Product Description

With a breathtaking collection of photographs, this volume shows how rooms can be magically transformed through tromp-l'oeil murals, objects, paintings and fabrics, as well as with painted faux finishes that dazzle and beguile the viewer. These ingenious techniques turn wodden floors into opulent marble expanses, adorn plain walls with neoclassical moldings, upgrade ordinary furniture to period pieces, and add sumptuous garden views to windowless rooms.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #783253 in Books
• Published on: 1991-09-15
• Released on: 1991-09-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

About the Author
Karen S. Chambers writes about home design from a knowlegeable perspective of a fine arts background. She has acted as assistant curator at the Conemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, as well as sat on numerous art panels, curated exhibitions, and working in a number of New York City art galleries. Her work has apeared in a variety of peridicals, including The Designer Craft International and New Work.

Customer Reviews

An Illustrated History of Trompe L'Oeil
This book is a photographically illustrated essay on the history and current usage of trompe l'oeil. Trompe L'Oeil at Home has its inspiring moments but is definitely not a "how-to" manual. There are no instructions or diagrams on how to achieve any of the paint effects or murals shown. Most of the photos are from grand settings (estate homes, museums) or are ceramic dishes, fashion shots, building exteriors, movie sets, or pictures of wallpapers and borders. Less than half of the murals and projects would be used in an average home. Thus the book's title is misleading. The photographs selected for this book are primarily formal but some smaller projects are shown (bathroom "window", kitchen "shelves" etc.) The "Window with a View" (p.126) and its companion painting (untitled, p. 180 and back cover of the dust jacket) are wonderful examples of trompe l'oeil in the home. I wish more of the book was like that. There are no murals or projects with children's themes at all. For its type, this illustrated essay is an average read. If you are looking for something to inspire you in your work within the family home, or if you are looking for a "how-to" manual, you'd best keep looking.

Trompe L'Oeil at Home: Faux Finishes and Fantasy Setting
While there are dozens of books available with how-to instructions for a relatively small number of trompe l'oeil painting projects, very few provide a wealth of images for inspiration to let you see the possibilities. This book fills that void with a wide variety of settings, images and finishes ... enough to make you want to grab those how-to books collecting dust and plan your next (or first) attempt at trompe l'oeil!

useless
Though the photographs in this book may provide inspiration for interiors no instruction is provided for anyone interested in doing Trompe L'oeil themselves. The appendix lists artists and companies that provide this service but because the information is dated and no web addresses are provides even this information is useless.