The Nullification Crisis of 1832-33 is undeniably the most important major event of Andrew Jackson's two presidential terms. Attempting to declare null and void the high tariffs enacted by Congress in the late 1820s, the state of South Carolina declared that it had the right to ignore those national laws that did not suit it. Responding swiftly and decisively, Jackson issued a Proclamation reaffirming the primacy of the national government and backed this up with a Force Act, allowing him to enforce the law with troops. Although the conflict was eventually allayed by a compromise fashioned by Henry Clay, the Nullification Crisis raises paramount issues in American political history. The Union at Risk studies the doctrine of states' rights and illustrates how it directly affected national policy at a crucial point in 19th-century politics. Ellis also relates the Nullification Crisis to other major areas of Jackson's administration--his conflict with the National Bank, his Indian policy, and his relationship with the Supreme Court--providing keen insight into the most serious sectional conflict before the Civil War.

You can achieve great results with polymer clay! With the 50+ techniques in this book, you can create polymer clay buttons or boxes or anything in between. Starting with the very basics (such as rolling, baking and gluing), Sue then moves on to more advanced methods: marbling, texturing, millefiori, bead-making, faux-stone effects and more. Feature spreads show exciting ways to combine techniques. You'll find this a comprehensive guide to the medium, complete with everything from a listing of necessary tools and materials to inspiring examples of polymer clay art.

Polymer-clay crafters everywhere can learn how to sculpt realistic 6"-8" figures using the author's simple techniques. A well-known polymer clay teacher and sculptor, she shares a wealth of information that's accessible even to beginning sculptors. She covers the essentials, the fundamentals of figurative modelling and how to make the tools that will ensure success. She shows readers how to recreate faces and expressions, torsos, legs, hands and feet, all using simple techniques. Then there are finishing touches like clothing, costumes, paint and fibre plus the author demonstrates incredibly realistic butterfly or fairy wings. Topics herein include: selecting clay, making modelling tools, proportioning figures, posing, ethnic and gender subtleties, facial expressions, costumes in clay and finishing touches.

Sculpt toys and collectibles with modern-day tools, techniques and applications used by today’s top industry professionals Ever since a 12-inch G.I. Joe took toy soldiers to a whole new level by giving them the ability to pose via moveable parts, as well as interchangeable clothing and accessories, the business of creating pop sculpture icons for the mass market was off and running. Superheroes came next, followed by TV show and movie characters, most notably those from Star Wars. Today, action figures exist for sports stars, rock stars, even presidents.  With today’s blockbuster success of animated films, action figures and collectibles have become a behemoth industry—with a growing need for skilled artists who can bring these characters to life. So how do you get started? The trio of veteran industry insiders who authored this book take you on an incredibly thorough journey that begins with drawing conceptual drafts and continues through rough sculpting and honing the final product. Along the way, you’ll learn how to research your character, shape casts from a variety of materials including wax and resin, make accessories, articulate characters so that they are poseable, paint them, and ultimately convince an art director to buy and manufacture them. Whether you want to make small PVC toys, collectible statues, or larger high-end collectibles, Pop Sculpture offers step-by-step demos and words of wisdom from the pros.

Benvenuto Cellini was a celebrated Renaissance sculptor and goldsmith; a passionate craftsman who was admired and resented by the most powerful political and artistic personalities in sixteenth-century Florence, Rome and Paris. He was also a murderer and a braggart, a shameless adventurer who at different times experienced both papal persecution and imprisonment, and the adulation of the royal court. Inn-keepers and prostitutes, kings and cardinals, artists and soldiers rub shoulders in the pages of his notorious autobiography: a vivid portrait of the manners and morals of both the rulers of the day and of their subjects. Written with supreme powers of invective and an irrepressible sense of humour, this is an unrivalled glimpse into the palaces and prisons of the Italy of Michelangelo and the Medici.

In a survey of Californian-based artist Mike Kelly, the author of this volume discusses with the artist his various aesthetic and symbolic strategies in both the American and In European contexts. Kelly's work is considered in the context of his anti-art predecessors since Dada and chronicles all of Kelly's work, from his earliest performances in the late 1970s to his large sculptural installations in the 1990s.

Discover the beauty of Garden Mosaics Inside Garden Mosaics Made Easy you’ll find 25 fabulous projects that show you just how easy it is to enhance the natural beauty of your home and garden with simple and elegant mosaics. Using stone, tile, china and broken and shaped glass, you can create gorgeous garden art, from stepping stones and butterfly feeders to wind chimes and more! • Learn a variety of mosaic methods, including groutless techniques • Discover how easy it is to create mosaics with the help of detailed project patterns and step-by-step photography • Find a wealth of ideas for displaying and using your mosaic projects • Be inspired by a gallery of even more mosaic projects, from simple to more advanced Garden Mosaics Made Easy offers you all the information you need to begin creating your own gorgeous mosaics. Bring the beauty of mosaics to your home and garden today!

Offering meticulous descriptions of the body's anatomical features, Lanteri — an intimate friend of Rodin — covers modelling from casts and live models; measurements; frameworks; scale of proportions; composition in both relief and in the round; drapery; adding inscriptions; and much more. 107 full-page photographic plates. 27 other photographs. 175 drawings and diagrams.

Japanese cuisine is renowned for the beauty of its presentation. Among the key elements in this presentation style are mukimono--the decorative garnishes and carvings that add the final flourish to a dish. It might be a carrot round in the shape of a plum blossom. Or a scattering of cherry blossoms plucked from a radish. Perhaps a swallow, a butterfly, a ginkgo leaf or a cluster of pine needles. Whatever the motif, it will have been created to delight the eye and the palate with its shape, color, and taste. In The Decorative Art of Japanese Food Carving, internationally acclaimed chef Hiroshi Nagashima offers 60 edible garnishes and food carvings for home, party or professional use. Some are designed to be set on top of the food. Others are fashioned to hold the food--and sometimes, they simply are the food. Each is introduced in full color, with easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions, sample food arrangements, further ideas and secret, insider tips for successful presentation. Most are simple enough for the amateur chef to master, although a few are quite challenging and require much practice. Nagashima's instructions rely on household utensils found in a typical American kitchen--from knives to peelers to cookie cutters--and use familiar, easily attainable ingredients. The Decorative Art of Japanese Food Carving is more than a practical handbook, however. It is also an inspiration book, filled with creative suggestions and inventive ideas to enhance and transform the way we cook.