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Steam Safari by Colin Garratt with dust jacket
Steam Safari by Colin Garratt
Last steam locomotives of the world
Hard cover with dust jacket (dust jacket has damage)
Copyright 1974 Blandford Press Ltd.
189 pages
Steam Safari is Colin Garratt's third book in his unique record of the 'Last Steam Locomotives of the World' (and his fourth book in The Blandford Colour Series), and this volume provides a superb visual survey of the steam locomotive in Africa.
In a one-man adventure lasting several maths he explored many parts of the continent in search of the embers of steam, from an unforgettable spell in the great Karroo Desert to the busy industrial lines of the South African gold mines; from the colourful livery of the historic East African Railway to a climb from the Indian Ocean at Mombasa to the highland plateau of Nairobi 332 miles inland. In these and other areas he splendidly captures with his camera and his pen the atmosphere and character of the countries he visits. He also writes with technical authority on the locomotives and railways which operate in these countries. He is at once an artist and an engineer; and this book will appeal to a wide range of readers.
As a lecturer, Colin Garratt is known for the inspiration which he derives from the Impressionist painters and their notable precursor, Turner, and in many of the photographs, which are beautifully produced in four-colour lithography, he captures his technical subjects with the sensitivity of a water-colourist.
INTRODUCTION
In this volume, I have attempted through pictures and words to show, as lucidly as possible, a remarkable aspect of a particular subject: the steam locomotive in Africa. Most engines featured are of British origin and I have discussed fairly voluminously their varied histories. But equally important are the feelings which these fascinating engines conjure up, along with the romantic aura which surrounds them. Engineers often claim there to be something basically suspect about such romanticisms; whilst an artist might claim equal awe of mechanical principles. The engineer will further state his works to be based upon sound scientific principles which are unarguable and easily enumerated, whereas the artist is merely fabricating illusions unto himself - illusions which might even be the result of an over-exerted or even slightly neurotic condition!
I hope that throughout the following pages, those made of 'sterner stuff' might come to appreciate the charm and voluptuousness of this wonderful subject. To those who already know, I can only hope that this book will invigorate their awareness and stimulate their interest.
It is not easy to put into words exactly how we feel and respond to things, nor is it easy to transmute our emotions and impressions to visual form. Given sufficient technique, the combination of words and pictures offers the artist an ultimate in communicative potential. Any shortcomings in his technique, perhaps combined with a prejudiced attitude from the recipient, can render null the most laboriously executed works, and the artist, though possibly close to his ideal, has failed to communicate and becomes as a lost soul in a crowded city.
Poor communications are among the deep tragedies of the human condition. On all levels of activity, confusion runs wild and possibly only in the most basic formulae of scientific or practical matters do the mists thin out into any kind of absoluteness.
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