Customer Reviews

Jan Saudek Postcard Book (Postcardbooks)

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Jan Saudek has had many books published about his bizarre art, but few take the time to let the artist speak about his own artistic aims as does this book - now reduced to a postcard book but gleaned from Taschen's 1997 catalogue of Saudek images originally called 'Jan Saudek Photographs 1987 - 1997'. The introductory essay is by Saudek himself, explaining his history, his choices of techniques, and the manner in which he came to focus on the distorted images he loves. This book is full of lushly colorful full-figured women in poses both clothed and then unclothed - the poses remaining the same. Saudek also plays with our concepts of beauty and seems to delight in challenging the viewer to re-study the human form through his eyes. Some of this photographs show ladies of the night ('Pearl Street Women', a study in adipose excess!), of Charwomen (we see their backs clothed in the garb of their station and then without missing a beat, the clothes are gone), men and women together, and women alone (as in the hilarious 'The Thumb' - read Big Toe, and the suggestive 'The Mandoline Lesson'). He even includes two images 'With my Wife and Beloved Daughter': one image has Saudek nude and the females clothed while the next adjoining image shows Saudek clothed and the females nude.

Appreciating Jan Saudek requires a sense of humor, and yet reading Saudek's comments the reader can't help but side with the artist's view: "Recently someone wrote a damning article in the papers claiming that what I do couldn't count as art by any distortion of the glass. I take my hat off to him, - even I know it's not art! I can tell you straight away what it is, - it's pictures of people I've met along the way. People I've loved, and who, with all the respect and humility they deserve from me, I present to you here..." Grady Harp, September 09

I like this book. I know this photographer when I went to see his works at BGH gallery in Santa Monica. After that I know I got to have his book. You won't regret when you buy this book pals. :))