Tuscany Nudes [Hardcover]

Petter Hegre (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2010

Shot over a period of five years, this exquisite collection of photographs pay homage to the Renaissance with the flowing contours of exquisitely proportioned female figures against a backdrop of elegant palaces. These nudes are completely natural, without artifice and accessories, and demonstrate a unique blend of the classic and contemporary. The photos feature natural light and the rich ingredients of Tuscany, including wine, olive oil, grape. With lush settings, including a 16th century home built for the Machiavelli family that has been restored to its original splendors, these memorable photographs blend the old and the new and provide a feeling of timelessness.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Petter Hegre's other collections include 100 Naked Girls, Luba, and Marketa. He studied at the Brooks Institute of Photography in California and worked in New York with Richard Avedon before returning to his native Norway.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Edition Skylight; Bilingual edition (February 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 3037666005
• ISBN-13: 978-3037666005
• Product Dimensions: 13.4 x 10.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,027,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enchanting!, November 1, 2009

By 

Michelle7 "Editor of Michelle7(dot)com" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Tuscany Nudes (Hardcover)

This is Petter Hegre's strongest collection of imagery published in a long time; at least since his book, "LUBA" hit the shelves in 2003, and possibly since his first major publication, "My Wife" (2000). Given the strength of these two masterpieces, that's saying a lot. "Tuscany Nudes" is entirely comprised of black & white (tri-tone) photographs and there is a more elegant sense of composition and attention to scenery than in most of Hegre's previous efforts. Much of the material was shot at an amazingly opulent 16th century villa that was originally built for the Machiavelli family. The charming architecture, lovely vistas, and intoxicating sights of the Tuscany region a the key ingredient to this epic body of work - that the subjects themselves are exquisitely beautiful makes "Tuscany Nudes" all the more special.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Flawless... but there's something missing, January 29, 2011

By 

David Jimenez "DJ" (College Station, TX) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Tuscany Nudes (Hardcover)

I have to admit that I have mixed feelings with respect to this book. As you can see by the rating I gave, I do think it is fairly good, but for a photographer of the caliber and trajectory of Peter Hegre, I was expecting a bit more.

Let's start for the good things regarding this book. First, of course, each model in this book is breath taking, absolutely stunning. Combine this with amazing locations, that I bet were carefully chosen to make you fill at times as if you were watching at the Tuscany of the time of the Medici, or the views that inspired Puccini to write La Boheme and Madame Butterfly. To that, add a hardly arguable mastery of technique and style with the camera, in posing the model, in playing with lights and shadows. In few words, it is visually stimulating. I may go as far as the last reviewer and call it exquisite.

But if it is exquisite, why didn't I rate it with five stars? Well, because there is that "je ne sais quoi" missing. Hegre has been around for a while, and it seems his focus on stylistic perfection is making him forget that once you've seen an image before, technique and quality can make it more pleasant, but it does not surprise. Most images are definitely not new. It is the kind of photograph you've seen before, a slightly different setting, a different model, a tiny difference in angle, but it is there in the collective conscious of those of us who are fond of artistic nude photography. There area a few exceptions (like in the cover and its sequence, or those he took of Luba), but they are maybe 10% of the photos of the book.

There are also two observations I would like to make. First, to the editor, multi-page photographies work fine in centerfolds of magazines, but in thick, well binded books... well, not so much. And to Peter himself, Your taste in models is magnificent, but with the possible exception of Joyce, and maybe Jennipher, all others are very clearly Caucasian. Don't get me wrong, I think Caucasian women are beautiful, I am married to one. But with the access a photographer like Peter oughta have of models, I am sure he could easily find a more multiracial set of subjects for his books.

The book makes a fine piece for a coffee table at an appropriate place and situation. But it could have been much better.

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent material, good price, June 13, 2011

By 

nousavons - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Tuscany Nudes (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book with extra quality prints. The style of photographs are just for this black & white choise. Let me advice you if you're looking for picture to desing or sketch this is the better choise...