Mark Romanek: Music Video Stills

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The first book devoted to the award-winning directorial talents of Mark Romanek, this volume contains 175 color images from his acclaimed music videos.

SYNOPSIS

This book collects beautifully printed color images from Mark Romanek's award-winning music videos, featuring artists such as Beck, Sonic Youth, Janet Jackson, David Bowie, R.E.M., Fiona Apple, Nine Inch Nails, Madonna, Lenny Kravitz, and k.d. lang.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal

There is a danger in stilling something that's built for speed. Music videos, especially, are the stuff of visual overdrive, and viewing Romanek's award-winning frames on the static page is frustrating for fans overstimulated by computers and television. As 2001 approaches--an important year for Romanek, given his love for the late director Stanley Kubrick and his film 2001--the question remains whether image is enough to hold a gaze. Images from "Jump, They Say" (1993) provoke an affirmative answer mostly because of David Bowie's perversely photogenic face. Madonna, the artist with the most MTV Video Music Awards under her belt, fails to mesmerize, however, with her cliched poses from "Rain" (1993). Overall, the more compelling stills do not feature pop stars. For Nine Inch Nails's "The Perfect Drug" (1997) video, Romanek combined Edgar Allen Poe imagery (ravens and skulls) with Alice's Adventures in Wonderland hookahs and mazes. The 175 color images are clear and finely reproduced, but Romanek's "pleasantly disturbing dreams" remain more beautiful in motion. Recommended only for larger photography collections.--Heather McCormack, "Library Journal" Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\

Mark Jacobs

The televised trail of Mark Romanek is distinguished by a visual sophistication that challenged popular taste at a moment ripe for blurring the lines between art, fashion, and the music video. The conceit of re-presenting his workas stills in an art book is inevitable and welcome, loading his imagery with due photographic significance...Romanek allows his images the dramatic full-page moments they always were—and weren't.