Tramp Art

In over 600 color photos, this book presents historical images and introduces newly discovered artists of tramp art, complete with their known biographies. Made from society's discards, primarily wooden cigar boxes and wooden crates, tramp art is the story of the common man, unschooled in the arts, taking a simple tool to carve a legacy from the heart for all of us to enjoy and celebrate. The engaging text tells the personal stories of the creators of tramp art, including Augustus "Gus" Wynn, Levi Fisher Ames, Adolph Vandertie, John Kozimor, Robert Louis Kosmerl, Carl Briston, Ernest Huber, and Charles Mikkelsen. Also discussed are the collectors who cherished and brought tramp art into their lives. Examples of this unique art form include boxes, picture frames, miniature houses, and carousels that are marvels of meticulous detail. For anyone with a passion for folk art, this book will be a much-treasured addition to their library.

"Tramp art was most prevalent during the years of the Great Depression. All of the wood used in its construction is scrap and discard; a craft of itinerant carvers, most of it was made from the wooden cigar boxes of the era. Most fascinating is the fact that there are no written instructions for the construction or crafting of a piece of tramp art and it doesn't appear that there ever were.

Discover the romance of tramp art, folk art made made from discarded wooden cigar boxes, layer upon layer, one notch at a time, by untrained artists using simple tools and recycled materials. Tramp art crafters representing over 40 nationalities carved tramp art in America. It was also practiced throughout the world wherever cigars were smoked. These artists transformed the discarded boxes into pieces of utility and wonder. Never before has the subject been studied in such depth. Over 600 color photographs document 100s of items, ranging from picture frames and mirrors, to boxes, bureaus, and fantasy pieces. The designs and colors reflect a naive sensibility and aesthetic that is at once charming and beautiful. Here is a rich assemblage of the history of the art form and a thorough the study of the artists' lives and work. Misguided romantic mythologies long associated with tramp art are dispelled to leave an accurate picture of these noble notchers. A foreword by award-winning author and art historian Barbara Goldsmith sets the stage, and the pages that follow both celebrate the art and deepen our understanding of its roots and practitioners. This book will be treasured by folk art lovers everywhere.

Drawing on the natural folk art tendencies of children, who love to collect buttons, bottle caps, shells, and Popsicle sticks to create beautiful, imperfect art, this activity guide teaches kids about the history of this organic art and offers inspiration for them to create their own masterpieces. The full breadth of American folk art is surveyed, including painting, sculpture, decorative arts, and textiles from the 17th century through today. Making bubblegum wrapper chains, rag dolls, bottle cap sculptures, decoupage boxes, and folk paintings are just a few of the activities designed to bring out the artist in every child. Along the way kids learn about the lives of Americans throughout history and their casual relationships to everyday art as they cut stencils, sew needlepoint samplers, draw calligraphy birds, and design quilts. Important folk artists such as the last surviving Shakers, the legendary Grandma Moses, and the Reverend Howard Finster are also explored in sidebars throughout the book.

This book pays homage to the counterculture movement through the words and photographs of a select gathering of people who lived it.

Revised version of the book Tramp art originally published in 2000 by Design Originals.

Three men from Newark share anecdotes from their childhoods, teen years, and young adult lives after they pledge in high school to stay safe from drugs, gangs, and crime, and work to become doctors. The text contains violence.

'An absolute gem of a book' Alastair Humphreys First published in 1926, The Gentle Art of Tramping is as relevant now as then. Tramping is an approach: to nature, to humankind, to nations, to beauty, to life itself. This lost classic is a breath of fresh air for world-weary souls. It is a gentle art; know how to tramp and you know how to live. Know how to meet your fellow wanderer, how to be passive to the beauty of nature and how to be active to its wildness and its rigour. The adventure is not the getting there, it's the 'on-the-way'. It is not the expected, it is the surprise.