New books...

Here are a few books that I got for Christmas that I have been too busy drooling over I havent had any time to talk about them.
My favorite one of the bunch is:
The Tattooed Lady: A History
by Amelia Klem Osterud

I thought this book was very intriguing because it gave a history as to why ladies (even back in the 1800's) felt the need to get tattoos. I think its neat to see the comparison of the "trendy" tattoos today to the old-school black and white tattoos of yesterday. It also goes into a lot of the history of tattoos and circus folk/women and how the tales that they would tell of their experiences getting the tattoos. Its really great.


Rock Candy
by Femke Hiemstra

This book is like a little folk tale, it has all sorts of little animals and creatures. It contains a lot of different types of pictures like sketches, ideas, and behind the scenes of her art. Not to mention she reminds me a little like Angelique Houtkamp (her personal style anyway, not artistic style) Its just a sweet little book.

High Fructose Collected Edition Vol 2: Under the Counter Culture
by Annie Owens & Attaboy

If you know about High-Fructose then you know that anything that comes out by them is going to be great. It got me thinking as to why I dont have a subscription to this great art magazine witch not only features up and coming artists but also highlights the greats like James Jean, Amy sol, Camille Rose Garcia, etc, etc. It is a great collection of unique and alternative art.

Weirdo Noir: Gothic and Dark Lowbrow Art
by Matt Dukes Jordan

At first I was a little apprehensive about this book, mostly because the first thought that came to my head was "Hey Im not a weirdo" but I think this book is meant to be a playful collection of different types of lowbrow art. It is great because it gives a timeline of the history of this kind of art and also goes into detail about why some people are inspired by the dark or creepy side of pop culture.