Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Originally published in French as a series of six books, `The Handbook of Painted Decoration' by Yannick Guegan and Roger Le Puil is an excellent reference book for experienced decorative painters. Yannick Guegan who authors the chapters on marble, wood, friezes and ornament has been in the business for thirty five years, has won numerous awards and is an excellent artist and teacher. Roger Le Puil, author of the chapters on basic patinas, finishes and forgotten techniques, is also an award winner, has painted extensively and has been involved with the French Association for Painting Training and the Paris Institute of Decorative Painting. The book consists of four hundred and fifty full colour pages of information, step by step demonstrations, and inspiring examples. This is a dense book; a lazy Sunday morning browse will only get you half way through it. Traditional European themes and techniques are emphasised with updated techniques for modern water based mediums. The finishes demonstrated are too numerous to be easily reviewed but I will say that the marbles are unique and dramatic, and the wood graining is fabulous. The Trompe L'oeil techniques demonstrated are basically architectural with a large section on fabric and drapery. I am prejudice but this book is beautiful enough to make a coffee table book for architects, designers, and artists of all kinds. It was a blind buy for me and I am not disappointed in the least by the book or by my first buying experience with Amazon. The book is well worth the price if you can learn from books and have enough experience to follow the examples.