The Art of Michael Parkes

I cannot tell you how long I have been waiting for this book. Years.

It all started with the first Michael Parkes monograph, The World of Michael Parkes, which was published in 1998 and went out of print almost immediately. It was published in a limited run, so by the time I discovered Michael Parkes' art around 2000-2001 there were no copies of The World of Michael Parkes to be found. I searched around for it on Amazon and Ebay every once in a while. The cheapest that I ever saw it was in the ball park of $200.

So, I told myself to be patient. If Michael Parkes was really so popular, it was only a matter of time before the publishers put together another monograph. AND, low and behold, The Art of Michael Parkes was published in 2006. I was visiting the website of a gallery in California which sells Parkes' work online, and I discovered that the book had been published. I get all my Michael Parkes news from the Avalon Gallery website because not only do they have pictures of current and previous Michael Parkes lithographs and paintings, but it has artist bios and news from other wonderful artists, like two of my other favorites, Danial Merriam and Juan Kelly. If you have a moment, you should visit the website and see what I'm talking about.


But anyway, I digress. I discovered the book had been published, so immediately, I started hunting around for it. However, I only discovered that this book was published during winter break, almost 2007, as in almost a year after the book was published. This book was also published in a limited run: a run of only 5000, which in the publishing world is a very limited run. So, as I hunted around, I started to run into the same problem: copies on Ebay for over $100, etc. BUT, I found my copy new from the Amazon Market Place for the publisher's price. LUCKY.

And I'm so happy with it, I love leafing through the pages and looking at Parkes' surrealist, fantasical art: right up my alley.

So, anyway, when we get right down to it, this book was well worth the wait. Everything I wanted.

*Both of the images above can be found at the Avalon Gallery webpage.