The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season [Hardcover]

Thomas Aquinas Daly (Author), Christine A. Daly (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... the finest art book--paintings and text--in print today.

It's the nature of fine art that not everyone can own it. Nor is Tom Daly currently offering prints. So thank goodness for his recent book, The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season. For anyone who loves hunting, fishing, wildlife, wild landscapes, wild emotions and classic (rather than merely trendy) sporting art, this big beautiful "coffee table" volume will instantly become a prized possession...an elegant vehicle for transporting us "out there" in spirit, when our bodies are trapped indoors. In addition to 114 masterfullyreproduced paintings--landscapes, sporting scenes and still lifes-- Season includes a brief forward by Stephen Bodio, plus a lengthy and enlightening introductory text--"Man and Nature: A Basic Relationship"--by renowned art scholar Cassandra Langer, as well as extensive comments by the artist. For aesthetically inclined sportsmen and women, I can't imagine a finer gift." (Bugle (David Petersen)) -- (Bugle - David Petersen)

The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season contains brilliant reproductions of the work of one of the finest painters of our time... His paintings are not so much about the natural world as they are an extraordinary extension of it. -- Gray's Sporting Journal (Christopher Camuto)

There's an esoteric quality to the typical watercolour that demands the missing fine detail be replaced by mood and light if the work is to have meaning. Many of Mr. Daly's very fine paintings featured in this 150- page hard- bound volume do just that in a very interesting way. (These works) are about tradition and lifestyle and 20th century history. They are also about simple solitude, for there is rarely more than a single person in the scene - and so they are also about quiet, uncrowded places and abundant wildlife and healthy habitat. They are about how things were. -- The Atlantic Salmon Journal, Autumn 1999

Throughout The Painting Season, Daly contributes short, loosely ordered essays on his work and his life, and they complement the art nicely. He devotes one to each of the seasons, and the others to favorite places. He also provides captions for the paintings, which is a welcome feature. In reading through the book, we learn Daly spends as much time outside as he does in his studio, which isn't surprising. It's obvious these paintings don't come from looking through a window.

Given that Big Sky Journal is a western magazine, we thought twice about reviewing The Painting Season, with its principle settings in the Northeast. And then we asked, What would our readers think? Unanimously, we agreed they would love it. -- Big Sky Journal (Brian Baise)

From the Inside Flap

Thomas Aquinas Daly paints what he knows, and the result is a collection of poetic landscape and still life paintings that embody a unique fidelity to the enduring themes of land and nature. With a sportsmans reasons to roam the landscape, he translates his sensitive perceptions into luminous, expressive watercolors and oil paintings that have successfully bridged the gap between sporting and fine art. Combining strong graphic design with a sophisticated sense of color and shape, he has drawn an appreciative audience far beyond the realm of outdoor art. Yet, his personal relationship with the natural world strikes an emotional chord familiar to sportsmen and naturalists as well, earning him a position at the top of the sporting art genre. His work is about the land - quiet, confident meditations upon the spirit of a place without the need for assertiveness, wrote one critic. As a virtuoso of the watercolor medium, perhaps Dalys preeminent skill is in describing! ! the myriad nuances of light and atmosphere that are apparent only to one intimately attuned to the vagaries of his environment.

Educated as a graphic artist at the University of Buffalo, Thomas Aquinas Daly spent 23 years working in the commercial printing business before leaving it in 1981 to devote his full attention to painting. Since then, his work has been displayed in numerous solo exhibitions at galleries, museums and universities throughout the country. President Gerald R. Ford recognized Dalys talent by awarding him Grand Central Art Gallerys Gold Medal at the opening of his 1987 show in New York. In addition to his first book, Painting Natures Quiet Places (Watson-Guptill,1985), Dalys paintings have appeared in several other publications, among them: The Ultimate Fishing Book, The Sweet of the Year, The Sporting Life, and The Art of Shooting Flying. Additionally his work has been featured in periodicals such as Grays Sporting Journal, Arts Magazine, American Artist, Sports Afield, Sporting Classics, Wildlife Art News, Southwest Art, and Watercolor.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 152 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Aquinas Daly; 1st edition (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966310403
• ISBN-13: 978-0966310405
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 10 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #887,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Painting Season.....Reason to Paint, March 6, 2000

By 

Marion Steinbach (Muskoka, Ontario) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season (Hardcover)

The thrill of reading this wonderful new book was only preceded by a telephone call that I received at home by the author himself! Living `out in the boondocks`, I wasn`t sure how to order this book that I first saw summarized in Watercolor magazine. I was initially attracted to the art of Thomas Daly after reading the Winter 2000 issue of Watercolor. I just had to have the book. I am a teacher on leave of absence... and I have been dabbling in the processes of watercolor painting. All of my work was leaning towards one style and mood. After a trip to Europe last fall that i believed would energize and change my style... I came back still painting the old familiar landscapes. Daly`s message is that you have to paint what you are deeply emotionally involved with. It is a wonderfully refreshing book that will appeal to those seeking a gentler way of life and a calm way of reflecting on it. five stars to Mr.Daly!

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Art of Thomas Acquinas Daly, June 15, 2009

By 

Frederick E. Bikle "FEBIK" (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season (Hardcover)

The book was high quality and the subject ( Art, watercolor painting) is one of great interest for me. Mr. Daly's painting is somewhat unique via its connection with sport fishing and outdoor living. The painting subject and technique became somewhat repetitious and boring as the book progressed.A lot can be said for painting with a limited pallet but he limits the SAME pallet to practically every painting in the book. FEB

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It has not reached my expectations, November 9, 2006

By 

Renata T. S. Paula (Rio de Janeiro - Brazil) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Art of Thomas Aquinas Daly: The Painting Season (Hardcover)

ok, it is a painting book, but I did not find anything to surprised me.