The Printed Picture

by Richard Benson

The evolution of the printed object, right from early cave paintings all the way through to the most sophisticated print-making. Very accessible, very readable, beautiful. You can dip into this book anywhere. I’m opening it up now at colour carbon printing. There’s a gorgeous print of a flower on the right side and three paragraphs on the left explaining what colour carbon printing is. As a book it makes no extravagant claims. It’s quite modest and it has a real honesty to it. It’s a history of printing, but it’s also a beautiful example of what the history of printing has made possible.