Customer Reviews

Le Notre's Gardens

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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I am very lucky indeed to have been able to see many of Michael Kenna's photographs at live exhibitions, both in Washington, D.C. and in New York City. Any art book is a "poor" substitution for the real thing, but there are some books that can give you true, beautiful examples of specific art works that then, hopefully, can someday be seen live. Kenna is a British photographer, in his 50's, who now lives in San Francisco....and seems to concentrate, in large part, on landscapes as his subjects. His images in this book are of the gardens created by Andre Le Notre, "the most important garden designer of the court of Louis XIV." In approximately 6o plates on 80 pages, we are taken to 10 different locations in France including the Tuileries in Paris and Versailles and Fontainebleau. The photographs are nothing short of breathtaking, obviously taken at dawn or dusk when the natural light is almost unreal. These images evoke mysterious, art movie settings---one almost expects a stranger to appear from one of the designed paths or pools or from behind one of the symmetrical trees or shrubs. All of it: the photographs, the accompanying essay, the way the book is put together with obvious care and love is magnificent magic.

While the text essays in this book are a bit dry, the photographic reproductions are of top notch quality. Kenna's photographs are beautifully elusive, sometimes printed quite dark, yet remain salient throughout. I found myself wondering how the images looked on the contact sheets, straight, with no darkroom manipulations. This book serves as a great example of what you can do in the darkroom to bring out a more poignant image than you actually shot at the location. It should be required for anyone who works with black and white photography in the darkroom; not because you will gleen any certain tips or techiques but because you will study the final results and perhaps wonder how they were achieved.

As a photographer, this book will remain in my photo book collection and it is Kenna's strongest work to date.

I am a huge Michael Kenna fan, so I am glad I own this book! It is lovely and intriguing.

A beautiful book that is full of some of Michael Kenna's finest images. Truely beautiful black and white printing. Michael Kenna is a master in his own time. Some of the fimest landscape I have ever seen. A must have for photography lovers!!