Thursday, April 11, 2013

Book Review: Shishkin Books

Book Review: Shishkin Books -

There's a new book on Ivan Shishkin (1832-1898) which provides a useful introduction to the new fan or collector confirmed the great Russian realist specialized in the forest scenes.


new book is the one on the right. It is in the book series inexpensive (under $ 15) in English on Russian realists who have been coming recently. A similar book in the same series on Ilya Repin which was released in 2011 is now exhausted and costs more than $ 60, and that Valentin Serov is out of print and cost more than 100 $. So people were snapping these, and I'm sure the book Shishkin will be no exception.

The new book is bound, 0 pages, and about 9x12 inches. It features a short biography and an overview of the place of Shishkin in Russian art, but it is especially illustrations. There is a sample of his work in pen and ink, prints and studies in pencil and a good representation of his paintings and oil studies. But I find that the colors tend to be too contrasty and hot, with shadows from the dark.

A book in 1996 called Shishkin (Great Painters) (shown in the middle of the photo above) is comparable in scope and coverage. It is slightly larger, about 9.5 x 13 inches. The color reproductions in a little better, but some tables are reproduced smaller than they should be.

The best book in my opinion is the big, thick book of 1981, printed in the former Soviet Union, and called Shishkin album. It is represented at left in the photo above. You can still get it in his pocket shaped like a used book, but it is quite expensive. The book is about 254 pages, and the reproductions are very good, with lots of outdoor Shishkin studies.