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The Printed Picture | 
| Author: Richard Benson
Publisher: Museum of Modern Art
Category: Book
List Price: $60.00
Buy New: $37.80
You Save: $22.20 (37%)
New (9) from $37.50
Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 8870
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 338
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3.7
Dimensions (in): 10.9 x 8.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 0870707213
Dewey Decimal Number: 770
EAN: 9780870707216
ASIN: 0870707213
Publication Date: October 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 10 to 12 days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The Printed Picture traces the changing technology of picture-making from the Renaissance to the present, focusing on the vital role of images in multiple copies. The book surveys printing techniques before the invention of photography; the photographic processes that began to appear in the early nineteenth century; the marriage of printing and photography; and the rapidly evolving digital inventions of our time. From woodblocks to chromolithographs, from engravings to bar codes, from daguerreotypes to contemporary color photographs, the book succinctly examines the full range of pictorial processes. Exploring how pictures look by describing how they are made, author Richard Benson reaches fascinating and original conclusions about what pictures can mean.
Although many of the techniques he discusses have been used to create exceptional works of art, Benson concentrates on the typical, everyday pictures that have played and continue to play such a prominent role in our lives. In conjunction with the publication of the book, an educational installation of this material will be presented in the photography galleries at The Museum of Modern Art, New York in the fall of 2008.
Presented as a series of one-page essays opposite the pictures they examine, the book retains the lively, engaging style of the informal lectures through which Benson developed his ideas over the course of 30 years at Yale University. Rooted in hands-on descriptions of practical techniques, The Printed Picture offers a rich and imaginative interpretation of the enormous cultural and social influence of multiple images.
Richard Benson is a MacArthur Fellow and the former Dean of the Yale School of Art. A photographer, printer and collector, he has devoted a considerable part of his career to research in photomechanical reproduction. As a printer Benson was instrumental in developing the technologies presently used in the industry to reproduce photographs in ink. He has taught many workshops and given many lectures on photography, printing and their associated technologies. He is the co-author of Lay This Laurel (Eakins Press) with Lincoln Kirstein and A Maritime Album (The Mariner's Museum of Newport News, Virginia) with John Szarkowski. His photographic work is in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, The Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven and many other institutions and private collections.
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| Customer Reviews:
The Art of Printing December 20, 2008
T. J. Mickleburgh
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
The Printed Picture "traces the changing technology of picture-making from the Renaissance to the present" - an understatement if there ever was one. The book is laid out in a very accessible "page-spread" format, with an example of each process faced by a written explanation. Some of the examples are mundane but charming, some of them are stunning. The production standards are superb, and quite up to the job of accurately representing the diverse originals. What really distinguishes this book, though, is the erudition of its author. Richard Benson is obviously an expert, but he is also that rarest of teachers, the kind whose enthusiasm for his subject drives him seek ever greater clarity in his explanations. Benson's writing is simple and friendly and full of profound insights that take a while to sink in. For example, he notes that there are two ways to make a color photograph: you can use a monochromatic image as a skeleton and paint the color on top, or you can combine primary colors and create the appearance of neutral values where there is only color present. A simple statement, but critical to understanding modern process printing.
I bought this book on a whim, having a coupon to spend, and I must say it was one of my best three whims ever. If you are an artist, or a photographer, or a print collector, or a bibliophile or just a curious reader, treat yourself. The Printed Picture is a gem.
A core addition to Art, Photography, and Technological History reference collections November 8, 2008
Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
The technological evolution of distributing identical copies of a single picture has dramatically impacted upon and made practical the phenomena of mass culture. Author Richard Benson presents an informed and informative perspective and presentation of just how far the photographic printing processes have come. Beginning with the early years of relief printing which includes woodcuts, and moveable metal type, to today's digital processes. "The Printed Picture" aptly guides the reader through these subsequent and evolving processes while discussing the significance and roles each individual process has played. In this textbook each photograph is presented with a history of its impact on the processes of the time, as well as the importance of it role into the developing further techniques and processes. Displayed with an style that simplifies a complex process, the information of processes and effects is presented factually and with a sense of humor, "The Printed Picture" is especially recommended for university classroom use. All personal, professional, academic, and community libraries would find "The Printed Picture" to be a core addition to their Art, Photography, and Technological History reference collections.
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