Wood is a fundamental natural resource for building. Environmentally sustainable building is a worldwide trend.
Wood is widely available and widely used, particularly in creating buildings that connect to the environment and have low energy consumption.
This book brings together wooden houses of different styles from all over the world, featuring contrasting yet contemporary residential homes for a new age of environmentally responsible construction.
The 2000s proved a turning point for the skateboard and its relationship to art. Previously restricted to practical use, the skate deck left the pavement to appear on the walls of galleries and auction houses. Such was the advent of an entirely new contemporary art movement, laconically baptized Skate Art. From silk-screening to Posca markers, from repurposing and twisted shapes to upcycling broken boards, SkateArt is an anthology of specialized and eclectic decks made by artists from all over the world. Text in English and French.
In Let the Kids Play, Drago’s 36 Chambers series exalts the beauty and exuberance of youth as embodied by the renowned street artist, Pax Poloscia. The book is a reaction to the cynicism and monotony of the adult world and a celebration of youthful creativity.
Joaquin Sorolla’s catalogue raisonné is the culmination of a project that was initiated by Francisco Pons-Sorolla and Blanca Pons-Sorolla, which assembles all the work of the painter known so far (over 4,000 works). The aim of this project is the publication of five volumes in which the works by Joaquin Sorolla Bastida (1863-1923) will be presented by themes: 1. Sorolla Museum; 2. The Sea and the Beach; 3. Portraits; 4. Landscapes; 5. Composition Works. Within these themes, the works will be presented chronologically, so that the evolution of the painter can be observed in each case.
This first volume of the catalogue is dedicated to the collection of the Sorolla Museum, which houses the largest collection of the artist’s works. It displays a comprehensive panorama of the painter’s oeuvre through 1,300 pieces.
The project is currently being financed by the Sorolla Museum Foundation, and is being carried out by Blanca Pons-Sorolla, with the collaboration of Teresa Jiménez-Landi and Mónica Rodríguez Subirana. Since the beginning of the project in 1987, a profoundly better understanding of Sorolla’s work has been achieved.
From the white plastic bed for the Prisunic catalogue (1966) to the Culbuto armchair issued by Knoll, and from the Lip watch to the private apartments of the Élysée Palace, Paris, (1983), the furniture and objects conceived by Marc Held have been emblematic of the renewal of French design, following the line of Scandinavians such as Alvar Aalto and Arne Jacobsen… With his gallery L’Échoppe on the rue de Seine, Paris, and then with his agency, the designer and architect Marc Held also took part in major projects for IBM and Renault.
This book traces fifty years of design, whose success with the public at large has contributed to a great liberation in our style of life. The generosity of his vision has remained faithful to the humanist values that guided his childhood in Bagnolet, where he was born in 1932. Having settled in Greece, on the island of Skopelos, over twenty years ago, Marc Held still continues to build houses and furnish them with his creations, working closely with Greek craftsmen.
Text in English and French.
In this follow-up to Visiting China’s Past, Professor Robert Thorp offers a guided tour of historic Beijing. Beginning with early cities that preceded the modern capital, the author introduces Dadu, established by Khubilai Khan in 1267 and known to Marco Polo as Cambaluc. This guide’s focus, however, is the great architectural monuments of the Ming and Qing dynasties (ca. 1421-1912). Altogether, thirty-two sites are explored in detail: the city’s walls and gates; the imperial city and palaces (the Forbidden City); state altars and imperial tombs; Buddhist and Daoist temples as well as mosques; and residences (both princely mansions and courtyard houses) and gardens. A final chapter summarizes developments of the early twentieth century. Each chapter discusses the history and cultural context of these sites, while entries describe the main structures complemented by numerous plans, photographs, and diagrams. Although both chapters and entries “stand alone,” extensive cross-referencing encourages readers to find related information, and each chapter concludes with suggested titles for further reading. A list of suggested walking tours and an extensive bibliography (both English and Chinese) complete the text. Visiting Historic Beijing is an excellent guide for anyone planning to visit Beijing, and a fascinating introduction to Chinese culture through the architecture and urban planning of one of the world’s most magnificent capitals.
The Scuola Grande di San Rocco, considered the Sistine Chapel of Venice, houses the most acclaimed works of the city’s greatest painter, Jacopo Tintoretto, as well as the masterpiece of Italian carving, the magnificent wooden choir-stalls by Francesco Pianta. Text in Italian. Mirabilia Italiæ is a unique series. It owes its existence to an innovative and ambitious project: an atlas of the great monuments of Italy that will display them in all their details, from the best known to the least. This series represents a completely new way of documenting art. Mirabilia Italiæ provides a guided tour of each monument, fully and accurately explained. Each atlas contains hundreds of color photographs, arranged in a precise topographical sequence and accompanied by diagrams showing the exact location of each detail. The atlas is complemented by a volume of texts edited by the premier scholars in the field, consisting of critical essays and descriptive notes. Essays examine the monument from the art-historical point of view, and record the alterations it has undergone over time. Descriptive notes analyze the content and significance of the images. Extensive cross-references link the essays and notes to the images, facilitating consultation of the work. The General Editor of Mirabilia Italiæ is Salvatore Settis, Director of the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa. Firm sale only.
Text in Italian.
Although Samuel Abraham Marx was born at the end of the 19th century, he had the eye of a modernist – as an architect, furniture designer, connoisseur and collector. His vision was neither ostentatious or grandiose, but subtle and quietly magnificent. Ultra-Modern, Samuel Marx: Architect, Furniture Designer, Connoisseur is the first monograph on this lesser-known but increasingly influential American designer. In more than 200 photographs, Marx expert and decorative arts dealer Liz O’Brien reveals many of his undiscovered projects including houses that have been raised despite preservationist protests and his range of furniture designs. Marx was also sought after for his ability to integrate art in well-heeled interiors. The private art collections of many of his wealthy clients have, in the last 40 years, been dispersed to major museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, as well as the Chicago Art Institute.
“This is a book on making living fun. On having your friends to the house and on how to give them a good time. And incidentally, on how to give yourself a good time as well” writes Dorothy Draper in her best selling book, Entertaining is Fun!: How To Be A Popular Hostess.
With her wit and can-do flair, Draper guides aspiring hosts and hostesses on how to excel at dinner parties, holiday meals, weekend guests, weddings, and more. And indeed, Draper’s secret is simple: If a hostess has fun, her guests will too! Also available: Decorating is Fun!: How to be Your Own Decorator ISBN 9780985225629
In this highly-anticipated monograph, Alexander Wong presents a selection of incisive essays on contemporary architecture and design concepts, along with a wide range of magnificently photographed works, including dynamic retail spaces, glamorous and unique residential interiors, futuristic cinema design, office spaces of the future, and so much more. Each project highlights how Wong combines the best of what Asia-Pacific has to offer in superior design with an abstract aesthetic, yet high attention to detail.
Born in 1995 in Ho Chi Minh City, Eris Tran has led a dream life, one of his own choosing in haute couture fashion illustration. His reputation is international; his clients are among the elite in fashion design; and his drawings are bewitching yet disciplined. He perfectly captures the intricate detail of fabrics, be they delicate silks, bold brocades, or diaphanous sheers. At the same time, Tran combines humor with a touch of the avant-garde, and the effects are both magical and audacious. With more than 200,000 followers on Instagram (@eris_tran), and a favorite of such houses as Alexander McQueen, Dior, Armani, Marchesa, Givenchy, Versace, and many others, including many emerging designers from Asia, Eris Tran interprets haute couture in a style perfectly suited to the times. This, his first book, is a showcase of Tran’s stunning work for some of the world’s best designers over the past few years. Featuring over 200 color illustrations and his own commentary throughout, Dressing in Dreams is a book no true connoisseur of high fashion should be without.
Interiors: Inside the American Home is a chic, modern book that showcases the diversity in approach to interior design across the United States. Honing in on the subtleties of interior design, the book delves into the range of techniques, art and decorative pieces, furnishings, and materials used by designers to merge their own unique aesthetics with the lifestyles of their clients. From eclectic trinket-filled sitting rooms, to expansive, minimalist open-plan living, this book offers a stunning array of intriguing interior spaces for all tastes and styles.
Crown moldings or cabinetry? Vintage or Victorian? Orange or ocher? Successful interior design – creative, comfortable rooms with a personal touch – is built from layer upon layer of color, texture, pattern, embellishment, and more. But the plethora of choices available in the early twenty-first century has made it almost impossible to assemble these layers thoughtfully. Prominent decorator and author Penny Drue Baird is here to help with On Interior Design, an incisive exploration of the essential aspects of contemporary interiors. Baird considers architectural details, furniture, color, fabric, flooring, lighting, and accessories, offering equal servings of expertise, history, and recommendation. She illustrates her topics with dozens of photographs of her own work, from apartments in New York City to houses in the Hamptons and Palm Beach to a residence in Paris. Building on her three previous books, in On Interior Design Baird imparts the lessons and principles gleaned from her thirty-plus years in practice.
Desperately Young
introduces the masterpieces left behind by some of the greatest rising stars in fine art – all of whom died before their thirtieth birthday.
Precocious talent seeps from each artist’s work, along with a sense of unfulfilled potential. Informative biographies detail their legacies, while their tragic deaths lead us to wonder what heights they might’ve reached, had their lives not been cut short. Richly illustrated, Desperately Young
presents prime examples of each artist’s work, demonstrating how our cultural heritage is just a little narrower for their loss.
From Europe to America to Japan and the Indian Subcontinent, the mid-14-hundreds to the late 20th century, this book hails the acknowledged greats and introduces those who died before they could leave an indelible mark on history. A compendium of 109 artists who fell prey to sickness, warfare, heartbreak or bad luck, Desperately Young is the only book to provide an in-depth study of artists who died young.
Contents: With works from Tommaso Masaccio, Frédéric Bazille, Thomas Girtin, Egon Schiele, Henri Regnault, Ernst Klimt, Jeanne Hébuterne, Kaita Murayama, Hermann Stenner, Maurycy Gottlieb, Fyodor Vasilyev, Marie Bashkirtseff, Richard Parkes Bonington, Luisa Anguissola, Walter Deverell, August Macke, Pauline Boty and Jean-Michel Basquiat – among many others.
A combination of difficult economic times, a premium on urban space, and the modern trend for living alone means that living in small spaces has become a necessity, as much as a choice. But that needn’t mean living in cramped, unimaginative spaces. Living Little
shows how the challenges of small floor plans and compact interiors can be transformed with clever and creative design, the innovative use of technology, and ingenious and stylish solutions. Be they small or tiny homes, flats, apartments or storefront properties, cottages, shipping-container dwellings, caravans, or cabins, this book is the perfect source of inspiration for those short on space who are yearning for a strong dose of ingenuity and style.
“Children are like crazy, drunken small people in your house” – Julie Bowen – Modern Family
Whoever welcomes children says goodbye to a tidy and perfectly-styled house. Babies and children grow and develop through play, and that means lots of toys. This can create chaos and sometimes less attractive corners in the home that are expertly hidden, moved, or simply ignored in most residential magazines. Lifestyle journalist and young mother Joni Vandewalle knows that a messy house, where children can play freely, is a happy house. Creating children’s rooms for optimal use is a challenging job, but one that is immensely rewarding for the whole family. In this book, she has selected 20 houses where clutter creates atmosphere, and where colorful play spaces and creative storage solutions prioritise activities where children can grow and play. This book is full of design inspiration for all parents and parents-to-be.
For centuries, monsoon winds brought traders from the Middle East to India, and onward to Malaysia and the Indonesian archipelago. Once the new religion of Islam had been established in the land of Arabia, merchants carried their faith to the many ports of call around the Indian Ocean.
As Islam peacefully spread through the Indian Ocean littoral, the coastal trading cities responded in extraordinary ways. Modifying the form of the local tropical buildings of timber and stone, communities created a stylistic hybrid for their houses of prayer, the ubiquitous village mosque.
An exceptional vernacular ensued, reflecting the unique combination of environment, local materials and building skills, trade and the traders. This volume celebrates a finely curated selection of centuries-old mosques in Kerala, Sumatra, Java and Malaysia. Raised up high by the communities, the mosques are a marvel of timber, soaring spaces and traditional crafts. Since their creation, these local mosques have been kept alive and well as dynamic expressions of place.
But the 20th and 21st centuries have brought numerous threats to their continued existence and vitality. Monsoon Mosques explores the fate of these vibrant symbols of the integration of Islam into local culture.
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.