George Tooker

by George Tooker, Thomas H. Garver

Tooker's realism is the realism of mystery."--Time This book contains over 150 paintings of George Tooker. The color reproductions capture the luminous quality of the artist's work in egg tempera, and his meticulous painting technique is described in detail through an intimate look into the artist's studio. For more than forty-five years Tooker has painted haunting psychological landscapes exploring the human condition, all characterized by their use of symbolism, classical form, and masterful technique. His absorbing images both enchant and repel us in their forceful depiction of the complexities of our age while clearly demonstrating the artist's love of composition and human form. By Thomas H. Garver. Revised edition. 164 pages, over 150 color and black-and-white paintings. Paperbound with flaps. 10 x 11".

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

164 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 1985

Reviews

[GoldGato · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art of George Tooker has always amazed me. A master of egg tempera painting, he used its matte finish to create paintings that seemed to glow from within. As he became a leading artist of Magic Realism, Tooker's work also grew more mature and almost luminescent.



This wonderful book has the masterworks and the sketches, but it is the text by Thomas Garver that had me slowing down to enjoy the wellsprings of life. He lets us know of Tooker's methods (paints from back to front), his influences (Shakespeare's Caliban), and his religion (Catholic convert).



As someone who can only whisper, "I like the colours", when asked to pontificate on gallery showings...well, I really enjoyed this book.

Book Season = Year Round (unabiding void)

[Jemiah Jefferson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of the three art books I checked out about this little NYC Art Students' League magic-realism scene, this was my favorite merely on the strength and sheer weirdness of Tooker's paintings. Tooker was a pretty strange dude, only peripherally involved with the French-Cadmus drama (sure, he hooked up with both of them, but fairly quickly struck out on his own path and his own idiosyncratic artistic and spiritual vision). This volume contains lots and lots of Tooker's work, and it's all excellent and very unsettling, even taken in tandem with biographical details which shed a little light on the hows and the whys. I would love to read more books about Tooker and see even more of his work; I guess I've got my work cut out for me.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really a Tooker fan but an art book is an book and it was given to me.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

i discovered this book at random in the library when i was in high school. the eerie disquiet is probably more responsible for that atmosphere in my fiction than my visual art, and i was thankful many years later to buy myself a copy of my own. his use of egg tempera as a medium makes these paintings even more mind-boggling. essential.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really all about Mr. Tooker's amazing paintings, so a review of the writing in the book is a bit pointless.

[Harley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy his art.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Visual. Mesmerizing painter.

[Johnflynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

there are not enough Tooker retrospectives.