Nielsen's Fairy Tale Illustrations in Full Color (Dover Fine Art, History of Art) [Paperback]

Kay Nielsen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Dover Fine Art, History of Art | Publication Date: June 22, 2006

Danish-American artist Kay Nielsen is famed for his versions of stories by the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen as well as the Nordic fables recounted in East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon. This enchanting compilation draws upon Nielsen's images from these and other beloved books. 59 illustrations.

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications; Green Edition edition (June 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486449025
• ISBN-13: 978-0486449029
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #437,925 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing..., April 15, 2007

By 

Danielle Salib (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nielsen's Fairy Tale Illustrations in Full Color (Dover Fine Art, History of Art) (Paperback)

I was looking for a book of Nielsen's outstanding and unique art work...well this isn't really it. If you are looking for the same you will be disappointed with the cheap printing, poor resolution and lame detail. What makes Nielsen's art so beautiful and interesting are his patterned details and gorgeous lines, but these pictures are so small the details are lost. I'm assuming the original, out of print editions of his work would be the only other place to find these illustrations...what a shame.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kay Nielsen, whose light and color shines through once again, August 23, 2006

By 

Professor Emeritus P. Bagnolo "Slugger/BIGGUY" (DOWNTOWN NYC/Chic. NM USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Nielsen's Fairy Tale Illustrations in Full Color (Dover Fine Art, History of Art) (Paperback)

As a small child, I read East of The Sun West of the Moon, in awe and wonderment. The strangely delicate and yet colorfully ornate and fierce illustration of Kay (Pronounced Kigh, like high) Nielsen blended with the prose of the Nordic Fairy Tales, which in original translation were more than a trifle erotic and violent, even a bit horrifying, were an odd combination, like a bowl of chocolate banana split, with strawberries, and whipped cream, followed by a three inch, giant T-bone steak smothered in pork chops, tomato sauce, onions, garlic and chicken livers, topped with an oyster. However, throughout my life thereafter, Nielsen's art reminded me of those fairy tales and the fairy tales of the Northlands, reminded me of his art of his art, and of my life back then in the 1940's paralyzed for the better part of two years as a polio victim, with naught to do but read.

Eventually I grew out of polio racked paralysis and gained strength and my taste in art and illustration moved on to more powerful art: the American Brandywine painters, and John Singer Sargent, Frank Brangwyn, Dean Cornwell, Joaquin Sorolla and the utterly brightly sun splashed colors of the Italian Macheollists, like Irolli and Boldini. Despite that, there was still a soft spot in my heart for the consumptively, pale, wane, tall and willowy figures of Nielsen which delighted me in my childhood and shed some light on days spent in a bed of a boy stricken with polio which eventually and happily healed. At that time I in my paleness, pain, and weakness, identified with those frail looking warriors and their heroism despite their scant physique cheered me, giving me hope.

This book revives Nielsen's interpretations of the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen and East of The Sun West of the Moon and other Nordic tales collected in: In Powder and Crinoline. It brought back sunny and dark memories of an era of World War, Classic baseball, healthy food, and after I healed, summers at our lake house and learning how to hit fast pitching, to paint and write. The book is a feast for the eyes of an era long gone and a style no longer popular, but like old movies on TCM, and older wine, mellows with age and lights a fire of reminiscence of childhood in simpler times and simpler art and writing. Those ancient fairy tales were probably more literary and rough, for a more rugged breed of people than present day Americans, and more now for adults than children, but the art is probably not so restricted, especially if you loved the art and writing of the 1920's-1940's.
There are 59 color illustrations crammed into 64 pages and all are full page (with borders and titles).

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Great illustrations marred by poor reproduction, November 18, 2008

By 

C. Conroy - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nielsen's Fairy Tale Illustrations in Full Color (Dover Fine Art, History of Art) (Paperback)

I ordered this book as one of several gifts for my girlfriend's birthday. It seemed to nicely suit her interest in fairytale illustrations, and after looking more deeply into the artist's work I saw that his compositions were consistently charming and expertly crafted. It was the perfect purchase... or was it?

In retrospect I should have paid more attention to the one critical review here on Amazon. While the illustrations themselves are beautiful the reproductions are perplexingly small in relation to the size of the page. Many of them look washed out (no, not because they're watercolors) and the details are hopelessly fuzzy and indistinct. It's no exaggeration to say better copies can be found in online galleries for free. While it's great to see some of these hard to find illustrations in print again for an affordable price, it's painfully obvious that whoever designed the layout of the book either doesn't have the keen eye of an art lover or just doesn't care about quality presentation. The work deserves better and it's very disappointing.