Henri Rousseau: Jungles in Paris

The paintings are reproduced in wonderful detail and there's lots of them, although some are printed smaller than you wish. The description says that there is an interview in this book with Rousseau himself; there is not. This book is otherwise a pure joy. Get it.

Henri Rousseau Jungles in Paris was first published in 2005 conjunction with the exhibitions of the same name at the Tate Gallery London, Musée d'Orsay Paris and National Gallery of Art Washington, 2005/2006. In this comprehensive study of Rousseau the several essays consider various aspects of the artist and his work, the back cover describes the book as a "definitive overview (which) provides new perspectives on both the life and the works of this remarkable artist". In the opening essay Francis Morris take a general overview and looks at the contemporary setting and considers his sources and inspiration. Then Christopher Green considers what is "so strange and exotic" about Rousseau's pictures. Vincent Gille looks more closely at the sources that influenced the artist. Nancy Ireson looks at Rousseau's paintings, dividing them into various groupings such as "Images of War and Peace", "The Peaceful Exotic", "French Landscapes", "The Dangerous Exotic" and "Mysterious Meetings". Further essays look at the artist's "Critical Fortune" (Claire Frèches-Thory), ". . . as an Academic" (John House), and "The Magic of the Images . . ." (Pascal Rousseau). The book concludes with a chronology which provides a parallel with politics, explorations and art/entertainment/communications; a selected bibliography, notes, and a list of exhibited works. Jungles in Paris is a most attractive book, it is beautifully presented and superbly illustrated. There are over 150 full colour illustrations, and around a further 50 in black and white, the latter being mostly period photographs, postcards or press cuttings. A large number of the pictures are reproduced full page, the generous landscape format of the book being taken full advantage of, and there are several details of the paintings. For these superbly presented paintings the book is worth it alone.

This book/catalogue is splendid! It was gorgeously created. The care the author and editor put into the making of this book shows on every page. But what makes this book unique is that every painting is shown IN COLOR -- not black and white sections taking up half the book, etc. The paintings are also put on the page in a way that makes you focus on the genius of each and every one. It makes you realize that Rosseau truly was a genius in his time. He was an original, and this book is a great tribute to him and his art -- would enjoying having on both his/her coffee table and as a book to read and treasure!

I love looking at the amazing prints in this book by the primitivist Rousseau. Look at the cover of this, this tiger in the grass. Rousseau was a Parisian in the last part of the 1800's who never left Paris (in spite of telling friends he had visited Mexico.) New animals never before seen such as gorillas and tigers and leopards were coming to the Paris zoo. New exotic plants were coming to the huge Parisian greenhouses. People were talking about new and exciting places like Africa, Mexico and South America. There were photographs being shown in galleries depicting these strange places. And there was Rousseau, a lowly government clerk, with his fantastic imagination, seeing in his mind all these strange and wonderful places full of tigers, natives, huge flowers, flocks of pink flamingos, monkeys and all sorts of fantasy landscapes. This book says, quoting a friend of Rousseau's, that Rousseau would at times start trembling while he painted and become almost in a sort of ecstatic frenzy as he imagined what these places were like. At the time people laughed at his paintings as being like a child's art. People stopped laughing at some point and began gasping in awe. I remember seeing his paintings a few years ago at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington D.C. I could not believe my eyes. I never wanted to stop looking at the very huge, fantastic paintings, with the monkeys peeking from the amazing foliage. I have never seen such a beautiful, incredible, fantasy as these paintings anywhere to this day. I can't imagine a better book on Rousseau than this one.