Customer Reviews

M.C. Escher: His Life and Complete Graphic Work (With a Fully Illustrated Catalogue)

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Illustrated are 448 (of the 449) original woodcuts, wood engravings, lithographs, linocuts and mezzotints by Maurits Cornelis Escher. An attractive volume, it virtually constitutes a catalogue raisonne. Each print is illustrated in minimum quarter-page format, with size, medium and date provided. Introductory chapters provide biographical and autobiographical information. In addition, the only book that the artist wrote, REGELMATIGE VLAKVERDELING (THE REGULAR DIVISION OF THE PLANE), which was published in 1957 in a very limited edition by a Dutch bibliophile society, is translated and illustrated in full. As owner of and dealer in the main body of Escher's original prints, drawings and watercolors, which were previously on loan to the Hague Museum, I make extensive use of this book and commend it to all. Published by Abradale at less than half the price of the out-of-print Abrams edition, but identical to it except for a different dust jacket, it provides good value, and is certainly less expensive than the signed original prints themselves, which cost more than ten thousand dollars each.

The other key books on Escher are VISIONS OF SYMMETRY; THE MAGIC MIRROR OF M.C. ESCHER; and THE GRAPHIC WORK OF M.C. ESCHER.

This is the total collection of every work done by M.C. Esher. This book is perfect for a serious fan of the graphic work of M.C. Esher. The book also gives biographical information as well as in depth information on many of his works.

M.C. Escher was a true genius. This book has every print he has ever done. Along with a comprehensive history and a lot of his writings, this book gives you the best insight to a mathematical genius who barely passed math in school.

And c'mon - if you've seen his work, you're a fan.

The great thing about this book is not just the extensive and readable biography, but the complete (so they say) catalog of his graphic works. Even people very familiar with Escher's ouvre will be surprised by some of the entries here. They go back to work he did at ages 18 and 19, and show the devleopment of the Escher that has become so famous. It's just a little disappointing that the catalog is printed only in black and white, when so many of his works used color. The catalog reproductions are just that - a listing of his work, not a gallery, so the quarter-page size of most pieces is adequate for recognizing a piece, if not for appreciating it fully.

It is fascinating to see Escher's style develop though his (and the twentieth century's) twenties. Various influences early on suggest Beardsley (cat. 49, 67), Picasso (cat. 51, 58), or the pervasive Art Deco of his time (cat.34). Even then, some of Escher's later fascinations begin to emerge, including hands and reflective balls (cat. 88 and 80), symmetries and tilings (cat. 61, 65), and complex interactions of many figures in a repeating structure (cat. 90). The lesser-known parts of his work also start to emerge by the time he's 30, including delicate lithographs (cat. 129, 132). As much as I love his visual paradoxes and flirtation with the infinite, the lithos and mezzotints are the pieces that truly move me. "Snow" and "Blowball" (cat. 278 and 330) have an eloquent simplicity. "Eye" and "Drop" (cat. 344 and 356) demonstrate his classical sense and his perseverance with the demanding medium of mezzotint.

The text is also thorough and enjoyable - a good thing, since it takes up half of this heavy book, including its own set of illustrations. I admit that I have only skipped around this section, which starts by describing Escher's father. It's small wonder that his father was an engineer and that his son Arthur studied geology. Although an artist to the core, Escher had fruitful contact with mathematicians and crystallographers. He is one of very few artists that have successfully incorporated hard science into their artistic vision at such a visceral level, and the scientists appreciated that as much as anyone.

Although out of print, this book is available inexpensively on the used market. It's one of the best bargains around; if you've read this far, you'll probably find it well worth having.

//wiredweird

This book is just amazing. Anyone that is interested in M.C. Escher, must have this book. All of his work from his beginnings, to the end. Most of the works are explained by Escher. This is just a fantastic book. Also, a great coffee table book. You will get many comments from people when they pick it up.

Definitely the first book every Escher fan should purchase. It's helpful in getting to know about the man himself as well as his brilliant artwork. It may seem pricey, but it's totally worth it, being hardcover (at least the one I got), and high quality photos of his work. It also shows his lesser known works (ones never released apparently), as well as photos of himself and his family. A very informative read and a quality edition.

I haven't even had a chance to go through all of this remarkable book yet, but I am so impressed with it so far I cannot burble enough about how delighted I am with my purchase. This is a beautifully produced, designed, and wonderfully complete book. Many tales of the personal life an vision of the artist, countless, cleanly reproduced graphics, many works I have never seen or heard of before. Terrific! Can't recommend enough!!!

The book is a comprehensive review of Escher and his art. I was disappointed with the small size of some of the displayed art work. I expected full page plates; small pictures make it difficult to see the details of the work.

....the world is thousands upon thousands of opticalillusions in this sweeping volume of MC Escher sketches, prints, paintings and other exotica. He's like in the same avante absurdist quantum pocket as Salvadore Dali or Miro, but he's done these imagination bending scenarios in which, por ehemplay, a school of fish metamorphises into flying geese before your eyes, in which chess boards take your gaze into surreal, ultrareal mazes, in which sketched lizards crawl off the paper, become "real" for that frozen moment in time and then creep back on to the artists' page...I know I may sound like I've had too much portomento on my keyboard this morning, but it goes without saying, I cannot adequately describe this man's work. If you have not seen any of his work, you simply have to. His stuff is fantastic. When you get this, you will enjoy yourself immensely. You will experience hours and hours of pleasure browsing through the pages...

The first time I saw this book I was amazed by just the size of it. It has almost every print M.C. Escher has ever made, and he talks about most of them in the book. This book is for any one who loves the work of M.C. Escher...