20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A different look with an artful eye, January 4, 2010
This review is from: Art Making & Studio Spaces: Unleash Your Inner Artist: An Intimate Look at 31 Creative Work Spaces (Paperback)
We all wait with breathless anticipation for a new Lynne Perrella book and this one was, as always, well worth the wait. Once again Lynne takes a subject that has been written about before in books and magazines, and instead of merely adding more of the same, she turns the dial to a new channel, gives the subject that inimitable Perrella tweak, and produces a volume that stands alone. This is not another "here's how to make your studio - complete with measurements and purchasing instructions", this is a beautiful, intimate, colourful view into the studios of 31 incredibly creative people.
The photography is wonderful and the layout as well - I especially love that on one page you see a shot of a large area of the studio and then there will be an extreme close-up of a small section of the same shot. It's like being in the studio, seeing something you love and then walking over to get a better look. Lynne's writing welcomes you into each space and makes it come alive. You leave feeling a deeper kinship with the artist -not necessarily knowing the dimensions or location of each closet, but definitely knowing a bit more about their creative spirit. A wide spectrum of the arts is covered; mixed-media, photography, quilting, print making and others. Who among us can pass up a chance to peek into an artist's studio?
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An Armchair Tour of Creative Workspaces, December 28, 2009
This review is from: Art Making & Studio Spaces: Unleash Your Inner Artist: An Intimate Look at 31 Creative Work Spaces (Paperback)
I have taken classes from the eight artists featured in this book including the author, Lynne Perrella. But I have been in only two of the studio spaces shown, so before I got her book, I was more than anxious to see what the rest of my instructors' workspaces looked like. I also was curious as well about other artists whose classes I have not taken yet or have heard about in the media.
The "tour" began with the author's studio. As I looked at each artist's spaces through Lynne's and the photographer's eyes, I began to wonder if that my conception/definition of a typical artist's workspace was pretty limited. In this book, the stores and outdoors were considered as extensions of the creative space for some of the artists. One could think of the whole world (including libraries, museums, stores, et al) as one large studio for the creative people.
This book is more like a photo-documentary on the workspaces of 31 artists (one couple counted as two) - twenty-nine artists are residing in this country (USA) and two are in Australia. Lynne's descriptive writings provided personal observations of the space, and also the details on the artists from various fields: quilt making, photography, mixed media, graphic design, landscape architect, book arts, collage, assemblage, sculpture and even antique restoration. I found it interesting that Lynne would include a restorer's workshop as part of this tour - once again, this book challenged me to rethink my preconceived idea on what typically constitutes a "creative" space.
Due to the limitation of any publication, not every nooks and crannies are shown for all of the artists' spaces. Not only that, I know that some of the studios were really not that neat when the photographs were taken. Very few artists would allow anyone to take pictures if their workspaces happened to be very messy, and I appreciate seeing a number of "messy" studios in the book. However, I have been in another one and I can tell you that it is always that neat and organized at all times.
Since there were no artists shown in the photos, I believe that including them in the photos would give us a better sense of the scale and size of their workspace. Some of the studios were not shown as a whole room but as mere glimpses or partial views.
Even though this book was not meant to be used as a reference or DIY book for better organization or creation of a studio space, I was inspired by how these people effectively utilized the limited space to create a truly conducive and supportive environment for their own personal creativity. it is very interesting to notice the various locations of their "laboratories": garage, separate building, basement, backyard and even a barnyard full of farm animals, to name a few.
I would most likely look up other books for more practical ideas on storage or organizations. However, I would go to Lynne's book for more aesthetic inspiration and ideas on how I can make my own creative space that would truly reflect my interests, my style, and my personality.
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23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointed, December 6, 2009
This review is from: Art Making & Studio Spaces: Unleash Your Inner Artist: An Intimate Look at 31 Creative Work Spaces (Paperback)
I waited anxiously for this book to come out and I am very disappointed in its context. The pictures are gorgeous, but that is about it. The 2 magazines, Where Women Create and Studios, give much better information on an artist's studio than the book does. The artist's studio descriptions don't even tell the reader what type of media each artist engages in and could really benefit from some organization. In my opinion, this is not a reference book, but instead a picture book and I am sadly returning it.
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