Maxfield Parrish (1870–1966)

Now to begin, I adore Maxfield Parrish. I know the art intelligentsia will say I'm common. They'll place him in the same pigeon hole as Norman Rockwell, who by the way I cannot stand. Just because he doesn't fling paint at a canvas, or draw sqiggly line, or make screen prints of soup cans. F-'em. Anyway, This book is just lovely as an object in itself, not just as something to read. It is something to look at. My wife bought it for me and I used to read the nursery rhymes and stories to my kids. I still cherish it. I had no problem showing it to my children and calling the illustrations "art."… (more)

My parents tell me that long before I learned to read, I loved the prints of Parrish's work collected in this book. However my tastes changed as I grew up, these images still entrances me. The artist portrayed both human figures and landscapes with layers of light and focused details that caught my imagination. As a teenager, I finally read the book itself and learned a bit about the artist's life, his techniques, and his place in art history. While that content is fine, the prints of the artist's work remain the obvious highlights of this volume.… (more)