What are the best burger joints in San Francisco? Which local craft breweries are worth visiting? Where should you go to find the coolest surf gear? The 500 Hidden Secrets of San Francisco is the perfect guide for anyone who’s keen to explore the city’s best-kept secrets. It guides the reader to the places not typically included in tourist guides. Like a secret fairy door in Golden Gate Park or the truly steepest hills in the city. At the same time, it also lists fantastic places frequented by San Francisco residents, like where to shop for local goods and antiques, or where to go for a fabulous brunch and the best craft cocktails in the city. Packed with hundreds of places to go, things to do, and good-to-know facts about the city, The 500 Hidden Secrets of San Francisco will help you make the most of your visit to one of the United States’ coolest towns.
Discover the series at the500hiddensecrets.com
“If you really want to get under the skin of a city, the 500 Hidden Secrets series, which covers a number of cities from Havana to Ghent, all written by people who know the cities inside out, is ideal. It’s an innovative and refreshing take on the traditional travel guide.” – The Independent
The perfect book for those who wish to discover the locals’ favorite spots in Venice, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. Avoiding the usual tourist haunts, this affectionate guide provides a fresh perspective on the must-visit spots and introduces you to Venice’s best-kept secrets, such as 5 restaurants that most tourists will never find, 5 cozy markets in the open air, the 5 most beautiful buildings by architect Carlo Scarpa, 5 convents where you can spend the night, the 5 nicest bookshops for kids and much more.
Where to go for the best pints of Guinness in Dublin? Or when you’re craving the ultimate sandwich? And what are the 5 shops you absolutely have to visit on Grafton Street? Shane O’Reilly knows! With lots of love and enthusiasm, he shares hundreds of his favorite places in his hometown of Dublin, like the wood-panelled and plush club serving as a multi-purpose arts center, Ireland’s oldest reggae shop, or the stunning and family-run delicatessen serving up delicious seafood straight from the ocean half a mile away. The 500 Hidden Secrets of Dublin is the perfect book for those who wish to discover the city, but avoid all the usual tourist haunts, as well as for residents who are keen to track down the city’s best-kept secrets.
Discover the series at the500hiddensecrets.com
To document and preserve an ancient craft tradition in danger of disappearing, Douglas Brooks apprenticed with five master boatbuilders in Japan between 1996 and 2010, building a different traditional wooden boat with each. His research and experiences were presented in his landmark 2015 publication, Japanese Wooden Boatbuilding. This book documents his most recent apprenticeship, building a cormorant fishing boat with 85-year-old master craftsman Seichi Nasu, in Gifu, Japan.
Using trained cormorants to fish has a 1,300 year history in Gifu, and is done at night from special river craft called ubune, literally “cormorant boat.” The boat features an extended bow with pivoting boom from which is hung an iron fire basket to light up the water and attract fish, which are then retrieved by the enthusiastic birds.
Together with Mr. Nasu, then 85, Brooks worked with several volunteers over a two-month period to build the 42 foot craft, a design largely unchanged for centuries. As in his previous publications, readers are introduced to important aspects of traditional Japanese boatbuilding, including design and measurements, workshop and tools, wood and materials, joinery and fastenings, and above all, secrets of the craft.
In The 500 Hidden Secrets of Madrid, Anna-Carin Nordin presents 500 must-know addresses in the Spanish capital, such as the 5 trendiest but affordable restaurants, 5 shops with the coolest sunglasses, 5 places that are decorated by the new generation of Madrid’s designers, 5 buzzing after-work bars or the 5 most curious street names… Madrid has so much to offer, and this guide helps you to choose where to start discovering this beautiful city. It is the perfect book for those who wish to discover the city, but avoid all the usual tourist haunts, as well as for residents who are keen to track down the city’s best-kept secrets.
The 500 Hidden Secrets of Rome helps you set out to discover the most attractive, fun and unique places in Italy’s capital. Luisa Grigoletto and Christopher Livesay share 500 addresses and facts that many tourists don’t know, sometimes off the beaten track, but always loved by the locals and worth a visit.
This book lists, among other things, the 5 best gelaterías, the 5 most beautiful historic shops, 5 breathtaking palazzi which played an important role in art history and 5 sites where major Italian films were shot. It is the perfect book for those who wish to discover the city, but avoid all the usual tourist haunts, as well as for residents who are keen to track down the city’s best-kept secrets.
The 500 Hidden Secrets of Rotterdam is a guide to the city’s hidden gems. It takes you off the beaten track to discover the city’s turbulent history, its modern architecture, its little-known museums, the best restaurants and the coolest clubs.
True locals Saskia Naafs & Guido van Eijck selected 500 addresses and facts about Rotterdam that few people know and presents them in lists of 5, alongside beautiful photographs. Guido and Saskia’s favorite addresses include a former harbor warehouse turned daily fresh market where you can sample a perfect locally roasted coffee or a homemade cider, a bright-red light-vessel ship where you can attend an intimate concert, or a former subtropical swimming paradise where you can grow your own oyster mushrooms.
Whether you’re using a top-notch camera or the one on your phone, anyone can practise being more present through photography. One Photo A Day Keeps the Doctor Away will help you do just that, through 160 photography challenges that help you to slow down and look around.
To inspire you, each challenge is accompanied by a carefully selected quote, sourced from a diverse collection of books by inspiring thinkers, writers, artists and philosophers – all of them experts in the art of looking, seeing and being.
Taking a moment out of your busy day to create a thoughtful image will sharpen your focus and creativity. Share your discoveries with the world, using the hashtag for the challenge, so others can see what you saw.
Now, open the book and pick a photo challenge. What will your photo look like today?
#onephotoaday
“A lush, illustrated book shows the “Equestrian Life” in the rich paradise around New York – and is also great fun for non-equestrians.” — Monopol
“His book overflows with breathtaking imagery and rich history.” — Frederic
Equestrian life has an enduring appeal for many of us, but it has a special place in the hearts of Hamptonites. Written by renowned fashion and lifestyle editor, Blue Carreon — an avid equestrian who lives and breathes the Hamptons when not in Manhattan — this luxurious book is his photographic showcase of the glamorous, often exclusive, and intriguing horse-sporting life in the Hamptons. This is a place dotted by bucolic barns and exclusive stables, coexisting with the shingle-style mansions with sweeping manicured lawns and modernist beach houses with uninterrupted views of the dunes and ocean beyond. Wending and looping through the picturesque hills and townships of the Hamptons are horseback-riding trails, world-class public and private equestrian facilities and estates, and premier blue-ribbon horse shows, polo competitions, and more. Blue Carreon also explores the hard work that comes with the glamor that comes with the sport. The thrill and danger that come with the sound of a horse’s galloping steps; the frustration of falls and ecstasy of big wins. Equestrian Life in the Hamptons offers a historic framework to the evolution of equestrian culture in the region, provides details on stables and how they are designed, barn and tack room tours, and the fashions on and off the field (both human and equine) as well as interiors inspired by all things equestrian. These pages are jam-packed with stories and interviews with not only the wealthy weekenders but with those who have devoted their life to their equine passions and the equestrian life.
In 1751, John Holker (1719-1786), an English textile manufacturer exiled in France, undertook an industrial espionage mission to England to collect samples of English textiles on behalf of the French king, Louis XV. On his return, the samples were assembled in a manuscript volume, which is now preserved at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris. Each sample in this album is accompanied by a handwritten technical description specifying the quality of the fabric, its price, its dimensions and the manufacturing processes. This album is famous for preserving the oldest identifiable samples of jean fabric.
Completely bilingual, the book includes a facsimile reproduction of the album, accompanied by a transcription of its handwritten text and a dozen essays. The essays, written by academics, curators and specialists from France, Britain and North America, explore the album from various angles: the globalization of commerce, the slave trade, industrial espionage, economic rivalry between France and England, the taste for cotton and its role in the history of fashion, etc. The book demonstrates the importance of centuries-old links between France and the United Kingdom and is an indispensable work of reference for the history of textiles.
Text in English and French.
It’s easy to fall in love with the Hamptons. Charming towns, pristine beaches – and that luminous light cherished by locals and generations of beach lovers. While it’s famous for its magnificent mansions and coiffed hedges, there is so much more here to than meets the eye. Come find the hidden secrets of the Hamptons waiting to be discovered with 111 Places in the Hamptons That You Must Not Miss. Hang ten at a secret surfers’ beach. See the studio where artist Jackson Pollock painted his masterpieces. Get lost in a field of lavender. Visit a haunted lighthouse. Ride a horse along a secluded beach. Take a stroll in the graveyard where Picasso’s forgotten muse is buried. From wood-shingled windmills to hydrangea-rimmed roads. White, sandy beaches – to calm, bayside views. These places of nature, history, art, and delightful quirkiness are the very reasons why the East End of Long Island has become one of the most beloved travel destinations in the world.
The Kama Sutra is a two thousand year old mystical treatize on sexuality – read and revered for generations. This first ever collector’s edition takes a contemporary look at the perennial classic and pairs the ancient text with vibrantly colored and richly detailed illustrations.
Rare miniatures, gouache and tantric paintings are published here for the first time. The gold edged book comes in a hand made box made of pure silk. The lavish packaging and sumptuous production of the book makes it a remarkable keepsake.
Artists in Roman Italy created exquisite landscapes that reflect close ties with their environment, ranging from images of sunny seaside villas and tranquil country shrines to colorful views of Greece and Egypt. This groundbreaking volume explores the intimate connections between these works and ancient Romans’ social, political and religious lives. Essays by six distinguished scholars discuss landscapes in a variety of media that decorated urban houses and tombs in Rome, Pompeii and Herculaneum and sumptuous coastal villas on the Bay of Naples. The catalog features more than 65 wall paintings, marble sculptures, mosaics, and costly drinking vessels in silver and cameo glass from 100 BC to AD 200, including rarely seen works from museums and archeological sites in Italy. Richly illustrated, this timely volume reflects shared human concerns about control and development of the land, about the competing demands of wealth and piety, and about preserving natural resources.
The ancient treasures collected over the past 20 years by Ludovic Donnadieu, hail from a myriad of ancient cultures, famous or obscure, across all five continents. The selection maintains a balanced representation of different geographical areas, ensuring that all regions of the world and all historical or prehistoric periods are accounted for. Through this comprehensive panorama, the viewer is invited on a cultural and anthropological journey through time and space.
The showcased artworks are “miniatures”; few exceed a size of 20 centimeters. Indeed, an artwork doesn’t need to be monumental to evoke profound emotional impact and fascination! Fragility can endure, the minuscule can embody grandeur, and singular detail can convey a universal message.
This selection of 99 works, forming a unique ensemble worldwide, adheres to a triple criterion: authenticity, aesthetic quality, and balance, both among the represented subjects and across different forms, materials, or functions. The period covered spans from 6,000 BC to the early 20th century. Presenting this collection to the public holds a dual significance: in a world threatened by uniformity, it celebrates the richness and diversity of human cultures while also highlighting the beauty and grandeur of small-scale formats and the need to protect what is fragile.
The Donnadieu Foundation was established in 2023, under the aegis of the Foundation for Childhood, by Ludovic Donnadieu, art collector, certified public accountant, and founder of the firm Donnadieu & Associates, which specialized in securing funds entrusted to NGOs. The Foundation aims to enable young people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, to broaden their horizons and engage in civic activism, while also raising awareness among the general public and policymakers about the importance of culture for the world’s youth.
Text in English and French.
The Graphic Garden
is the first monograph from Keith Williams, a partner, along with Mario Nievera, of Nievera Williams Design – one of the country’s leading landscape architectural firms. Based in South Florida, Williams has been designing sumptuous outdoor spaces for over 20 years.
In this book, Williams highlights his most impressive projects to date which includes the revitalization of several historically landmarked homes and properties. He often integrates both native and exotic plants, builds opulent swimming pools, and brings in mature trees and stone work, all of which result in stunning gardens that are brimming with lush, tropical foliage. More than just plantings, other design elements featured include whimsical pool cabanas, a vertical garden wall, a loggia inspired by the architecture of Bermuda, Moorish-tiled fountains, and stone-paved motor courts. In showing the transformations and process of these monumental design projects, the book highlights Williams’s penchant for sustainability, and his efforts to honor the natural, existing landscape while never compromising the design to create spectacularly distinctive gardens.
In the 1970s, in the region of the Landes, between Bayonne and Peyrehorade, on the banks of the Adour River, the photographer Jeannette Leroy and the art dealer Paul Haim created a sculpture garden around a modest farm, La Petite Escalère.
Paul Haim has evoked the bewitching beauty of La Petite Escalère better than anyone else: “The nonchalant visitor will pass from the shade of Les Barthes to the brightness of the Moura, from the freshness of the fountains to the suffocating heat of the forest. Coming around a bush, he allows himselfto be surprised by an unusual presence. Immutable. … Far from the agitations of the world, sinking into nothing-ness, watching the clouds go by, contemplating the places of joy.”
Text in English and French.
All prints have value: instead of fussing over making the perfect gelatin silver print, for example, Bruno V. Roels realized that all printed versions of an image have value, and he decided to not show that one perfect print, but all of them, in one composition. Some of his compositions consist of hundreds variations of one single negative, all printed in the dark room. Photography is a mimetic art, it imitates life. But Roels pushes it further: when printing variants of one image; he creates a mimetic feedback loop. He uses the iconic image of a palm tree to prove his point. All palm trees look alike, and as a symbol the plants are highly recognizable. Because palm trees are so widely recognizable, he’s free to deconstruct his own notions of photography, while trying to get away from the “tyranny of camera viewfinders and rectangular boxes of enlarging papers”. Introduction for the book written by Simon Baker.
Text in English and Dutch.
Giant Willow Oak by Amanda Sauer is an intimate meditation on time, nature, and our relationship with the living world. Through a series of deeply contemplative photographs, Sauer documents her years-long engagement with a single majestic willow oak in Washington, D.C. This tree, a towering presence in the U.S. National Arboretum, becomes a silent witness to the passing of seasons and shifting light. Sauer’s approach is both scientific and poetic—she circles the tree counterclockwise, mirroring the Earth’s rotation, creating an orbit of reverence and discovery. The resulting images capture the subtle transformations of bark, leaves, and shadow, revealing the quiet power of patient observation. Handcrafted with exquisite attention to detail, Giant Willow Oak is not just a photographic study but a lyrical homage to endurance, change, and the profound presence of trees in our collective memory. A testament to the interplay between nature and artistic vision.
A sumptuous celebration of one of the world’s most striking photograph collections from 1967 to 2017. This publication celebrates fifty years of collecting photographs at the National Gallery of Canada. In 1967, when the collection was established, the photography market was in its infancy and the collection reflects the availability of in-depth collections of work by some of the forefathers of the medium such as Charles Nègre, William Henry Fox Talbot, Gustave Le Gray and Roger Fenton, among others. Within a few short years of starting to build the collection the science of photographic preservation and conservation was making remarkable strides and influencing the acquisition and exhibition of photographs in museums. This publication celebrates the collecting of photographs, the historical and art historical context of their making and the deepening of our understanding of their physical nature. The work of 164 artists, such as: Benoit Aquin; Diane Arbus; Eugène Atget; Nicolas Baier; Edouard Baldus; Brassaï; Julia Margaret Cameron; Henri Cartier-Bresson; Lynne Cohen; Benjamin John Dancer; Walker Evans; Robert Frank; Lee Friedlander; Isabelle Hayeur; Arnaud Maggs; Robert Mapplethorpe; John Max; Lisette Model; Eadweard Muybridge; Charles Nègre; William McFarlane Notman; Marc Ruwedel; Jospeph Sudek; William Henry Fox Talbot and vernacular and news photographs by unknown photographers will also be included.
Health Service has held a place at the heart of the nation. Promising to care for the citizens of Britain ‘from the cradle to the grave’, it offers universal health care for all, regardless of wealth or status. This book celebrates the triumphs and trials of the NHS through the years, highlighting key events and medical milestones, and providing a timely reminder of the importance of maintaining this vital institution that has long been the envy of all nations. Publishing to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the NHS.
Greenwich is the one London district whose name resonates around the world. As ‘the place where time began‘, everyone has heard of it, so naturally everyone wants to come here when they visit the capital.
With a memorable and picturesque Thames-side location, its maritime history means that there‘s more to see here per square foot than any other outer London neighborhood, and this new guide tells you how to do it.
111 Places not only tracks down the most interesting nuggets among Greenwich’s mainstream sights, from the Cutty Sark to the Meridian Line, it also lifts the lid on the area’s lesser-known attractions – from haunted Jacobean houses and mudlarking in Deptford Creek to classic pie and mash shops and famous riverside pubs. It explores beyond the confines of Greenwich town centre, turning up treasures like Henry VIII’s favorite residence, Eltham Palace – now an Art Deco gem – and nearby engineering feats like the Thames Barrier.
You could come to London and spend half your time in Greenwich, and we wouldn’t blame you if you did. This book tells you how to make the most of London‘s maritime borough.
The Caravane Earth Foundation presents The Majlis book, a rich and colourful documentation of the creation of the “Majlis” exhibition, a multi-layered nomadic project at the 17th annual Biennale di Venezia. The book tracks the multifaceted nature of the exhibition itself, which comprised an architectural object, an exhibition, and a garden, all three hosted by the Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice, Italy. Additionally, the book tells the broader story of Caravane Earth, chronicling research conducted by the foundation and the key ideas that form its philosophy and agenda. The Majlis highlights the main elements of the project in Venice while giving an introduction to key members of Caravane’s community of experts.
With a narrative structure broken into four sections – Exhibition, Architecture, Craft, and Earth – The Majlis book features interviews with important figures and institutions from these fields, stunning visual documentation of the creation process and featured artefacts, and critical writings on permaculture, architecture, and craft. Featuring discussions with the Smithsonian Foundation, landscape architect Todd Longstaffe-Gowan, The International Network for Traditional Building, Architecture & Urbanism (INTBAU), director and curators of the Sheikh Faisal Museum, and many more, the collection provides a deep look and education into the many causes championed by Caravane Earth.
Tong Jun was an outstanding architect and architectural educator in contemporary China. He was widely considered an all-round talent in theory, creation, writing and painting in Chinese architecture. He had a deep foundation in ancient Chinese literature, and studied Chinese classical poetry since childhood. While studying at the University of Pennsylvania, he won many awards in the national architectural student design competition. He has left behind many works and manuscripts on landscape, architecture, and architecture history, sculpture history, and painting history that have enlightened and educated many generations. However, there are few records about him. This book recollects the last 20 years of his life, and introduces the reader to the very real and vivid practitioner that was Tong Jun.
“The Turner Prize winner leads a visual tour through his life in six artworks – from college days to knighthood.” — Telegraph
Grayson Perry is one of Britain’s most celebrated contemporary artists and cultural figures. This book, which includes first sight of new and previously unpublished works, is published to accompany the largest-ever retrospective of Perry’s art. It offers a vibrant insight into his life and work, from his youth in rural Essex to sell-out stage shows at the Royal Albert Hall.
Grayson Perry vividly reflects on his art, life and career, remembering the sources of inspiration and influences along the way. Victoria Coren Mitchell’s thought-provoking contribution considers the role of humour in Perry’s art, highlighting the often-underestimated effort involved in being at once a serious artist and a lovable character. Patrick Elliott provides an illuminating biographical essay of the artist. The reader is also given a fascinating glimpse into the technique and process behind Perry’s prints, pots and tapestries.
Showcasing 75 exhibited works, the book covers the full range and breadth of his astonishing career.