Michael Kenna: A 20 Year Retrospective [Hardcover]

Michael Kenna (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Japanese --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 168 pages
• Publisher: Nazraeli Press; 3rd edition (March 31, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590050193
• ISBN-13: 978-1590050194
• Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 12.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #137,829 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

For over thirty five years, British born Michael Kenna has been looking at landscapes in ways quite out of the ordinary. His mysterious photographs, often made at dawn or in the dark hours of night, concentrate primarily on the interaction between the ephemeral atmospheric conditions of the natural landscape, and human-made structures and sculptural mass. Kenna is both a diurnal and nocturnal photographer, fascinated by times of day when light is at its most pliant. Using non digital equipment, his night time exposures can last up to ten hours, and his photographs often record details that the human eye is not able to perceive.

Kenna's intimate, exquisitely hand crafted black and white photographic prints reflect a sense of refinement, respect for history, and thorough originality. They have been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums throughout the world and are included in such permanent collections as The National Gallery, Washington, D.C.; The Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris; The Shanghai Art Museum; and The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Over forty books and catalogs have been published on Kenna's work.


Website: www.michaelkenna.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Extraordinary Publication and Plates About One of Our Best Living Photographers, December 31, 2008

By 

John McPhee - See all my reviews

This review is from: Michael Kenna: A 20 Year Retrospective (Hardcover)

As an artist, Michael Kenna never fails to deliver excellence. Thankfully the printing in this book comes as close as it is possible in offset lithographic reproduction to remind us what his original art looks like. His work is a challenge to print, especially this well. Somebody cared a lot about this large, beautiful book from the beginning to end of the processes that created it. This is also the first book I had seen of Mr. Kenna's rich, long tonal range, emotive photographs. I was visiting a friend who opened it up during another conversation. I could not wait to have in in my hands and carefully appreciate what I could see and sense. I was delighted to be able to take an even closer look when I had a copy of my own. It completely captivates me and I did not want to stop looking. Each place is transformed by his personal moods and meanings. Each place can represent a kind of state of mind that is simultaneously stimulated by your personal aesthetic response. These are solitary places. many of which are almost mystical in their peaceful, contemplative invocations. I also felt part of every distinct place, page by page, instead of just being an observer or simply staring in appreciation of his fine craft. Kenna is the level of photographer that many others try to emulate or, failing that, take a far easier route, attempting to copy. Either way, they are compliments.

You will find several other books about Michael Kenna and his work but this book's illustrations are hard to beat taken as a collection. One could complain that any retrospective collection will suffer from its inability to form a coherent whole. However, that would be unfair to you, the reader, for each plate is ultimately experienced and explored one by one. The collective contributions can be left open to further debate by specialists. I am still content to leave my time and place to visit those minimalist creations he has made into photographs. Each visit is fresh despite my familairity.

I also recommend it very highly to those building a library collection of the best books available about photographers.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding retrospective, January 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Michael Kenna: A Twenty-Year Retrospective (Hardcover)

This book is a wonderful introduction and overview of the career of Micheal Kenna. Kenna's long-lived exposures and unusual eye for his subject material are unmistakably unique It is no wonder he is considered one of the world's most collectible photographers and apppeals to collectors just beginning to develop an interest in photography.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars All I expected, May 12, 2010

By 

Frank P. Hamilton (Weatherby Lake, MO USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Michael Kenna: A Twenty-Year Retrospective (Hardcover)

This is a beautiful book which was shipped promptly and arrived in great shape. Michael's photos continue to glow with a quiet strength.