lamdha books -
Catalogue of signed Australian art books

Click on the small images at right to see a picture of the signature

86921 Amadio, Nadine, & Charles Blackman The Lost Domains - signed copy A.H. & A.W. Reed Pty. Ltd., Terrey Hills NSW, 1980. First edition: folio; hardcover, full white faux-leather with gilt spine and upper board titling; 144pp., with many full-colour and monochrome illustrations. Minor wear; foxing to half-title and title pages with some random spots to page 11; signed in ink by both artist and author to the half-title page. A few scratches on rear panel of illustrated dustwrapper. Some spots and scrapes on the slipcase. Very good to near fine. Charles Blackman's works have been described as 'the raw authenticity of feeling' and 'images for grief and guilt, loss, persecution and tenderness in their naked forms, without softening or distraction'; and he himself as 'a creative spirit'. Whatever medium he is using - paint, charcoal, engraving and print-making, tapestries, stained glass - or whatever image he is calling up - his extraordinary schoolgirls, his magical Alice and White Rabbit, his gardens and his flowers, his mother-and-childs, his enchanted children, his fateful literary greats - he never fails to evoke a response, both from within the image and from the onlooker's outside. Click here to order $400

33792 Cassab, Judy Diaries - signed Random House (Aust.) Pty. Ltd., Milsons Point NSW, 1995. Octavo; hardcover, full cloth with gilt spine titles; 518pp., with 32pp., of colour and monochrome plates. Minor wear; mild spotting to the text block top edges; signed by the author in ink to the half-title page. Dustwrapper mildly rubbed; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Near fine. Click here to order $50

81956 Crayford, Peter (ed.) The Woodblock Painting of Cressida Campbell - signed by artist Public Pictures Pty. Ltd., Bronte, NSW, Australia, 2009. Second edition: quarto; hardcover, with a blind-stamped upper board title, black spine titling, and decorated green endpapers; 360pp. with many full-colour illustrations and fold-out pages. Signed by the artist in ink on the title page. Dustwrapper has some tiny scrapes at corners; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Fine. The book was published in three editions. The first edition was sold privately; the succeeding editions were commercially available between the years 2009 and 2011. Click here to order $1500

200963 Gleeson, James Robert Klippel - signed Bay Books, Kensington NSW, 1983. Quarto; hardcover, with an upper board decoration; 491pp., with many full-colour and monochrome illustrations. Minor wear; some minor marks to the text block fore-edge; numbered in ink to the limitations page; signed by the author and the subject in ink to the half-title page. Dustwrapper sunned along spine; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Very good to near fine. This is number 80 of a limited edition run of only 100 signed copies. Each was originally accompanied by a 33cm-tall sculptural ornament cast in bronze by Klippel, but this is now missing from the present copy. "Sculpture for Klippel was not an independent genre. Drawings, collages and prints operated equally as educative tools and expressive means. Singular works and series in all media were investigations of variations on a theme, evincing a mind able to transform ideas across two and three dimensions, at one moment inventing forms in one media and other times foreshadowing in one media developments of work in another. The objective of seeking a shared vocabulary between nature and man set Klippel on a lifelong investigation of visual, formal and conceptual relations. Exhibitions in Sydney from 1951 indicated the maturation of his work: fantastical biomorphic drawings, assemblages of painted wood and new looping or constructive metal sculptures. They signal Klippel's long standing investigation and absorption of artistic traditions relevant to an art for contemporary times: surrealist conjunctions of contrasting forms, assemblage and the rational aesthetics of Constructivism, and more specifically aspects of the work and approaches of living and historical artists including Alexander Calder, Joan Miro, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Arshile Gorky, Picasso, Nicolas de Stael, Alberto Giacometti, David Smith, Richard Stankiewicz, William Turnbull and Paolozzi to list only a few. At the same time, the search for 'something more' beyond the conventions of art saw Klippel educate himself in areas of scientific knowledge such as microbiology, and aspects of physical and engineering science. By the 1960s, Klippel was at the forefront of the development of sculpture in Australia. Like his Australian peers, who included Clement Meadmore before leaving the country in 1963, and Inge King, Clifford Last and Lenton Parr (but without the support these latter artists offered each other in Melbourne), Klippel became an irrepressible creator of sculpture in an environment that did little to foster its development. Klippel's singular pursuit of a synthesis of instinctive and industrial forms was never mimetic, but extended across a vast stylistic range, from the minimal and monochrome to monumental. The product of an inventive energy, his sculptures in their individuality and sophisticated formal relationships evoked discrete references; architectural, machinic, totemic, anthropomorphic, botanical and sensual. As Edwards recently wrote 'His Neo-Platonic sense of an underlying order and his vitalist apprehension of 'life-energies' permeating all matter formed a dual conception shared by many artists of the mid twentieth century.' '' - Zara Stanhope. Click here to order $400

89442 Gleeson, James William Dobell: signed by the artist Thames & Hudson, London, 1964. Quarto hardcover; blue cloth boards with gilt spine titling and upper board publisher's insignia; 208pp. 32 colour plates and 118 monochrome illustrations. Signed in ink by Dobell on title page. Inscription to owner. Mild scattered spotting to endpapers, prelims, half-title and title pages with a few random spots throughout; lightly toned and spotted text block edges. A few spots on dustwrapper and very minimal wear to edges. Very good to near fine otherwise. The art of William Dobell is timeless. He happens to be a contemporary Australian, but his work would have been understood by Rembrandt or Goya, and we could only shrink from a future which did not find itself reflected in his paintings. Nowadays it is rare for a great artist to stand anywhere but in the vanguard of a movement, but Dobell is an exception. He has looked closely at Soutine and the Expressionists, at Renoir and the Impressionists, and at some of the older masters, but his involvement is with humanity: he has not been diverted by recent theories or fashions in style from his Dickensian interest in the uniqueness of the individual and the mystery of personality. The best of his portraits are unsurpassed in twentieth century art; he has the ability to reveal the spirit beneath the skin. Since behaviour is an expression of the personality Dobell is fascinated by genre subjects. London and Sydney have provided him with a variety of actors, caught in situations of comedy and tragedy, or, more frequently, in those apparently aimless moments that seem to sum up a way of life. His interest in landscape is more limited, but the lakeside near his home at Wangi and the highlands of New Guinea have inspired some of his finest work. The author, James Gleeson, is particularly well fitted to undertake this full-scale study: he is himself well known as an artist and art critic; he is a fellow-Australian and knew Dobell personally. Click here to order $220

82951 Haese, Richard Rebels and Precursors - signed by author and Angry Penguins participants The Revolutionary Years of Australian Art Allen Lane/Penguin Books Australia Ltd., Ringwood, Vic., Australia, 1982. Reprint: quarto; hardcover, with decorated endpapers; 324pp., with many monochrome and colour illustrations. Signed in ink on the first blank page; some light spotting to the text block top edge. Dustwrapper sunned along the spine panel; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Very good. In the 1930s and 40s they were Australia's 'rebels' - Sidney Nolan, Albert Tucker, Arthur Boyd, John Perceval, Yosl Bergner, Noel Counihan and others, artists whose work reflected the intensity of their lives. Against a climate of the Great Depression, World War II and the beginnings of the Cold War, these artists and their older forerunners broke through to a new art. There were clashes between radical artists and conservative patrons, politicians, public figures; between one rebel faction and another. Richard Haese, in examining not only the art of the period but also the social and political preoccupations of these artists, their friends and their critics, recreates this remarkable scene in a way that enlarges our understanding of the intellectual forces of our development, the making of our traditions. This copy is signed by the author, Richard Haese, as well as two of the Angry Penguins circle, Barrett Reid and Max Harris. Click here to order $220

93224 Hard, Lynn & Gary Shead (illus.) The Unused Portion - inscribed by author and illustrator ETT Imprint, 2013. Limited edition of 100 copies. Quarto paperback; 76pp., monochrome drawings. A few spots on covers. Near fine otherwise. Inscribed to persons by author and artist. Click here to order $85

81377 Holden, Robert May Gibbs and Her Fantasy World: signed copy James Hardie, Sydney, 1984. Exhibition booklet produced for the Royal Botanic Gardens (Sydney) Exhibition. Signed octavo paperback; stapled booklet; unpaginated with colour and monochrome illustrations. Faint spotting to text block edges and small scrape on rear panel where a sticker has been removed. Very good to near fine otherwise. Click here to order $16

95261 Jacks, Robert His Bloomsday Book - signed Macmillan, South Yarra Vic., 2004. Signed and limited edition, this is no. 443 of 500 copies. Folio hardcover; black boards with silver gilt spine titling and upper board silver gilt decoration, blue/gray endpapers with artist's signed and numbered bookplate; unpaginated with colour illustrations and double fold-out page near the beginning. Minor wear only; a few scattered spots on upper text block edges and one or two superficial scratches on dustwrapper. Near fine otherwise. A dayfull of collages by Robert Jacks; a "joycepoem' by Peter Steele; an introduction to the artist by Patrick McCaughey; a comment on 'The Dead' by Patrick Hutchings; a memory of Dublin by Tate Adams; comments on the Day's End by Frances Devlin-Glass; Another Odyssey by Petr Herel; Joyce-Jacks text by Jenny Zimmer; And some 'sunnywinking' words from the first edition of 'Ulysses' by James Joyce - all in celebration of the centenary of 'Bloomsday', 16 June 2004. Click here to order $140

81367 Johnson, Michael Michael Johnson Paintings 1968-1988: signed copy Art Gallery NSW, 1989. Inscribed in ink to owner. Quarto paperback, unpaginated with colour illustrations. Some fold-out pages at rear. Lightly toned text block edges with minor wear to cover edges. Very good to near fine. Click here to order $45

61172 Lanceley, Colin Colin Lanceley - signed copy With an Introduction by Robert Hughes and interview by William Wright Craftsman House, East Roseville, 1988. Square quarto hardcover, 156pp., colour illustrations. Inscribed in ink to the owner on title page. Lightly spotted upper text block edge. Orange spine of dustwrapper slightly faded. Otherwise near fine. Robert Hughes traces the evolution of Lanceley's work from the larrikin love/hate images of Australia of his first exhibition in the '60s, to the 'structured paintings' with their elegance, vibrant colour and fastidious craftmanship, which he produced in the 1980s and '90s. Click here to order $65

61244 McGregor, Ken & Elizabeth Thomson David Larwill: signed by artist Craftsman House, Sydney, 1997. Signed quarto hardcover, 203pp., colour and monochrome illustrations. Minor wear only; fine in like dustwrapper professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. David Larwill evokes an extraordinary range of feelings, moods and expressions through his paintings and many of his works have considerable primal strength. The artistic experience is direct, and the viewer is obliged to respond spontaneously to the core truth of each work. This monograph surveys his career from the early Roar period to the 'Southern Tablelands' series and the 'Road Paintings' through to more recent works. The text documents the artist's life, the influences on his work and especially his great love of Aboriginal and tribal art. Click here to order $250

61224 Quartermaine, Peter Brian Seidel: signed, association copy Landscapes and Interiors Beagle Press, Sydney, 1993. Quarto hardcover, 128pp., colour illustrations. Inscribed in ink to critic Giles Auty. Minor wear only; near fine in like dustwrapper and professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Peter Quartermaine's text reveals Brian Seidel as an artist who is deeply involved with the sensuous qualities of paint and colour, passionate about light and landscape yet equally able to extract subtle poetic qualities of the figure in interiors. The text is supported by eighty-seven colour plates and thirty six black and white illustrations which provide a comprehensive survey of Seidel's work as a painter, draughtsman and printmaker. The book also includes a contribution from Jeffry Makin - a 'soliloquy' which epitomises the rapport between two artists who often go painting together and share a love for the subject matter of their painting and their commitment to art. Click here to order $60

41778 Ross, Peter Let's Face It - signed The History of the Archibald Prize Art Gallery of NSW, The Domain Sydney NSW, 1999. Quarto; gatefold paperback; 147pp., with many colour illustrations. Mild wear; signed in ink with a dedication to the half-title page; text block buckled. Very good. Signed by Peter Ross, Wendy Sharpe, William Robinson and Keith Looby; reinscribed by Wendy Sharpe to person. Click here to order $50

91578 Smith, Ivan (John Olsen, illus.) A Sliver of Time: signed by Ivan Smith Harper & Row, Sydney NSW, 1981. Quarto hardcover; blue boards with silver gilt spine titling and centre front board decoration, blue endpapers with lower corner white decorations; 80pp., colour illustrations by John Olsen. Inscribed in ink to owner. Minor wear; lower board edges and corners lightly rubbed; toning to text block and page edges and mild rubbing to dustwrapper. Very good to near fine, wrapper now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Third book of the trilogy which includes The Death of a Wombat and Dingo King. Click here to order $45

215389 Thomas, Daniel Outlines of Australian Art - signed The Joseph Brown Collection Macmillan Company of Australia Pty. Ltd., South Melbourne Vic., 1973. Square quarto; hardcover, full cloth with gilt spine-titling; 74pp., with many monochrome and full-colour illustrations. Mild wear; light toning to the text block edges; signed by the collection owner to the flyleaf; previous owner's name in ink to the flyleaf. Dustwrapper mildly rubbed; now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. Very good. Outlines of Australian Art is about the Joseph Brown Collection. It presents a chronological survey of over 200 years of Australian art, reproducing 407 works. Its great strength lies in its range of colonial, Victorian and Impressionist paintings. Glover, Martens, von Guerard and Buvelot are represented by some of their best works, and this book includes important works by artists such as William Dexter, Chester Earles, Richard Noble, Henry Gritten and J.H. Carse. Click here to order $70

61222 Trenerry, Elizabeth (ed.) John Borrack: signed by artist A Retrospective 1956 -1996 City of Whittlesea Art Gallery, South Morang, 1996. Quarto paperback, 96pp., colour illustrations. Minor wear only; near fine. Click here to order $40

86201 Weight, Greg Australian Artists: signed copy Chapter & Verse, Neutral Bay, 2004. Signed quarto hardcover; white boards with green upper board and spine titling; 203pp., monochrome illustrations. Minor wear only; near fine in like dustwrapper, now professionally protected by superior non-adhesive polypropylene film. In this book noted photographer Greg Weight invites us to visit more than 80 significant Australian artists. Many are captured in their studios, and each artist's portrait is accompanied by a personal response from Greg Weight to the artist or the shoot. Brief biographies of the artists provide more background information and help to place them in context in the current Australian art scene. Click here to order $75