“Read And Destroy the book that is. After years of archiving photos, scanning slides and looking for funding, a hardcover publication about the seminal UK skate magazine from the late ‘80s to mid- ‘90s can be in your hands very soon.” — Free Skateboard Magazine
“… an important piece of British skateboarding history that demands a space on your bookshelf.” — Slam City Skates London
For British skateboarders in the mid-’80s, RAD (aka Read and Destroy) was more than just a magazine. Before the X Games, before the internet, a whole generation of this once underground subculture relied on RAD to provide a beacon, bringing them together in spirit and in person.
Under the guidance of editor and chief photographer, Tim Leighton-Boyce, RAD took on an experimental, irreverent approach with a vibrant, chaotic energy. The legacy of the magazine is an action-packed photo archive documenting a unique time, place and attitude, capturing the death and rebirth of skateboarding as it evolved into a mainstay of extreme sports and street culture the world over.
This book reveals that archive in all its glory, offering an inside view of skateboarding and youth culture from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, told primarily through the experiences of the British skate photographers at the core of the magazine’s original editorial team.
What was the meaning of the extraordinary collection of texts, sketches and graphic prints that Edvard Munch called The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil? Get a glimpse into the artist’s world of ideas through one of the greatest mysteries he left behind. In this book you can experience The Tree of Knowledge as it was found in Munch’s home, with both loose, bound and blank pages. An essay by art historian Nora Ceciliedatter Nerdrum provides new perspectives on Munch’s most enigmatic project. No one knows why he created this album. Was it a book proposal? Or was it an attempt to organise his ideas?
What we do know is that he worked on the album for several decades, and that it was probably never completed. The most astonishing part of its content is perhaps Munch’s own texts about love, jealousy, life and death, composed in large, colorful lettering.
Star and Moon presents the daily life of the Hui people and expresses a kind of “emptiness” that transcends time and meaning. Lonely, mysterious, quiet and elegant, the simple images are like a faded postcard, bringing a deep Zen feeling to the heart. At first glance, the images of Star and Moon are plain and seemingly picturesque. However, if you sit quietly for a moment and feel the breath conveyed by the black and white shadows, you will experience a heavy breath running through it, adsorbing the viewer’s eyes tightly, following the photographer’s lens in the cycle of the stars and the moon, experiencing the destiny of the Islamic nation together.
Yang Yankang expands the scope of experimental exploration of the language of modern Chinese photography, and creates a revelatory way of perceiving the art of practical photography. His works on the three major religions have historically placed them in a prominent position in the history of modern Chinese art, and he has become one of the leading photographic artists in China and even in the world.
The Veronese wine regions of Soave and Valpolicella – home to Amarone – are currently producing some of the world’s most drinkable quality wines. But both regions still struggle with a reputation for cheap, poor-quality wines brought about through industrial-scale production during the economic depression following the Second World War. In Amarone and the Fine Wines of Verona, Italian wine specialist Michael Garner traces a shift in focus towards new levels of quality driven by a generation of producers inspired by the area’s outstanding potential for producing fine wine.
Both regions produce versatile wines which, as well as being both deliciously drinkable and relatively affordable, have the flavor and structure to accompany a wide range of foods. In Valpolicella an appassimento wine, the famed Amarone, has gained comparable status to Barolo and Brunello di Montalcino, while Soave overlaps with the tiny denomination of Lessini Durello, where sparkling wine is produced from the rare, local white grape Durella.
Garner begins Amarone and the fine wines of Verona with a summary of the region’s history, before detailing its geography, grape varieties and approach to both viticulture and winemaking, leading into a discussion of each denomination’s character and wine styles. A cross-section of around 100 producers provides a capsule profile of each, along with analysis of some of their best and most distinctive wines.
For students of wine, those in the wine business and wine adventurers alike, Amarone and the Fine Wines of Verona provides a gateway to a sorely misunderstood wine region.
Once brewed throughout Asia, sake has come to be inextricably linked with Japanese culture, tradition and society. In Sake and the Wines of Japan, Anthony Rose argues that, after decades in the doldrums, sake is well on its way to becoming the next big thing. Neither a wine nor a spirit, sake’s purity, centuries-old brewing methods and umami taste have gained it fans among the sort of younger drinkers who sparked the revolution in craft beers and artisan spirits. A return to quality, plus the modern outlook of today’s generation of sake makers is opening up sake, particularly premium sake, to the world. Exports have increased and sake breweries, some artisan, some offshoots of big Japanese names, have sprung up in destinations as far flung as Oregon and Australia, not forgetting England.
To demonstrate how deeply woven into Japanese society this drink is, Rose first takes us through the history of sake production, from offerings to the gods made from rice chewed by priestesses, to the heyday of sake, when master craftsmen – tōjis – were instrumental in a brewery’s success or failure, to sake’s new wave, epitomized by Berlin techno DJ Richie Hawtin, founder of ENTER.Sake. Rose then details sake types, demystifies polishing ratios, explores the issues around ageing sake and discusses how best to enjoy sake. The four basic ingredients – rice, kōji (rice mould), yeast and water – are introduced ahead of a thorough explanation of the brewing process. Rose profiles a personal selection of sake producers and ends the sake section with a chapter on sake producers outside Japan.
Japan’s wine industry is small and young but improving rapidly; here some of the best exponents are profiled alongside a history of wine production in Japan and details of grape varieties used. Sake and the wines of Japan ends with a guide to Japan, making it an essential tool for all those seeking a way into this enigmatic and enticing culture.
Eastern Europe is the last undiscovered gem of the wine world. Over the last thirty years three countries, Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova have been working hard to escape the legacy of communism. For all three the regimes that took hold after the Second World War affected their wine industries profoundly, with state farms favoring mechanization and mass production over care and quality. Recent decades have seen a huge switch in attitudes following privatization, with more focus on quality and reconnecting people with the land to rebuild these historic wine industries for today’s wine drinkers.
Bulgarian wine’s fall in sales in the West due to the rising popularity of New World wines, Moldova’s economic crisis at the hands of a Russian ban on Moldovan wine and Romania’s need to counter imports from foreign producers as tastes in wine change have forced wineries to rethink their approaches to viticulture and winemaking. Instead of production lines of anonymous wines, makers now focus on creating authentic regional wines using local and international varieties and modern techniques.
In The wines of Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova, Eastern European wine expert Caroline Gilby MW presents the wine stories of these three connected but distinct countries as one who has witnessed the vast changes as they happened. The cultures of the three countries, their complex and troubled histories and their roads to recovery are profiled here along with details of the geography, climate, grapes grown and, most importantly, the producers working to revive and reinvent their respective wine industries.
For those who seek something new beyond the traditional wines of Western Europe or who find New World wines losing their thrill The Wines of Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova is an inspirational introduction to a wine world waiting to be explored.
Chablis has a distinct identity amongst the wines of Burgundy. The gently sloping vineyards of this small, scenic region produce a remarkably diverse range of wines, even though all are made from just one variety – Chardonnay.
As in other parts of France, it was the Romans who introduced vines and the medieval Church which expanded the vineyard. By the twelfth century the wines of Chablis, were already being celebrated in poetry. However, over the centuries a considerable amount of everyday wine also found its way via the river Yonne to the cafés of Paris. In its heyday of production towards the end of the nineteenth century the region encompassed 40,000 hectares of vines. But that was before phylloxera and oidium ravaged the vineyards and the railways brought competition from further south to the capital’s wine drinkers.
From a low point of 500 hectares just after the Second World War, the vineyard has now expanded more than tenfold, and quality has increased too. Wines in the appellation’s four categories – grand cru, premier cru, Chablis and Petit Chablis – are created by vignerons keen to work with the terroir to produce the elegant, mineral, long-lived wines for which the region earned its reputation. To this end, ever greater care is being taken in the vineyards and the routine use of chemicals is becoming increasingly uncommon.
The region’s history, unique soil, geography and climate are all covered in detail, but it is Rosemary George’s lively and insightful profiles of those who make the region’s wines that form the body of The wines of Chablis and the Grand Auxerrois. Through the lives of these vignerons – from the lows of disastrous weather to their love of the land – she paints a unique picture of a much-admired region.
The companion volume to Evans’ The Wines of Northern Spain explores the great variety of wines produced across the rest of Spain. Beginning in the east with Catalunya, the book journeys south down the Mediterranean coast to the Levante. The heart of Spain, including Madrid and La Mancha, is explored before we reach Andalucia in the south and voyage on to the Balearic and Canary Islands. The regions covered could not be more different, separated by language, customs and history as well as by gastronomy and wines. After a chapter on key grape varieties Evans explores each region in turn, relating its history, exploring current trends in winemaking and viticulture and profiling the key producers. There is also a chapter on Spain’s sparkling wines.
Richard Mayson’s award-winning Port and the Douro, first published in 1999, has become a classic over the last 25 years. In this comprehensively updated fifth edition he reminds us why Port is a drink that continues to fascinate wine-lovers and win new fans. The last 50 years, since the end of the dictatorship in 1974, have seen vast transformations in the Port world, from labor-saving technology in field and cellar, to advances in sales reach, especially since Portugal’s formal entry into the EU in 1986, and ongoing changes in the way the industry is managed and regulated. To begin with, Mayson provides a history of Port, from the beginnings of viticulture in Roman times to the present day. The vineyards and their vines as well as the quintas where they are cultivated are thoroughly explored, followed by an explanation of Port production, both traditional and modern. A short introduction to Port types prepares the reader for a detailed assessment of vintages from 1960–2023; notable vintages (both exceptional and poor) dating back as far as 1844 are also included. The structure of the Port trade remains in flux, and so the chapter on the shippers reflects recent changes in fortune and ownership. Douro wine, which pre-dates its fortified cousin and has seen its revival accelerate over the last 20 years, receives an entire chapter to itself. Finally, for those wishing to visit the region, there are some ideas on what to do and where to stay. Peppered throughout with anecdotes, potted biographies of those who shaped the industry and insights into quirks of the trade, this extensive and engaging guide to Port is an essential book for any wine enthusiast’s library.
What kind of world do we want to bequeath to our children? What planet, what future do we want to pass on to them? In his latest book, Cyril Christo poses the most fundamental of all questions. Together with his wife Marie Wilkinson and their son Lysander, Christo has been seeking out the wonders of this world for more than 40 years and across all continents. During their travels to the Inuit or the first peoples of Africa, they come into contact with communities who seem to have everything that modern, technological society has lost: time, family and an almost inexhaustible kindness towards strangers.
The photographers present the wonder of unspoiled nature in their book, captured in powerful duo-tone images that provide a fascinating glimpse into the beauty of life. With a fighting yet sensitive spirit, they share how their experiences and encounters have guided their son’s development and how nature can serve as a teacher to all children with their irrepressible yearning for wonder. The world’s greatest classroom, nature as the school of life, is threatened as never before by climate change and the continuous loss of habitat. Christo and Wilkinson regard their book as a manifesto and a warning, because “without wonder we are lost.”
Created in 1936, following the bequest of Count Moïse de Camondo to the French State in memory of his son Nissim, who died for France in 1917, the Musée Nissim de Camondo houses a rich collection of 18th-century art objects. Reflecting the donor’s taste for this period of French art, the collection includes a significant number of pieces of furniture and objects embellished with gilded bronze ornaments. Gathered with incredible foresight by Moïse de Camondo between 1890 and 1935, these gilded bronzes reflect the evolution of styles during the 18th century, from the fantasies of rocaille, the severity of the return to the antique model, to the delicacy of the Louis XVI style. This catalog presents a selection of 30 furniture bronzes, all masterpieces. Signed Osmond, attributed to Jean-Louis Prieur, François Rémond or Jean-Noël Turpin, they testify to the expertise of Parisian gilders in the second half of the 18th century, as well as to their collaboration with other trades – draftsmen, sculptors, founders, goldsmiths and watchmakers. The gilded bronzes in the Musée Nissim de Camondo offer a highly varied typology, bearing witness to their diverse uses and fully participating in the project of “reconstituting an 18th-century artistic residence” so dear to the Count de Camondo.
In 1933, Virginia Woolf wrote a biography of the poet Elisabeth Barret Browning, told in the first person by her cocker spaniel, Flush. In 1936, to write her memoirs, All the dogs of my life, Elisabeth von Arnim chose to tell the story of the 14 dogs that had accompanied her throughout her life. In 1957, the dachshund Lump arrived at the home of Pablo Picasso, whose life he shared until 1973. This book charts Picasso’s intimate family life, with Jacqueline, Claude and Paloma, and with the animals that populate the villa La Californie, as well as his artistic life. Inspired by these references, this collection (whose title is a nod to Picasso and Lump) takes a look at the lives and works of the great artists and art lovers of the 20th and 21st centuries from the perspective of their relationship with the “dogs of their lives”. These lighthearted, erudite books offer a unique approach to the life and work of Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Peggy Guggenheim and Yves Saint Laurent…
This book contains two classic series, Chi Yi and Er Gong, which document the creative process of artist Chen Duxi over the past 13 years. Chi Yi is a way to merge the observer as a subject into the object of observation by means of movement, and to observe fluid changes as a way to study ontological painting from a subject-object perspective. The artist has long had a strong interest in and sensitivity to the texture and state of movement of subtle things. The works unify line and texture by reprocessing texture details in a highly distinctive personal style. Under the artist’s brush, the water patterns take different forms, and the flowing, coiling and settling movement states form a harmonious, subtle and introverted line aesthetic, and constitute the artist’s unique visual language and its visual spectrum. The Er Gong series is an interpretation of the microscopic world of plants and animals from a de-anthropocentric perspective, exploring the relationship between individual creatures and paintings.
Text in English and Chinese.
The National Holocaust Museum tells the story of the Nazi persecution and murder of the Jews of the Netherlands. Before the Second World War, Jews and non-Jews lived side by side. They had the same rights. But during the war, the Nazis and their collaborators killed around six million Jews in Europe. That was the Holocaust or Shoah. This is the first and only museum to relate the history of the persecution of the Jews of the entire Netherlands. Including the day-to-day life of Jews on the eve of the Second World War, the liberation as Jews experienced it, and how the Holocaust has been treated in our national culture of remembrance: all this is examined in the museum and this book.
Text in English and Dutch.
Hand-woven rugs from Persia are among the most exquisite art works ever created. In this fully revised edition of Persian Rugs, Essie Sakhai reveals recent discoveries that present us with a new understanding of this unique art. With hundreds of stunning new photographs, taken especially for this book, Sakhai takes us on a journey through Iran and beyond.
Beginning with the history and art of creating woven masterpieces, Persian Rugs goes on to present full-page examples of some of the most cherished and valuable rugs and carpets in the world. No two hand-woven carpets are the same, each with its own special property, beauty and quality. Sakhai has handpicked the most important of these and gives detailed explanations of how and why these art forms hold such singular and even mystical appeal. A new demand for original and ancient hand-woven pieces has increased their value greatly, leading to world-record prices being achieved at auction and important examples entering major museum collections around the world.
This unique guide explores the broad arc of terrain that flanks the city of Edinburgh – the three old counties of East Lothian, Midlothian and West Lothian, plus the district of Falkirk, ancient hub of Central Scotland. It’s a rolling landscape dotted with multifarious sites of every era, concealed amidst its characterful towns, picturesque waterways, urban sprawl and quiet green spaces. Brooding castles, palatial mansions, poignant monuments and sacred ancient landmarks stand cheek-by-jowl with stark relics of industrial heritage and world-beating wonders of modern engineering. You can trace the proud vestiges of Rome’s final frontier, marvel at the fruitiness of a giant Georgian folly, walk into the secret birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and roam the coast that inspired an early environmental pioneer.
Myth mingles with reality in the hidden histories of this realm. You’ll encounter royal A-listers Mary, Queen of Scots and Bonnie Prince Charlie, plus a king from Arthurian legend, to say nothing of industrious goblins, enigmatic crusaders, tragic witches, elusive extra-terrestrials and a curious character covered in prickly plants.
Join Gillian Tait as she reveals 111 destinations with a difference around this diverse and fascinating region.
Curator Marc Donnadieu turns his critical gaze on Tornabuoni Art gallery’s post-war masterpieces and proposes a project based around the notion of creative destruction; a way of making that led to a total renewal of art in the aftermath of the Second World War. The exhibition is articulated around a simple alphabet, where 25 works by 22 Italian and international artists are assembled in a trilingual alphabet, with each letter introducing an artist and a disruptive action to which he or she has subjected the artwork: Enrico Baj “attacks” and Alberto Burri “burns”, while Arman “vandalizes” and Tancredi “zigzags”. This list, which is by no means exhaustive, is merely the starting point for an infinite repertoire of iconoclastic artists and verbs.
The curator also pays homage to one of Tornabuoni Art’s most beloved artists: Alighiero Boetti, whose apparently playful works allow us to confront deep philosophical issues. Opening 30 years to the day since the artist’s death, An alphabet of order and disorder looks outwards to the world and to a new generation confronted with its uncertainties.
Text in English and French.
Man Ray and Fashion was published in addition to the exhibition at MoMu (Fashion Museum Antwerp) in 2023. Man Ray was a widely versatile artist who worked with a range of different media and did not like to be pigeonholed. The way he portrayed women and their clothing continues to influence fashion photographers today. Man Ray used new and unexpected angles, employed artistic staging, and applied such innovative processes as solarization and multiple exposure to his fashion photography.
In recent decades, fashion designers continue to find inspiration in his Surrealist imagery. This is most notably true for Belgian designers, with their avant-garde mindset. Completely in line with the concept of Surrealism, these references are often subconscious. Part of Man Ray’s extensive history is brought together in this book alongside contemporary works by the likes of Paul Kooiker, Martin Margiela and Céline (among others).
Design models are an integral part of the design process, as prototypes and providers of ideas for those products that are later launched on the market as serial and mass goods. However, working with models is an interdisciplinary undertaking: The book reflects the design model as the basis for future concepts, as a collector’s item in a museum and in its actual function as a planning and work tool for designers and model builders.
Text in English and German.
After the globally sold-out success of their first book Weird and Wonderful Post-Mortem Fairy Tales and the even more successful follow-up Dark and Dystopian Post-Mortem Fairy Tales, the artistic and eccentric duo Mothmeister once again ignites the imagination with their third book: Sinister and Spiritual Post-Mortem Fairy Tales. This grim and spiritual dream world is inspired by bog bodies, druids, voodoo cults, the mummified Sokushinbutsu monks, the cannibalistic Asmat tribe, Victorian freak shows, and much more.
As always, Mothmeister pays homage to the animal kingdom, which, through their passion for taxidermy, comes to life in an enchanting biotope where everything coexists intuitively and effortlessly. Partly familiar, but mostly surreal. And because of that, extraordinarily intriguing.
In a former shipyard of 8,000 square meters at the ultra-hip NDSM Wharf in Amsterdam, you will find Europe’s largest street art museum: STRAAT. Yearly an impressive 200,000 visitors admire their collection of over 180 works by around 170 artists, many of which were specially created for this location. As STRAAT’s collection is constantly refreshed and expanded, it’s time for a second catalogue featuring only new works by about 80 artists. Divided into chapters by genre—muralism, art and activism, native/nature, abstract graffiti, and installations—and interspersed with essays by experts like Steven P. Harrington, Carlo McCormick, Charlotte Pyatt and Christian Omodeo, this book is a wonderful anthology of the key figures in the contemporary street art scene.
This lavishly illustrated book, the second volume in the series Orchha,Datia, Panna: Miniatures from the Royal Courts of Bundelkhand (1590–1850),deals with the second and third periods of Orchha painting, which span the years 1605 through 1675. A central theme of the paintings presented in this volume is the love between the archetypal couple Krishna and Radha, which is both mystical-religious and secular-playful in nature. Indeed, it is the confluence of sacred and profane love that gives India’s culture and art its unique spirit. The images were created to illustrate poetic works such as the Rasikapriya, whose author, the Orchha court poet Keshavdas, invites his readers to savor the aesthetic and religious delight of Radha-Krishna love through his riti lyrics in the vernacular language of his era. Through stylistic analyzes and interpretations of over 100 paintings from his collection, many of them published here for the first time, the author brings to light the accomplishments of the Orchha school during its heyday in the seventeenth century.
“These photos are stunning, bittersweet visions of a past shared by all of us.” – Tom Hanks.
“Brian Hamill is best known as a still photographer and a photojournalist. But I’ve always regarded him – first and foremost – as a master portraitist. And this book bears that out – capturing as it does, the many-faceted phenomenon that was John and Yoko – artists, lovers, cultural comrades and – most elusively – business partners. Behind his camera, Hamill is something of a phenomenon himself.” – Richard Price
John Lennon’s life, death and music shaped the world. His reputation as a philanthropist, political activist and pacifist influenced millions worldwide. If Elvis was King, Lennon was his rightful successor – and fittingly, several images in this collection of both classic and unseen photos show him wearing a diamond-studded ‘Elvis’ pin over his heart, in homage to his forefather on the throne of Rock ‘n’ Roll. John Lennon is seen here in several sessions in New York, performing on stage, relaxed at home and walking on the street with Yoko Ono.
Renowned celebrity photojournalist Brian Hamill delivers his own insider view of this Beatles icon, through intense, intimate photographic portraits and insightful text. Whether Lennon is dominating the stage, posing on the roof of the Dakota building, or relaxing with Yoko Ono, Hamill’s photography takes this quasi-mythical figure from the world of Rock ‘n’ Roll and shows him as the man he really was.
“Brian looked at the John Lennon who had become an icon and saw instead a familiar face. He saw a working-class hero like those that built the City of New York. And so when John Lennon came to live in New York, Brian captured him as a New Yorker, in the joyous images that you will find in this book.” – Pete Hamill
“Lennon, one of the most famous men in human history, wanted to live as one among many. Of course, he hit it off with Hamill. The guy that flew so high needed some oxygen. Hamill is fresh air. His folio of Lennon images shows Lennon focused, present, but edgy, never relaxed.” – Alec Baldwin
“I only feel comfortable at home with my dog, my pencils and my paper” – Yves Saint Laurent, The Guardian, February, 2000
Successor of Christian Dior then director of his own fashion house, Yves Saint Laurent has established himself as a visionary designer throughout his career. Inseparable from the myth of Saint Laurent, his dogs accompanied him as much in the habitation of his apartments shared with Pierre Bergé, as in the effervescence of the workshop on Avenue Marceau, and fashion shows. The author highlights the forgotten dogs of childhood, extravagant chihuahuas, such as Hazel, who were faithful companions of the artist for more than 20 years. Effigies on annual greeting cards, evening models for Rive Gauche, and muses of Warhol or Hockney, the four famous French Bulldogs – all named Moujik – will be an integral part of the legend of the creator.
Enriched by a new iconography by Hedi Slimane, artistic director of Saint Laurent from 2012 to 2016 and artistic director of Céline since 2018, the book includes nearly 80 images from photographic archives, and drawings by Yves Saint Laurent.