Customer Reviews

On the Beach

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

'On the Beach' rivals 99% of art books as a production, which is a strong enough feat to deserve 5 stars. But the series itself is so good that when presented in this format, the book is likely to be one of the best of this decade... or any. Larger than any books at a print-standard 16x20 inches, the book is massive and beautifuly produced; for 5% of the price of the large format Taschen series, it delivers a far superior experience. 'On the Beach' takes you from coast to coast, reflecting on man's relationship to the ocean. After one trip through its pages, you can really feel a statement on how truly vast the earth is; how we exist as ants in this endless universe. I've never been a huge fan of Misrach's before, but something special has been made here: the combination of a grand, beautiful, thoughtful series produced into a huge-format book worthy of a museum director's coffee table. It won't be any surprise to me when it wins awards; it's the best book of the year... or last year. Buy it before it's gone.

I purchased the book after seeing an exhibition of this work at The Art Institute of Chicago. This book does a fine job of capturing the impact of the exhibition. The images are stunning and perfectly supported by the design and scale of this book. Well worth the price.

RICHARD MISRACH SIMPLY AMAZES ME WITH ALL HIS PHOTO PROJECTS. FROM DESERT CANTOS , THE SKY BOOK , SAN FRANSICO BRIDGE BOOK.WE ARE AWAKENED BY HIS ON THE BEACH PROJECT. A MOST INTERESTING AND SOPHISTICATED PUBLICATION TO DATE.A MUST FOR A PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK COLLECTOR.

The large format of the images is really strinking. The book was much larger than I expected when I ordered it. I wonder if the prints would be as moving if they were smaller. But the size is part of the work so I guess that question might not matter. I imagine these images would be great alone on a wall as well. The images gave me sense of how limitless our universe is around us. We find things in life to ground us or anchor us but really we are just floating around in the ether.

this is a focused work of exceptional calibre. Its presentation is immaculate, and the topic is the beach... still life's or life frozen, the water mesmerizes, the people are sometimes mystifying, sometimes inconsequential, mostly always only a part of a whole much larger. The colours and the clarity of his shots are beautiful. Just make sure you have room for this work!

This is one of those exquisitely printed, oversized photo books that takes you out of yourself and out of your own immediate environment, and allows you to experience the weightless free-flying giddiness of a dreamlike vacation.

It's a joy to get lost in the beautiful natural expanses that act as abstract minimalist grounds dotted here and there with humans at peace and in repose. The late afternoon light captures the dimples of the sand and the ripples of the calm glowing surface of the sea.

What more can I say? Not much. And apparently the publisher knew that, too, because indeed there is only one short paragraph of text at the end written by the photographer.

If you are craving a totally relaxing tropical vacation, this is next best to the real thing.

-- Jim Casper