Book Review: Ballpoint Art by Trent Morse

On the back of this 176-page paperback, it says "extraordinary art and the world's most ordinary pen". Yep, there are definitely some amazing pieces of artworks in this book. The words "painstakingly created with" should have been in that quote too.

Ballpoint Art features 30 contemporary artists with their ballpoint drawn art. There's a good variety of art featured but the quality is sort of a mixed bag. The good ones can be really amazing, and the rest are well, just good, or interesting. But the variety is good.

I can understand using paint, pencil or other medium for creating detailed artworks but when it comes to using pen and ink, somehow it always feels that it's more tedious. On page 89 is a full page of hatched lines by Angiola Giatti. I wonder what's going on in her mind when she was drawing away, line by line, on the 78 by 102 inch canvas. And then I read her thoughts on the opposite page. All these artists are basically pushing the boundaries at what can be achieved with the humble ballpoint.

It's fascinating to look at all the art and read about the artists. It's actually not so much about what was drawn, but I really found myself drawn to figuring out what's in the minds of these artists when the attempt to create the artworks in this book.

This book uses cream coloured matte paper which I'm not sure how well they will stand up to yellowing in the future.

Overall, it's a nice book that showcases different artists, drawing styles and some wonderful ballpoint art.

If you like this book, check out The Art of Ballpoint by Matt Rota as well.

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This review copy is provided by book seller and distributor APD Singapore (website | facebook). You can get the book from them and major bookstores in Southeast Asia.

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