Monochrome: Painting in Black and White

Both Lelia Packer and Jennifer Sliwka eloquently present a topic not much touched upon: monochromatic painting accomplished during the past several centuries in the west. They cover a wide thematic range that is well organised by topic and not chronological, the illustrations provided are a feast for the eyes, particularly the works of Mantegna, Jan van Eyck, Ingres, Degas and Richter among others. The approach is scholarly and well documented, each topic is investigated in terms of the Zeitgeist that inspired its development along with frequent references to technique behind each piece, all is written in a succinct and comprehensible manner. Monochrome being rich and varied as a subject the book can be expanded to fill several publications.Coming to the subjective part of this critique, what I most appreciate in this book is the opening of creative possibilities to any artist interested in practising monochromatic art. The two authors regularly refer to the artistic raison d'etre behind many monochromatic paintings, for example contemplating the aesthetics of the subject, its symbolic meaning, psychological states, exploring composition and perception, in other words a whole range of possibilities an artist may explore. Each of these aesthetic approaches is liberating and bears a spiritual character according to the authors, a powerful example is contemporary artist Vija Celmins' beautiful works.Were it possible I would have easily given this book more than five stars.

Erudit, considérant les moindres recoins où les artistes occidentaux ont développé la monochromie, mais ignorant complètement la peinture asiatique. Comme les auteurs ne sont pas des ignorants, il doit y avoir une bonne raison. Laquelle?

Great book- great service