Mixed Emulsions: Altered Art Techniques for Photographic Imagery

Yes, there has been a proliferation of books this past year on the vast and general subject of Mixed-Media. And why not? Artists and ideas abound, and the techniques showcased by one may appeal to a set group, but others may find themselves out in the cold, longing for a fresh, or at least differently skewed, approach. Angela Cartwright is a renowned and respected black and white photographer who ups the ante of her shots by not simply hand-coloring, but layering and incorporating her photos, usually as focal centerpieces, within the larger framework of mixed-media collage. The evocatively colored images spill onto borders and wood frames, altered with a variety of methods, some of which will surely spark the imaginative fires of any artist working the genre. She methodically (I hear she's a Virgo!) covers a plethora of techniques for use in incorporating photographic imagery into altered art, from milk stamping and encaustic to two of her specialties, mosaic and notch tooling. For each section, there is a brief overview and then a Project Launch, which, while not a traditional how-to, serves as a guiding hand to help the reader create a similar effect. I love the inclusion of an art-full Timeline! Angela also laid out a remarkable Gallery section, which showcases (on a full page each!) the works of nearly two dozen established and emerging artists, from Anahata Katkin, Kelly Kilmer, Misty Mawn and Scott Davis Jones, to Shirley Ende-Saxe and JoFish.

I'm a new artist and find this book fascinating and inspiring. I can't wait to dive into all these wonderful techniques! It's well written, love the layout and the author has listed all the resources, which for the new and seasoned artists it's great. It's also a wonderful gift to give. One thing a friend and I have committed to doing is getting together once a month and learning these techniques. Chapter by chapter. We feel it's a great way of staying in touch in this busy world and it's something we both enjoy doing,art. This will become a great reference tool for me for years to come.

I preordered this book based on Angela Cartwright's previous books and website content and am very pleased. It was well worth the wait. There is a wealth of interesting and detailed information on how to alter photographs and creative ways to mount them for display. This is not a recipe book for duplicating the work shown, but rather gives you an overview of the possibilities of what can be done with materials as various as gel mediums, paints, oil pastels, gessos, embossing powders, transparent photo oil paints and colored pencils, etc. etc. This is art, not simple craft. The book is well organized, the illustrations are excellent, the text is well written. I am going to be using this book a great deal and throughly enjoy trying new materials and techniques. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in fusing hands on art materials with photography and blurring the differences between the two..