Drawing Fashion: The Art of Kenneth Paul Block

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The Art of Kenneth Paul Block is a long awaited book of astonishingly vibrant fashion and portrait drawings of swan necked beauties by a much admired fashion-insider. Mr. Block studied at The Parsons school of Design and illustrated the work of the most influential fashion designers from about the mid 20th century to the nineties before unoriginal, mediocre photography (and unskilled illustrations) completely dominated how fashion was communicated to the celebrity obsessed, style challenged, uninformed masses. With seemingly effortless ease (the energy in the art looks like it could have been sketched yesterday!), Mr. Block drew the ever changing mood of fashion from London Mod to Italian Modern, Preppy Classic to Japanese Experimental, French couture to American casual and inspired many generations of fashion enthusiasts in the process. Mr. Block's portraits showcase a few of his favorite ladies. A rare and exquisite breed who set the standard for elegance and chic for most of the 20th century. Society beauties like Mrs. Guinness, Mrs. Paley, Mrs. Guest, Mrs.Vanderbilt and Mrs.Kennedy speak of a time when grace, poise and mystery mixed with a certain sense of knowing defined a chic, stylish lady. These ladies took pride in their dress and manners, forever refining their personal presentation while facing life's challenges at full gallop...no wonder they are legendary....and his drawings of them continue to delight.Included in the book are also several personal, previously unpublished drawings of legendary eccentrics as well as published drawings of lush interiors and glamorous accessories...further highlighting Mr. Block's wonderful wit,extraordinary sense of observation and imagination.It is also important to mention the role Mr. Fairchild (the publisher of WWD and W) played in showcasing Mr. Block's drawings of the best in high fashion and high society. Not a hard decision to make when you fall under the spell of mr. Block's mastery in handling paint, pencil and the utilitarian,lowly magic marker in deliciously expressive gestures. What Mr. Block did with a marker,is Magic indeed. An essential book celebrating the work of an American Artist with a rare and elegant eye.

I got this book as I read an article about Kenneth Paul Block. I used to cut out his illustrations from the WWD newspaper. I still have them. However, nothing is better than this gorgeous book with all the history of Mr. Block's life and work. I was so excited to know he had a book, and lucky to had found it in Amazon market, and I had to buy it. The foreword by Yves Saint Laurent said it all, "It is a pity, but today there are no more fashion illustrators." And indeed, with all the ever evolving technology there is no place for a "true artist" where the magnificent creations in fashion come alive!

My wife, B.J. has asked me to forward her review of Drawing Fashion: She writes:"As a former advertising fashion artist in the sixties, I was especially thrilled with Kenneth Paul Block's new book. I have been a fan of his work in WWD, W and various fashion magazines for many years. I have in my files a great many copies of his drawings from these publications. I love this big book full of his fashion sketching masterpieces with interesting narrations. I agree with the designers and others that photography cannot capture the exciting proportions and movements of the figure as well as KPB did. His illustrations are fabulous! I'll never understand why W magazine does not use his drawings. (I wrote a letter to them on this subject several years ago.) My only criticism of the book is with the descriptive type face that is unnecessarily small. This is a beautiful, colorful, marvelous book to enjoy over and over."B. J. HAGGLAND

Drawing Fashion: 'The Art of Kenneth Paul Block' is a beautiful book.I was looking for a book that had fashion drawings done in a variety of techniques. This Book has provided this in spades. Ordering it from Amazon.com was a great way to save a lot of money!I would certainly recommend this Book to fashion art students and art students, alike. There are a lot of visual examples in the drawings that would help all kinds of artists stretch their way of approaching their work.It is worth every penny!P.G.

The illustrations in this book are just wonderful... The book is quite large and packed full with images that inspire!....I love doing mixed media art with the figure as the main focus, and this book gives me loads of ideas. Although this is one of the more expensive books I have in my collection... it is WELL WORTH THE PRICE!!.... I would buy it again in a heartbeat!

Beautiful book: a testament to KPB's work and position in the history of fashion illustration. He will be greatly missed, but at least we have this legacy, a record of his achievements. While some of my favorite examples of his work didn't make it into this book, many I never saw did, so it is still a pleasure to visit again and again.

Recommended by one of my teachers at Parsons, this book lived up to its expectations. It is a privilege to be able to see the art of the true artist, Kenneth Paul Block, all condensed into this lovely book. Sadly, the art of illustration is no longer as honoured as before. Even the movement expressed by the figure on the cover of the book is truly inspiring!

Un artista increíble, aunque no estés interesado en la moda es un retratista increíble y lo logra con unos solos trazos. El movimiento de la figura, la estilización. El libro en sí está bellísimo, de una calidad increíble. Imperdible para artistas, diseñadores de moda o interesados en las artes plásticas en general.