Customer Reviews

Helmut Newton's Sumo

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is by far a conversation piece....I have had company that spends hours turning the pages. Even after having the book for several months, I flip through it and see photos I don't recall seeing the first time. I absolutely love this book and would highly recommend it to everyone. According to the folks at the Taschen bookstore in Beverly Hills, CA, there are fewer than 100 books left out of the 10,000 printed.

Well, as everyone else says, there's no other book like it. I had a look at a copy in an art photography store and thought it was ok, but would I pay two grand for it? Nah, I don't think so. Admittedly, the cover shot from the series 'Big Nudes' is impressive when you first see it, but these pictures were never meant to be printed at this size. Newton shoots fast and produces grainy photographs; at this size the pictures start losing clarity because of the extreme grainyness. There are also slight scratches and imperfections on some of the negatives, which at a normal size are miniscule, but here the tiniest scratch is blown up into a great white worm crawling over the page.

Don't get me wrong, Newton is one of the great lensmen of recent decades. The work displayed here is of itself, brilliant. Even so, you could save yourself a packet and buy a quality 'normal' book of his work, where the pictures can be appreciated more easily. This book's merit lies in it being an art object in it's own right. If you actually want to savour and enjoy Newton's work, give it a miss.

Having just received my copy of Helmut Newton's SUMO all I can say is AMAZING. This is not just a book, but a work of art. As a bibliophile I felt I had to have what I believe is the most important book published this century...and I was not let down. The reproduction in the book is as good as I've seen and the book and stand make a beautiful addition to my apartment...a coffee table book with it's own coffee table....fabulous.

I've read several disparaging reviews about SUMO on this site and am surprised by this. SUMO is one-of-a-kind. It's as much a tribute to Taschen as to Newton - and both are originals. Each page is beautifully printed and the book represents a serious overview of Newton's work.

The book is wonderful when you first open the box, take the stand out first and be carful opening it (watch your fingers) You need 2 people to get the book on the stand. Once it is on the stand it is best not to leave it closed because it is so heavy that the books binding will sag. DO NOT let friends handle the book, or if they do watch over them. If the cover is dropped closed, pages will crease and bend. My Friends love the book more then I do now. Is it worth the thousands I paid for it? Not really. Oh and keep the box it comes with so you are able to sell it easier once you are over it. To keep it real, the only "cool" part of owning the book is that you are known for owning it!

This book is not meant to collect dust on a coffee table but to lay open atop its stand the way Starck designed it. It's an interactive art piece that can be changed daily, weekly, etc depending on your mood (or the company you expect). How can these arresting and haunting images ever get boring? Would a Helmut Newton hung on a wall slowly become mundane? I can tell you from experience that the answer is a resounding NO.

The first word to come to mind was "bathos," as Alexander Pope used the word. If one devotes an extraordinary amount of attention to a subject that is not able to carry the weight, the result is not deeply affective; it is, instead, mildly humorous. Pope called the sensation a "sinking." Well, this 66-pounder is certainly sinkworthy. Also, although it tries very hard in every way, it is NOT the largest book ever made. There are many larger--the Havell edition of J.J. Audubon's "Birds of America." And that book has the added advantage of genuine impact from consistently excellent art. Helmut Newton is a good celebrity photographer, but does one truly want to see a 2 by 3-foot enlargement of a woman's calf and heel? I suppose, at this magnification, one sees the wrinkles around her Achilles tendon which tell us that fashion can be painful--and vice-versa. Why not spend the price of this book on one very good photograph that you can view without a freaking table? Newton, I'm sure, has made such an image. I ended up feely very badly for him, being buried in this elephantine packaging.

yes, many people would say this is a wonderfully erotic book to bring out your sensual side, but it's nothing new, just big. Every foreign bookstore in Japan has it hanging on every wall and table trying to grab your attention (which is not hard to do considering the book is what, 4 feet square and has a giantic picture of a naked lady on the cover)? Upon investigating the inside the book you will find nothing different from your typical run of the mill "artsy" advertisement. Best spending the ...bucks elsewhere.

beautifully generous throughout

a pleasure to play with

a pain to get through a door

but well worth the effort

coffee table book with it's own coffee table / stand,
emormous, the biggest book I ever seen,
big & heavy, record size, over 65 pounds,
expensive, high dollar item,
nothing for prude people, but - it's one of a kind,
even if you don't like nude photographie, THIS is the BOOK,
you got to have it...,
just great !!!