity, exhilaration and desperation, and of course, money (real and imagined). Weaving together Gottlieb's experiences at Kibu with those of nearly 100 participants-from media icon Kurt Andersen to popular Bay-area author Po Bronson to Public Enemy rapper Chuck D, Gottlieb and Jacobs present an oral history of a time that is now imprinted, for better or worse, on our collective psyche. Featuring a richly engaging and incisive tapestry of voices from the front lines-venture capitalists and engineers, receptionists and lawyers, advertising executives and CEOs, party planners and pundits, media moguls and MBAs-Inside the Cult of Kibu is much more than an account of life in an alternate universe. It's a unique reflection of what happens when business, technology, and popular culture combine and ignite in a spectacular display.

Customer Reviews:

Self-involved tripe.......2005-08-08

Ms. Gottlieb has suceeded only in writing a book that reveals more about the self-centered, whiny author than about the downfall of the company itself. If she was indeed a "typical" employee, then it's quite clear what ONE of the major problems was with the company.

It's a shame too, because the story of the "dot com bust" is actually worthy of a well-researched dispassionate analysis. This is not it. It reads more like the rantings of a self-involved drama queen than the writings of an author with anything meaningful to say.

Thin, Poorly Assembled, Unentertaining to Read.......2004-04-28

If there is a compelling story in the "millennial gold rush," these authors haven't found it. Lori's story about her experiences at Kibu is thin, so she and Jesse Jacobs have bolstered it with lots of interviews with other dot-com veterans about such topics as "the parties" or "the lingo." None of it is well-organized, the players are hard to keep track of, and it's very hard in general to care about these greedy, self-centered people.

Lori leaves medical school for a job at Kibu because, as she freely admits, she's hoping to make millions off company stock. That's the motivation of virtually everyone in the book -- though a few occasionally profess some passion for the work, everybody's generally interested in looking important, going to swanky parties, and quickly getting rich. The interviews with various other dot-commers seem to be transcribed without editing -- they're full of "and then I was like...and then she was like" - type language that's annoying and sometimes impenetrable. The choppy assembly of the interviews doesn't cohere well as a whole, and some of what's presented is contradictory (one person will swear funding for Internet startups was ridiculously easy to come by, then another will say that is just a myth). The authors were apparently unable to get any really successful (read: really interesting) Internet veterans to contribute to the book. Though she is sometimes self-deprecating, Lori herself comes off as trying too hard to be hip, and the fact that she got fired before the company folded makes a reader wonder if she's just bitter, and that's the source of some of the unflattering portrayals of everyone else she worked with.

This book was written in only five months, and the haste shows. There are some amusing anecdotes here and there, but as a whole it's a real waste of time.

Uninformative and Unimaginative.......2003-10-28

The Cult of Kibu is a slow painful read about the bygone times of the internet craze. The authors go through a pianfully boring and unfunny recollection of a world that is clearly something they are not familiar with. Having experienced the rush and been part of an internet company I would recommend "Starving to Death on 200 million" - it is a much more accurate and entertaining account of this time period....

Entertaining but pretentious.......2003-08-25

... The book is mostly just a collection of anecdotes from dot.com dweebs. Some are very funny and insightful.

However, most of the book is basically the same pretentious self-important name-dropping and glad-handing that that defined the whole dot.com era. Many of the anecdotes are pretentious "remember whens" from people with weapons-grade arrogance. Its funny to listen to self-important 30-somethings bash self-important 20-somethings, as if the 30-somethings, because they worked at Wendy's after college, somehow have this deep well of wisdom the 20-somethings don't. In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man will be king.

I also became a bit tired of reading sob stories from individuals who obviously live lives of extreme privilege bemoan the burden of managing morons and chaos. When I hear these well-to-do ex-dot.commers whine about mismanagement and stupidity its hard to have any sympathy for them. They never had to really suffer or work; they just rode the wave and didn't win.

Okay, I am being a bit harsh. And my reaction is really why I gave this book 3 starts. As pretentious, preening, and self-important as this book is - it does a pretty good job of capturing exactly why the dot.com era was such a joke.

This isn't a bad book, or a great book. It's interesting, its a quick read, and its got some good points. Just be prepared to wade through the pretentious BS.

Entertaining, but ..........2002-10-15

Let's start with the good stuff: "Inside the Cult of Kibu" is an entertaining tour through the rise and fall of dot-com mania, charting the web's (by now) oft-told tale of enthusiasm, hubris, willful blindness, greed and ultimate downfall... There's much more that could be said about the rise and fall of the dotcoms - the book virtually ignores the B2B story and some of the craziest moments of the era - office landlords demanding friends-and-family stock as a perverse kind of "key money" to secure office space! Perhaps only Tom Wolfe could do justice to it all. So ... it's an OK read, and a fast one, but don't put down any major projects to pick this one up.

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