Views Of The Rhine [together with] Upper Rhine: TOMBLESON, William

The Arrival: TAN, Shaun

Barbara Hanrahan. Printmaker: CARROLL, Alison 
This book centres on Hanrahan’s two main printmaking phases: 1963-67 while studying at the Central School of Art in London; and 1975-86 (when this book was published). It also gives some background info about her life growing up in Adelaide’s western suburbs and references her other artistic talent as an author, but her prints take centre stage.

This limited edition (#142 of only 150 copies) comes with an original etching entitled ‘Skipping’ (pictured) loosely inserted.

This wonderful production is in immaculate condition and eminently collectible either as a book or for the etching. The combination of the two is mouth-watering. $600

Edited by Sydney Ure Smith & Leon Geller and published by Art in Australia. No publication date is listed, but a charming inscription dates it as 1923 (more on this later)! This book was limited to a run of only 600 copies (ours is #370) signed by Gruner and contains a tipped-in pencil portrait of him by Norman Lindsay; 25 colour tipped-in plates; 16 tipped-in b&w plates; a short bio snippet entitled ‘Elioth Gruner – Reminiscences’ by Julian Ashton and another by Norman Lindsay, ‘Creative Vision in Landscape’.The inscription to which we alluded was written by Gruner to his good friend and student Adrian Feint and so, initially, this book was a gift from one great artist to another. $500

Illustrations of the Family of Psittacidae or Parrots: LEAR, Edward 
This is the very high quality 1978 facsimile of Lear’s seminal work, which was illustrated when he was just 19 years of age. It is one of life’s little ironies that such a seriously talented artist would become best known for nonsense with his rhymes and limericks including the Owl and the Pussycat.This is #58 of only 500 copies printed by Pion Press and is magnificent in both size and quality. $1250

The Life and Work of Artist Sir William Ashton

Will Ashton was a South Australian and three-time winner of the Wynne Prize for his landscapes during a time when Australian landscape painting was very strong.

Working alongside compatriots Hans Heysen, Lionel Lindsay and Emanuel Phillips Fox and holding positions as Advisor to the Art Gallery of SA and Director of the NSW Art Gallery meant his influence was felt throughout the Australian art scene.

This book is one of only 300 copies printed and is SIGNED BY ASHTON. Autobiographical in nature, it contains a preface by Sir Robert Menzies and a tribute by William Dargie, placing Ashton in the highest repute. $300

 Avigdor Arikha. Drawings: ARIKHA, Avigdor

Avigdor Arikha (1929-2010) is hardly a household name, but his story is as wonderful as his art. This book is a celebration of his drawings which, to quote Robert Hughes, are the work of “the best draftsman of his generation”. His father died in a concentration camp and it may be that Arikha’s drawings saved him from the same fate.

The drawing shown here was done as a boy of 13. Other drawings in this book show the maturity of his raw talent. $175

Arthur Boyd Drawings1934-1970

Published by Secker & Warburg and The Rudy Komon Gallery in 1973, this wonderfully detailed monograph is an excellent depiction of Boyd’s work. It contains 75 b&w plates; 10 full-colour, tipped-in plates (all selected by Boyd and Laurie Thomas, who also provided the foreword); and a catalogue of over 1800 drawings in ‘thumbnail’ format by lifelong Boyd scholar Christopher Tadgell.

Our copy is SIGNED BY ARTHUR BOYD on the half-title page. $350

Max Meldrum. His Art & Views: COLAHAN, Colin

One of the most humble items (appearance-wise) in our collection, this is certainly a little gem. Meldrum is remembered as a teacher – and his students included the editor of this book, Colin Colahan – but is often overlooked when discussing the greats of Australian art. Conspiracy theorists may well attach this ‘forgetfulness’ to the notoriety he received from his teachings and, in fact, for broadcasting them in this book.

Meldrum’s emphasis on tone and decree in this book that, using his methodology could make art a learnable science incited other artists to slash his artwork! This context places this book in a position of importance within the realm of Australian art history. Our copy goes even further with a beautiful gift inscription from South Australian artist [Mabel] May Grigg. $800

Guy Boyd: VON BERTOUCH, Anne; HUTCHINGS, Patrick

Lansdowne Press, 1976. Wonderful biographical monograph – a limited edition (1000 copies) in excellent matching slipcase. $250

Avedon Photographs 1947-1977: AVEDON, Richard

Also known as ‘The Eye of Fashion’, Avedon enjoyed a highly successful career and this period (1947-77) marked his most prolific period. Internally, our copy is excellent, however the endpapers are the victim of large blotchy foxing which certainly detracts from the overall appearance. $125

Lives of the Most Eminent Painters Sculptors and Architects:VASARI, Giorgio

Harry Abrams, New York, 1979. Quarter Leather. The Deluxe Edition. Limited to 1000 copies. Signed by Kenneth Clark. Three volumes in quarter brown leather over brown cloth in leather slipcase; gilt lettering and gilt decorations to slipcase spines and cloth; marbled endpapers; tipped in colour plates. Beautiful production in excellent condition.

The title is often abridged to Le Vite or The Lives and is a series of artist biographies, written by 16th century Italian painter and architect Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574), which is considered the ideological foundation of art-historical writing and perhaps the most famous and essential work on the Italian Renaissance.

Originally published in 1550, enlarged in 1568 where it was provided with woodcut portraits of artists (some conjectural) and translated into English in 1908. This edition is the ‘Deluxe Edition’, published in 1979 and limited to 1000 copies signed by (Sir) Kenneth Clark (1903-1983) who was himself one of the best-known and most respected art historians of his time.

Vasari’s biographies are interspersed with amusing gossip. Many of his anecdotes have the ring of truth, although likely inventions. Others are generic fictions, such as the tale of young Giotto painting a fly on the surface of a painting by Cimabue that the older master repeatedly tried to brush away. He did not research archives for exact dates, as modern art historians do, and naturally his biographies are most dependable for the painters of his own generation and the immediately preceding one.

The Lives has been for centuries the most important source for info on Early Renaissance Italian (and especially Tuscan) painters and the attribution of their paintings. In 1899, the author John Addington Symonds used it as one of his basic sources for the description of artists in his seven books on Renaissance in Italy, and nowadays it is still, despite its obvious biases and shortcomings, the basis for the biographies of many artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Bellini. $650

British Sporting Prints: CADFRYN-ROBERTS, John (editor)  
The Ariel Press, London, 1955. Includes 12 oversized plates plus one page biographies of each of the artists, eg Henry Alken, Robert Pollard, James Barenger, James Pollard, F.C. Turner and George Stubbs. Quality representations of a period where British artists prevailed. $85  

PRINTS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN-STORE  

Michelangelo [prints in folio]Grolier, nd [c 1976]. These 15 prints in portfolio format were distributed by Anthony Villani & Assoc (Surry Hills, NSW) in 1976. Sketches, studies and drawings on pseudo-aged card – great for a series of prints in (perhaps?) ochre surrounds. $160 

PRINTS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN-STORE 

Twelve Views Of Kensington And Chelsea, C. 1695-1822Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Libraries and Arts Service, 1975. Twelve black & white views of the borough. Includes buildings such as Chelsea cottage and Kensington Palace. Limited first edition of 1000 copies. $85

PRINTS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN-STORE

The Remarkable History of the Macallan Glenlivet

London, nd (c2000). Wonderful presentation folio including card history of this famous distillery. Includes beautiful artwork by Sara Midda and smaller folder containing tasting notes and bio of David Robertson, Master Distiller (issued to coincide with his series of talks across Australia in 2001. $275

PRINTS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN-STORE

The Hobbit Calendar 1976: TOLKIEN, J.R.R.

Allen & Unwin, London, 1975.

The colour illustrations by Tolkien are just lovely. More than a piece of memorabilia, Tolkien’s artwork is universally admired and these represent both his visual and imaginative zenith. $160

Claudio Bravo:SULLIVAN, Edward J.; BRAVO, Claudio  
Rizzoli, New York, 1985. Superb collection of renowned Chilean hyperrealist Claudio Bravo – many of these stunning works seem to leap from the page, even in this reproduced state. Bravo was commissioned by former dictator Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines to immortalise him and his equally-famous wife, Imelda. Bravo’s other famous subjects include Spanish dictator Franco and Malcolm Forbes. $160  

Chronicle Of The World 1493: SCHEDEL, Hartmann  
Taschen, Madrid, 2001. In padded and embossed velvet boards, this is the complete and annotated Nuremberg Chronicle of 1493 (German text). Introduction by Stephan Füssel.The Liber Chronicarum (Book of Chronicles) – referred to by Westerners as The Nuremberg Chronicle– is an illustrated world history, one of the best-documented early printed books (incunabulum) and one of the first to successfully integrate illustrations and text. Its structure follows the story of human history as related in the Bible.The Chroniclewas first published in Latin in 1493 in the city of Nuremberg and was quickly followed by a German translation.Today, copies of The Chronicle sell for up to $400,000. Taschen was granted rare access to an extraordinary hand-colored copy and has created a complete facsimile of outstanding quality, true to the original in every respect. In case you don’t read Old German, the comprehensive annex, with summaries of the book’s main stories, provides a user-friendly way to explore this amazing historical masterpiece. $350  

The Complete Work Of Michelangelo:SALMI, Mario  
Macdonald, London, 1966. First English edition of this impressive two-volume survey of the work of Michelangelo with excellent photography throughout and text by leading scholars on the subject tackling Michelangelo’s historic and artistic personality, his sculpture, painting, architecture and drawings, his minor works and his qualities as a thinker and writer.Profusely illustrated with 1,040 black & white plates and 32 colour plates. $350  

Sydney Illustrated (1842-3):PROUT, J. Skinner  
Tyrrell’s Pty Ltd, George Street, Sydney, nd[c1949]. With letter press description by John Rae. No 135 of 750 copies signed in full by publisher James R Tyrrell, this limited edition reproduction of the original (1844) Prout plate book is wonderful indeed. Red cloth boards, gilt entitled with colour plate insert on front cover of The Tombs, Garden Island, front end-paper map of Sydney Harbour, tipped in plates of both Prout and Rae, another black & white plate of The Tombs and 14 colour plates of Sydney in 1842 plus descriptions, Sydney Illustrated portrays the harbour city in all its pioneering glory. $100

The D.H. Lawrence Paintings:SHEAD, Garry; GRISHIN, Sasha (text)  
G&B Arts International, Basel, 1993. Inspired by Lawrence’s visit to the NSW coastal area around Thirroul and Shead’s own relocation to that area south of Sydney, these paintings are a major body of work.The D.H. Lawrence Paintings was published in the same year that Shead won the Archibald Prize and is a wonderful representation of his Blackmanesque style. This book is uncommon and, in as new condition as this copy is, certainly one for the collector. $140 

Scream Against The Sky; Japanese Art After 1945: MUNROE, AlexandraHarry Abrams, New York, 1994. In association with the Yokohama Museum of Art, The Japan Foundation, The Guggenheim Museum, and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, this wonderful production includes an extensive anthology of writings by Japanese artists and critics in English translation. $220  

The Legendary Lindsays: PRUNSTER, Ursula  
Art Gallery of New South Wales/Beagle Press, Sydney, 1995. This elaborate biography was published to coincide with an exhibition of the same name held at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in 1995.Five of the ten talented Lindsay children became artists. Between them they created a genuine Australian folk art and a gallery of popular national types that complemented the work of writers such as Henry Lawson and ‘Banjo’ Paterson.This book provides the opportunity to see side by side the work of Percy, Lionel, Norman, Ruby and Daryl. Sumptuously illustrated throughout in both black & white and colour. $150  

Atget: Old France [Volume 1 in the Work of Atget series]: SZARKOWSKI, John; HAMBOURG, Maria Morris  
Gordon Fraser, London, 1981. With 120 sepia plates, black & white reference illustrations and notes by Maria Morris Hambourg.The first of a four-volume set documenting the work of the French commercial photographer Eugene Atget (1857-1927) who died in relative obscurity. The photographs were drawn from the archive acquired by the photographer Berenice Abbott from Atget’s estate in 1928. Abbott had been introduced to Atget by her fellow American, the artist/photographer Man Ray in 1925. The subject of this volume is the French countryside, primarily of the Ile de France region surrounding Paris. Simply a delight for photographic enthusiasts, pure heaven for the Francophiles among them!$185  

Australian Studio Pottery And China Painting: TIMMS, Peter  
Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1986. Hard cover with dust jacket – both in excellent condition. Previous owner’s neat signature on title page.Illustrated throughout, this scarce and keenly sought publication is the authoritative text from Australia’s renowned expert. $220  

Flight Of The Black Cockatoo: ZAADSTRA, Pieter  
Self-published, Australia, 1988. Signed by the artist, Zaadstra hails from the Netherlands but his family emigrated to South Australia in his youth where he developed his art in the town of Mount Gambier. This publication is an amazing portfolio of the natural history and rural atmosphere of SA’s South-East. $80  

19th Century South Australian Pottery; Guide For Historians And Collectors:FORD, Geoff  
Salt Glaze, Unley, 1985. Ford is an owner/director of the National Museum of Australian Pottery, which he also helped establish, has written several other authoritative texts on Australian pottery and was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his service to the arts. This book can obviously be relied upon by historians and collectors alike. $90  

Vanishing Africa:RICCIARDI, Mirella  
Collins, London, 1974. This is the preferred revised edition of Ricciardi’s first book, the masterpiece that made her reputation. $130  

 
 Relics Of Old Colonial Days; A Book Of Drawings:URE SMITH, Sydney  
James R. Tyrell, Sydney, 1914. This fragile and somewhat damaged item is #222 of a limited edition of only 500 signed copies. It is unique given the inscription by Ure Smith to D.H. Souter.Ure Smith’s drawings of old buildings in and around Sydney are perhaps the most refined and individualistic work of a man renowned as a publisher of fine artwork. His choice of subject matter was partly an attempt to foster conservation of Australia’s colonial heritage.David Souter was himself a highly-respected artist and journalist – cartoonist for the Bulletin, book illustrator (including several for Ethel Turner) and co-editor of Art and Architecture, Souter was among the first to draw Australian posters and, with Norman Lindsay, to design Australian bookplates.A gift from one icon to another. $125  

FRAGILE ITEM IN WORN CONDITION – ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN-STORE 

Bruce Weber: CHEIM, John (ed)

Alfred A. Knopf, 1989 first ed. Male photography. $275

Heritage. The National Women’s Art Book: KERR, Joan (ed)

Craftsman, Sydney, 1995. 500 Works by 500 Australian Women Artists from Colonial Times to 1955. Contains sections on Gender & Identity, Town & Country, War Work and Flora & Fauna plus an extensive biographical listing of Australian Women Artists. $275

Art by Ernest Buckmaster: ELLEM, Barry; BUCKMASTER, Norman

Evelyn Fine Arts, Melbourne, 1993. Collectors issue #553 of 1000 copies SIGNED by Norman Buckmaster (son) on title page. Foreword by Sir William Dargie. Fine condition in matching grey cloth slipcase. $175

The Art Of Max Middleton

Fine Art Publications, Melbourne, 1982. #667 of 1000 limited edition copies SIGNED by Middleton. Mint condition in like cloth slipcase. $90

The Art of Rupert Bunny

Ure Smith, Sydney, nd (1948). With appreciation by Clive Turnbull and Biographical Sketch by Tristan Buesst. 10 colour plates, 32 monochrome plus a list of works and owners of Bunny art as at 1948. $100

Brett Whiteley; MCGRATH, Sandra

Bay Books, Sydney, 1979 first edition. $100

Max Meldrum & Assoc. Their Art, Lives & Influences: PERRY, Peter; John

Castlemaine Art Gallery & Historical Museum, 1996. #875 of 2000 copies. $150

Elioth Gruner. Twenty-four Reproductions in Colour from Original Oil Paintings

The Shepherd Press, Sydney, 1947. #1123 of 2000 copies. Foreword by Norman Lindsay. $225

The Artist & the River. Arthur Boyd & the Shoalhaven: MCGRATH, Sandra

Bay Books, Sydney, 1982. $300

The Art of the Boyds. Generations of Artistic Achievement: DOBREZ, Patricia; HERBST, Peter

Bay Books, Sydney, nd (1990). $150

E Phillips Fox. His Life and Art: ZUBANS, Ruth

Miegunyah Press, Melbourne, 1995.  “Book number 5 in the second Miegunyah Press series.” $225

Photographs Annie Leibovitz 1970-1990

Harper Collins, 1991. First edition. With Yoko Ono and a naked John Lennon on the front cover. $125

The Australian Sketch-Book by S.T. Gill

Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1974.  #620 of 1000. In mint condition in like slipcase. $145