Black Velvet Masterpieces: Highlights from the Collection of the Velveteria Museum

by Caren Anderson and Carl Baldwin

Book Overview

Though beloved by millions around the world, black velvet paintings have too long been relegated to the shadowy backrooms of art history. Black Velvet Masterpieces celebrates the best and worst of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0811862070
• ISBN13: 9780811862073
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Chronicle Books
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 2.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 8.9" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Insanely Beautiful

BLACK VELVET MASTERPIECES is an incredible overview of the low-brow and high-art world of velvet painting. The book contains images from the entire history of velvet painting: from schlocky Elvises, insane clowns, frolicking unicorns, and sad-eyed children to delicately rendered South Sea island beauties and Old Master works - All of it intensely colorful and wildly inventive. I have also visited VELVETERIA in Portland, Oregon and it is well worth the trip. Seeing some of my favorite paintings from the book was an amazing experience and the ever-rotating collection on display will have you laughing, crying and leave you with a new-found respect for the medium. Check out the Black-Light room when you are there! Both the book and museum are highly recommended!

Absolutely Fantastic!

This wonderful book opened my eyes to the people and talent behind these mainly overlooked pieces of art. My initial impressions of velvet painting was that there probably wasn't much past the standard clowns and snarling Elvis. While that's what I was familiar with, this title brought to life an entirely different group of artists who produced artwork that I found to be both surprising and stunning. I truly enjoyed the writing style, the wonderful color photographs, the story behind building this collection and the way the book was broken into subjects make it a pleasure to thumb through. The actual velvet cover was simply the icing on the cake! Well done!

Gorgeous Photos

The full color photographs - approx. 200 - are gorgeous and are almost tactile in the way they convey the lush texture and rich color of the velvet paintings. I also enjoyed the authors' writing style: chatty and interesting, covering everything from the history of velvet painting and painters to the authors' personal collecting stories. So...great photos, great writing, and a front cover artfully decorated with black velvet - makes the book itself a bit of a Black Velvet Masterpiece! I was also lucky enough to visit the authors' Velveteria Museum in Portland and can attest it's well worth the trip.

Beyond kitsch

While most people think of neon paint and goofy subject matter, the collection of the Velveteria runs the whole spectrum of black velvet painting from tropical nudes to quirky clowns, sad eyed children to black power homages, shimmering landscapes to dead rockstar tributes. This book collects them for your viewing pleasure along with a thorough intro & history of the art, as well as a how-to instructional. Even the cover has velvet on it. A fun book for your bookshelf or an even better gift. When in Portland, OR visit their museum.

Be astonished and delighted!

Almost everyone has a story to share about black velvet. The stories that authors Caren Anderson and Carl Baldwin share in their book will both astonish and delight you. Black velvet isn't just for Elvis! Sure, this compendium delivers the standard kitcsh but there are also some wonderful surprises: lush landscapes, luminous figures, and truly skillful painting techniques. Anderson and Baldwin invite readers to appreciate how the works of artists such as Leeteg, McPhee, Tyree, and Rodriguez transcend the mosh pit of clowns, banditos, and poker dogs. The design by Reed Darmon is clever and the photographs pop from the pages. A wonderful addition to any home library or a terrific gift for your favorite art snob!