The Botanical Art of William T. Cooper by Wendy Cooper

$60.00 AUD

$65.00 (7% off)

Category: Art

William T. Cooper was one of the world's most esteemed bird painters. In his paintings, birds nibble at plump red berries, they rest on twisted vines and branches covered with lichen, and they clutch forest fruits and leaves in their claws. These botanical details, the backdrops to his bird portraits, a re the subject of this lavishly illustrated book written by his botanist wife, Wendy Cooper. For the bird lover, Bill's lush, full-colour paintings, many from private collections, are reproduced here, alongside Wendy's notes and Bill's diary entries about bird feeding habits. Wendy describes seeing King Parrots in the wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest at their home in Bungwahl, New South Wales, feeding on the juicy black berries of the Narrow-leaved Palm Lily (Cordyline stricta). The parrots were extracting the seeds and dropping the flesh. Over the course of a decade, Bill observed activity around an Umbrella Tree in their garden: 'Watched a female coloured riflebird feeding on the flowers of a Schefflera on the driveway. I'm convinced it was taking nectar as they do on the Thunbergia in the garden. It went from open flower to open flower'. For the nature lover, Wendy has included detailed botanical descriptions of each plant and personal notes about where a particular specimen was found. She takes the reader from rainforest to dry country, from swamps and beach forest to the jungles north of Australia. We learn that Maiden's Blush trees are forest giants with wonderful high-arching plank buttresses; that Bill had to shoot down a small stem from high up in the forest canopy to capture a fruit specimen; and that the tree's scientific name, Sloanea australis, honours physician, naturalist and collector Hans Sloane, whose private collection became the founding collection of the British Museum. Alongside Wendy's description is Bill's sketch of a Maiden's Blush buttress and a finished full-colour acrylic painting of Regent Bowerbirds perched on the tree's branches. For the budding illustrator or artist, Cooper's annotated sketches, studies and paintings of plants, as well as many of his finished bird illustrations, give a unique insight into his artistic process. The Botanical Art of William T. Cooper shows the flora of Australia and beyond in all its messy, imperfect glory. Readers will gain a new appreciation of Bill's works. They will see the thick mossy branches and veiny withered leaves of a Sovereignwood tree (Terminalia sericocarpa) even before the black and red Palm Cockatoos in a double-spread oil painting; note the way a bird clutches and nibbles at a large green gumnut on a Marri tree (Corymbia calophylla) in a colour plate of two Red-capped Parrots. This is a beautiful book to dip into and treasure. For those who purchased An Eye for Nature: The Life and Art of William T. Cooper, this will make an equally valuable addition to your library. William T. Cooper was one of the world's most esteemed bird painters. In his paintings, birds nibble at plump red berries, they rest on twisted vines and branches covered with lichen, and they clutch forest fruits and leaves in their claws. These botanical details, the backdrops to his bird portraits, are the subject of this lavishly illustrated book written by his botanist wife, Wendy Cooper. For the bird lover, Bill's lush, full-colour paintings, many from private collections, are reproduced here, alongside Wendy's notes and Bill's diary entries about bird feeding habits. Wendy describes seeing King Parrots in the wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest at their home in Bungwahl, New South Wales, feeding on the juicy black berries of the Narrow-leaved Palm Lily (Cordyline stricta). The parrots were extracting the seeds and dropping the flesh. Over the course of a decade, Bill observed activity around an Umbrella Tree in their garden: 'Watched a female coloured riflebird feeding on the flowers of a Schefflera on the driveway. I'm convinced it was taking nectar as they do on the Thunbergia in the garden. It went from open flower to open flower'. For the nature lover, Wendy has included detailed botanical descriptions of each plant and personal notes about where a particular specimen was found. She takes the reader from rainforest to dry country, from swamps and beach forest to the jungles north of Australia. We learn that Maiden's Blush trees are forest giants with wonderful high-arching plank buttresses; that Bill had to shoot down a small stem from high up in the forest canopy to capture a fruit specimen; and that the tree's scientific name, Sloanea australis, honours physician, naturalist and collector Hans Sloane, whose private collection became the founding collection of the British Museum. Alongside Wendy's description is Bill's sketch of a Maiden's Blush buttress and a finished full-colour acrylic painting of Regent Bowerbirds perched on the tree's branches. For the budding illustrator or artist, Cooper's annotated sketches, studies and paintings of plants, as well as many of his finished bird illustrations, give a unique insight into his artistic process. The Botanical Art of William T. Cooper shows the flora of Australia and beyond in all its messy, imperfect glory. Readers will gain a new appreciation of Bill's works. They will see the thick mossy branches and veiny withered leaves of a Sovereignwood tree (Terminalia sericocarpa) even before the black and red Palm Cockatoos in a double-spread oil painting; note the way a bird clutches and nibbles at a large green gumnut on a Marri tree (Corymbia calophylla) in a colour plate of two Red-capped Parrots. This is a beautiful book to dip into and treasure. For those who purchased An Eye for Nature: The Life and Art of William T. Cooper, this will make an equally valuable addition to your library.   ...Show more

A Dog's Guide to Art by Joy Fitzsimmons

$19.99 AUD

Category: Art

A light-hearted look at art through canine eyes. Join dachshunds Ned and Henry for an energetic romp through the world of art, encountering famous paintings and sculptures from a four-legged perspective. Watch them lead their gang of hounds - including schnauzers, jack russells, greyhounds, border terr iers and labradors - on an eventful trip through the gallery, taking in modernist masterpieces and much-loved Old Masters. On their way they encounter Whistler's Mother, Picasso's The Dream, Matisse's The Fall of Icarus, Magritte's Lab and a Dachshund Pollock - all culminating in a doggy version of Campbell's Soup, Warhol's Squirrel Soup for dogs! Illustrator Joy FitzSimmons shows us beloved works of art playfully re-imagined by man's best friend. From Rousseau to Riley, Hokusai to Hockney, this canine homage takes us across the globe from Tate to the Prado to MoMA, to the British Museum and beyond. ...Show more

Son of the Brush by Tim Olsen

$34.99 AUD

Category: Art

A frank and revealing memoir by the son of Australia's greatest living painter. Tim Olsen is the son of arguably Australia's most famous living painter, John Olsen. Son of the Brush is his fascinating, candid memoir of what it was like to grow up in the shadow of artistic genius, with all its wonder, ex citement and bitter disappointments. Tim's childhood was dominated by his father's work, travelling to Europe and to communities around Australia as John sought inspiration and artistic fellowship. Wine, food, conversation and the emerging sexual freedom of the 1960s wove a pattern of life for the family. It was both the best and worst of childhoods, filled with vibrancy and stimulation, yet fraught with anxiety and eventual sadness as John separated from Tim's mother and moved away from the family. Yet the course of Tim's life had been set by the experiences of his childhood, and by the passion for art he got from both his father and his mother (an acclaimed painter in her own right). He has made his life about art as well, though following a different path from his parents. Today Tim is one of Australia's most respected art dealers, with a knowledge of art and artists forged from what is literally a lifetime of close experience. Son of the Brush is a memoir about living in the shadow of your father, and what it takes to chart your own course in life, but it is also about the wider world of art, artists and the joy,excitement and sacrifices of the creative life. ...Show more

: Over 100 Tasks to Get Your Head Into a Creative Space by Gemma Lawrence

$35.00 AUD

Category: Art

Creative Block is a book set out to ruffle feathers, get out of ruts and start those juices flowing. Focussing on creative process and theory, it is filled with over 100 tasks to get your head into a conceptual and creative space, encouraging experimentation and playfulness in art.Ideal for artists, ind ustry creatives and individuals who simply want to delve deeper into their own creativity. This book helps to improve your process and technique when approaching art, in all its forms. Intriguing, fun and challenging, Creative Block will have you distorting, abstracting, morphing, reinventing and, above all, leaving the box behind. ...Show more

Ken Done by Amber Creswell Bell with Ken Done

$80.00 AUD

Category: Art

Ken Done: Art Design Life documents Done's expansive art and design practice over four decades and provides a fascinating insight into the artist and his oeuvre. The book features both early and lesser-known works, as well as the iconic paintings of Sydney Harbour, the Outback and the reef. It opens an extensive archive, providing readers in-depth access to the catalogue of fashion and homewares, and the designs that came to define an era.   ...Show more

A Century of Colour in Design by HARRISON DAVID

$39.99 AUD

Category: Art

Colour has an enormous impact on our connection with an object. This curated anthology of furniture, fabric, lights and decorative objects shows how colour has defined key designs over the last century. A Century of Colour in Design delivers an incisive, shortform history of the role that colour has pla yed in product design and its increasing significance in the design process. Design writer David Harrison profiles key designers and their work with colour, including: Josef and Anni Albers, Alexander Girard, Verner Panton, Alessandro Mendini, Hella Jongerius, Doshi Levien (Nipa Doshi & Jonathan Levien), Scholten & Baijings (Stefan Scholten & Carole Baijings), Bethan Laura Wood and Australian top talent Adam Goodrum. ...Show more

Djalkiri - Yolngu Art, Collaborations and Collections by Rebecca J. Conway

$49.95 AUD

Category: Art

Djalkiri are footprints, ancestral imprints on the landscape that provide the Yolŋu people of eastern Arnhem Land with their spiritual foundations.This book explores Yolŋu art and material culture through the voices of those who have been involved with Yolŋu collections over time. With contributions fro m Yolŋu elders and artists, art historian and museum curators, it describes how communities and museums have worked together in the past, how the relationship has changed, and how Yolŋu philosophies can guide how we engage with Yolŋu art. Some of the collections featured here were created almost 100 years ago and have rarely been on public display. In Djalkiri, members of the Milingimbi/Yurrwi Island, Ramingining and Yirrkala communities offer insight into their historical, contemporary, and deeper time meanings.Djalkiri is being published in conjunction with a landmark exhibition of Yolŋu art and culture at the new Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney, which will open in November 2020. ...Show more

Creative Painting & Beyond: Inspiring Tips, Techniques, and Ideas for Creating Whimsical Art in Acrylic, Watercolor, Gold Leaf, and More by Alix Adams

$16.95 AUD

Category: Art | Series: Creative... and Beyond Ser.

Full of inspiration, easy instruction, gorgeous artwork, and myriad ideas for artists to explore, Creative Painting & Beyond is sure to bring out the artist in everyone. Learn how to create beautiful and whimsical artwork with Creative Painting & Beyond, a vibrant, interactive book packed with c reative prompts, tips, exercises, and engaging step-by-step projects. From canvas artwork and illustrated stationery to hand-stamped tea towels and intricate marbled paper, crafters will enjoy a variety of simple, fun, and colorful projects that make creative painting approachable for artists of any skill level. Leading the charge are several talented artists, who encourage artistic development through a series of painting prompts and exercises designed to get the creative juices flowing and inspire each reader's journey into painting with multiple mediums, including gold leaf and liquid gilding, acrylic, watercolor, and gouache. Artists will learn how to work with these fun mediums to create stationery, gifts, art projects, home decor, and more by following along with the simple step-by-step instructions, accompanied by beautiful full-color photographs of the process and finished. Blank pages and interactive prompts invite readers to brainstorm, sketch, and collect inspiration for their own projects. Full of inspiration, easy instruction, gorgeous artwork, and myriad ideas for artists to explore, Creative Painting & Beyond is sure to bring out the artist in everyone. ...Show more

Drawing Is Easy - A Step-By-Step Guide by Susie Hodge

$12.99 AUD

Category: Art

Fashion - Treasures of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston by Allison Taylor

$32.99 AUD

Category: Art

Drawing from the extensive Textile and Fashion Arts Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, this miniature history of European and American fashion features some 275 garments, accessories, and related works of art from the seventeenth century to the present.  Dress historian Allison Taylor introduces eac h new era with a concise overview of the period's fashionable styles and silhouettes, as well as the underlying historical and cultural influences. This chic Tiny Folio(tm) is the perfect gift for fashionistas and fashion historians alike.   ...Show more

The Mirror and the Palette by Jennifer Higgie

$39.99 AUD

Category: Art

Her story weaves in and out of time and place. She's Frida Kahlo, Loïs Mailou Jones and Amrita Sher-Gil en route to Mexico City, Paris or Bombay. She's Suzanne Valadon and Gwen John, craving city lights, the sea and solitude; she's Artemisia Gentileschi striding through the streets of Naples and Paula M odersohn-Becker in Worpswede. She's haunting museums in her paint-stained dress, scrutinising how El Greco or Titian or Van Dyck or Cézanne solved the problems that she too is facing. She's railing against her corsets, her chaperones, her husband and her brothers; she's hammering on doors, dreaming in her bedroom, working day and night in her studio. Despite the immense hurdles that have been placed in her way, she sits at her easel, picks up a mirror and paints a self-portrait because, as a subject, she is always available. In The Mirror and the Palette, Jennifer Higgie introduces us to a cross-section of women artists who embody the fact that there is more than one way to understand our planet, more than one way to live in it and more than one way to make art about it. Spanning 500 years, biography and cultural history intertwine in a narrative packed with tales of rebellion, adventure, revolution, travel and tragedy enacted by women who turned their back on convention and lived lives of great resilience, creativity and bravery. ...Show more

Look at This If You Love Great Art - 100 Essential Artworks That Really Matter by Chloë Ashby

$27.99 AUD

Category: Art | Series: If You Love Ser.

Look At This If You Love Great Art is a must read for anyone with a passion for exceptional art. Featuring 100 of the best artworks ever produced, inside is a collection of insightful summaries on just what it is that makes each one so vital. Art writer Chlo Ashby talks you through the pieces that reson ate with her, revealing the fascinating stories behind them and offering her considered take on why each work should be regarded as a pinnacle of artistic endeavour. With entries curated to offer a unique juxtaposition of styles, mediums and schools of art, expect a contemporary take on classic artworks, where titans of art history cross paths with under-appreciated examples from outside the traditional canon, and where rebellious visionaries blaze trails that still influence today's cutting-edge artists. Covering all the most important genres of art -Abstraction, Pop Art, Surrealism, Renaissance art, Impressionism and more - this engaging summary only deals with artworks that really matter and the reasons why you have to see them. ...Show more