Before going off to fight in the Civil War; many soldiers on both sides of the conflict posed for a carte de visite; or visiting card; to give to their families; friends; or sweethearts. Invented in 1854 by a French photographer; the carte de visite was a small photographic print roughly the size of a modern trading card. The format arrived in America on the eve of the Civil War; which fueled intense demand for the convenient and affordable keepsakes. Considerable numbers of these portrait cards of Civil War soldiers survive today; but the experiencesmdash;and often the namesmdash;of the individuals portrayed have been lost to time. A passionate collector of Civil Warndash;era photography; Ron Coddington became intrigued by these anonymous faces and began to research the history behind them in military records; pension files; and other public and personal documents.In Faces of the Civil War; Coddington presents 77 cartes de visite of Union soldiers from his collection and tells the stories of their lives during and after the war. The soldiers portrayed were wealthy and poor; educated and unschooled; native-born and immigrant; urban and rural. All were volunteers. Their personal stories reveal a tremendous diversity in their experience of war: many served with distinction; some were captured; some never saw combat while others saw little else. The lives of those who survived the war were even more disparate. While some made successful transitions back to civilian life; others suffered permanent physical and mental disabilities; which too often wrecked their families and careers. In compelling words and haunting pictures; Faces of the Civil War offers a unique perspective on the most dramatic and wrenching period in American history.
#405367 in eBooks 2013-04-30 2013-04-30File Name: B00AEDDRUI
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Its a challenge but will get you off the dime!By cccThe encounters [exercises] in this book are a challenge. As it says; paraphrased here; the person who goes into the exercises; encounters; is not the person who comes out. This is a tool along the same lines as The Artists Way by Julia Cameron. Its not navel-gazing because it puts you to work alone at home or in a group setting.It isnt art. Its very important to accept this as image-making as its called in the book. Also; use the term encounter to describe the timed sessions. In order to do the encounters it took plenty of preparation and problem-solving. I found an interval timer on You Tube that ran for one hour but beeped every 60 seconds and kept track of what minute of the 60 had been completed.I bought newsprint paper at the dollar store so that using 60 sheets of it in one hour was not too expensive or intimidating. Plus; newsprint isnt a glaring bright white which as a blank canvas is another kind of speed bump; maybe. I spread all kinds of media around: colored pencils; graphite; charcoal; markers; and paint but didnt use paint.Another speed bump was an Encounter which instructed to choose one convention that you see among the 60+ drawings displayed. I had to look up conventions. I found good guidance in the Jeffery Camp book DRAW which is another self-study option in itself.Next challenge was how to display the 60+ drawings as a whole collection for processing. The images can be unsettling and perhaps not something you want to share right away or maybe ever with the household? How to display these for guided review while maintaining privacy? I used garment racks on rollers covered with white flannel and pinned the sheets across and down. Ive since then ordered display board here on -- white cardboard folding boards. Report on that later.The book can be used as an independent self-study BUT do have a plan for support and context. It can also be used as remedial reading for artists and anybody who makes things. Its similar to the Kimon Nicholaides self-study book The Natural Way to Draw which also takes preparation and lots of paper.Yes; I agree with other reviewers that its wordy. The author in 1989 and feeling his way to communicating this method of getting unstuck; transformation; moving your creative life forward. Im very grateful.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. worth the read!By Gillian RThought provoking; unusual book. Still working through it but will likely reread. Practical exercises were not as helpful as I expected; but still good... and the concepts and ideas in the first chapters are def worth pondering. Actually borrowed this book from the library and because I couldnt finish it before it was requested by someone else; I bought it for myself.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy CustomerA classic. Worth reading.