Street Art

Inspirations & Techniques

by Russ Thorne

The Art of Fine Gifts: a new title in our bestselling large format series, Street Art is a fantastic foray into the unique and extremely creative world of this art form. The explosion of graffiti-styled street art in the early 1980s has continued to be a popular form of self-expression. By choosing public places to display their artwork, artists can achieve a more direct communication with the public, as opposed to being confined to the more formal art world. This exciting new book includes over 170 photographs of expressive and unconventional street art images from around the world, as well as a fascinating discussion of the styles, techniques and inspirations of both infamous artists and unknown talents. From mind-boggling illusions to satirical depictions, this book will have you looking on in awe.

192 pages, Hardcover

Published September 15, 2014

About the author

As a boy, Russ Thorne loved reading Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, playing Hero Quest and poring over issues of 'White Dwarf', admiring the cover art in the process. Later he studied English Literature and got to know Homer's heroes and a bit of Beowulf, before beginning a career as a writer and editor. Since then he's published books on tattoo art, body piercing and vampires and writes regularly for national newspapers including the Independent.

Reviews

[Syed Shahrom Wafa · Rating 3 out of 5]

As what can you expect from an art book, lots of cool pictures. But it sure takes me forever to finish it due to its gigantic size, plus it comes in hardcover format. Quite a heavy work logistically to bring it everywhere with you.

The author surely knows the subject much. All the issue surrounding the graffiti & street art worlds been discuss & elaborate by him quite nicely in this book. From the early history of the movements, the continuing struggles until nowadays, the affect it has to the global politics & the government in particular. And so many more. You also can get to know the big players or artists in this movements, each with their own trademarks & styles, from various countries and regions.

The only minus for me is that the picture arrangement in this book is a real mess up. To have a brief words here & there about certain topics, it will be nice to see & get into that designated street art pictures mentioned beside the words. But unfortunately that is not the case. The author maybe too lazy (or intentionally) to arrange it handsomely next to each others, the discussion & that particular street art's photo on a same page. Maybe lots of photo collections to choose from until it has been a real headache for him? Who knows right?

Other than that it is just a wonderful collection of graffities & street arts from all over the world. If you just into this type of art you should try to find this book anywhere, and try to get yourself into it sooner rather than later.

[Duncan Cumming · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book of two halves in some respects. There's a series of short sections about the history of graffiti and street art worldwide. And lots of graffiti photos. The photos don't reflect what's in the text on any pages, e.g. there might be a description of graffiti in a particular country, but with photos from somewhere completely different on the same pages. Similarly when describing different styles.
Also too much emphasis on Banksy, and too many photos of pavement art.
The text itself however was good, and well researched.