Art Appreciation/Art History

AMERICAN PAINTER SERIES

"Teachers of all grade levels will welcome the tremendous number of paintings contained in each video, along with comprehensive biographical material. Highly recommended."
– Arts & Activities

"Both the length and excellent content will make these videos most popular for introductory investigations in art classes and individual study."
– School Library Journal

7 programs • 10 min. each
Descriptions follow:

This noted abstractionist became most famous for paintings depicting her beloved southwest U.S. Tracing her life and works, the program offers numerous examples of her landscapes, flowers, bones, and airborne images.

ISBN 0-7934-09

The program traces the artist's development from his early years as an illustrator for Harper's Weekly and as a Civil War painter, to the period (1883-1910) he spent in Maine creating the dramatic seascapes that were his masterpieces.

ISBN 0-7934-09

Beginning as a realistic portrait painter, Cassatt became greatly influenced by the French painters, particularly Degas. This led her to the impressionist school and her masterworks in which she portrayed people as a view of life.

ISBN 0-7934-09

The program reveals this contemporary artist's range of styles and techniques. It shows the brilliant use of light and color in his famous California paintings, also his work in Pop art, print-making, photo collages and stage designs.

ISBN 0-7934-09

For over 60 years Norman Rockwell’s illustrations epitomized the heart and soul of American life. His famous Saturday Evening Post magazine covers portraying people from all walks of life, especially families, combined realism and idealism, often with gentle humor, and became a chronicle of Americana through the years from 1912 to the advent of the space age.

ISBN 0-7934-0963-2

Willem de Kooning (1904-1997) was a key influence in making American abstract expressionism the new standard of excellence in the art world. Arriving in America from Holland in 1926, he struggled through the depression years as a WPA painter, and quickly became a leading member of the New York School. By the late 1950s he had become the most important avant garde abstract painter, inspiring an entire generation.

ISBN 0-7934-0996-9

Ranked today as one of the most significant American realist painters, Eakins was never popular in his own lifetime. Too conservative for the modernists and too radical for the traditionalists, his rugged individualism constantly got him into trouble with the art establishment. A brilliant anatomist, he presented the world of sports and medicine as well as family and friends, and was an important experimental photographer.

ISBN 0-7934-0997-7

JSCA - 7 programs - 10 min. each - $49 each VHS - SPECIAL SERIES PRICE: $295 Series ISBN 0-7934-0896-2

Exquisitely detailed and delicately colored, the artistry of Japanese woodcuts produced in the 17th-19th centuries is legendary. A vivid depiction of life during that period is revealed in the images: shoguns, samurai warriors, farmers, merchants, Kabuki stars, Sumo wrestlers. All the master printmakers are represented in this program, which also shows the development of the technique from single-block black-and-white to full color prints. A Double Diamond production. A great addition to video collections. . . an easy way to integrate art and history." – School Library Journal JSA - 22 min. - $145 VHS - ISBN 0-7934-0961-6

Today, Renoir, Monet, Degas and other impressionists are recognized as master painters – but in the 19th century their ideas were seen as so revolutionary they shocked the Great Paris Salons of the art world. Works by many of the great impressionists illustrate why their techniques, choice of subjects and use of color broke with tradition and established a new school of art. A Double Diamond production.

"Extremely informative...a valuable addition to the video collections of middle/high schools where art history, world history, or art appreciation is taught." – School Library Journal

IJS - 23 min. - $145 VHS - ISBN 0-7934-0962-4

In the 1920s, 30s and 40s, Art Deco was a style that touched all areas of creative design from painting and sculpture to interior decoration and the new field of industrial packaging. Its geometric patterns and futuristic shapes influenced Erte, Bakst, Lalique and even designers of automobiles, ocean liners and buildings. This program offers numerous examples showing how Art Deco found its way into all aspects of life. A Double Diamond production.

"A useful resource. . . because of the number of items and their variety several viewings are recommended."
– School Library Journal

JS - 23 min. - $145 VHS - ISBN 0-7934-0965-9

1998 is the 100th anniversary of the birth of M. C. Escher. During his long career, Escher created a universe of images that have become part of our visual heritage. In fact, he created several universes. One was a straightforward representation of the world he observed as he traveled through Italy. The other universe was in his mind. His prints celebrate the paradoxes and visual ambiguities that occur when flat images morph into 3-D realities. Intriguing, never ominous, he welcomes us into the "splendid garden" of his inventive mind and spirit. A Double Diamond production.

JSCA - 23 min. - $145 VHS - ISBN 0-7934-1023-1

We take your classes deep below the windswept hills of Tuscany to explore the lost tombs of Etruscan aristocrats. There we find a fabulous treasure. Enigmatic sculpture, elegant bronzes, a vigorous pottery heritage and a ransom of gold jewels. Etruscan art evokes an aura of luxury and pathos as haunting as a voice from the grave. In fact, almost everything we know about the mysterious pre-Roman civilization we’ve learned from their great tomb cities. Photographed entirely on location in Italy, this program will grab and hold your students’ attention while expanding their horizons. A Double Diamond production. JSCA - 23 min. - $145 VHS - ISBN 0-7934-1024-X

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