This book sheds new light on Delft pottery from the 17th and 18th centuries. During this period, the Delft pottery industry took off, under the strong influence of a changing world. Delft potters were seen as true innovators. Today, ceramics is experiencing another heyday. A new vanguard of Dutch makers is rediscovering the age-old craft and taking a fresh look at the material and its significance. Pioneering Ceramics zooms in on innovation within the ceramic craft. The basic recipe of ceramics has hardly changed over the centuries, but the world in which ceramics are made has. The publication takes a closer look at similarities and differences between pioneering makers then and now.
Text in English and Dutch.
The name Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) is closely entwined in the 18th century with the golden age of the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory. His exceptional artistic talent, coupled with craftsmanship, enabled him to capture the daily life of the nobility in their palaces and residences in numerous figures and groups. In doing so, he did not limit himself to official events but reflected tastes and aspirations as well as current trends. In the publication Magnificence of Rococo impressive porcelain figurines from top-class European private collections are brought together for the first time: on over 300 pages, these magnificent, often unique objects provide insights into courtly life of the Baroque and Rococo periods.
For as long as there’s been paint, there have been women painters – these are the painters you may not have heard of who have shaped the way we see.
From artists at the forefront of the Dutch Golden Age to avant-garde radicals in Soviet Russia and surrealist thinkers in exile, this book gathers together 65 female painters from throughout history and across the world. This highly opinionated guide will tell you everything you need to know, and nothing that you don’t, about the women behind the canvas (and quite a bit about what’s on the canvas too). Witty opinion is set alongside faithful color reproductions in an elegant hardback that will persuade anyone that these female painters are worth knowing about.
The first book in a new series of Opinionated Guides on art movements, mediums and ideas which builds on the success of Hoxton Mini Press Opinionated Guides to London.
The Italian region of Piemonte is rightly famed for the denominations of Barolo and Barbaresco. The area of vineyard given over to Nebbiolo, the sole grape variety of both DOCGs, has increased dramatically in the last half century (as plantings of other varieties have fallen). However, there is much to enjoy beyond the headline wines of the region. With a vast array of local varieties at the disposal of winemakers, no fewer than 60 denominations and a range of wine styles, Piemonte is a wine explorer’s dream.
In The wines of Piemonte, expert wine educator David Way challenges readers to deepen their understanding of the Piemontese wines they already love, such as Barolo and Barbaresco, and experience more of Piemonte’s lesser-known treasures. He begins by setting the wines in their context, giving an outline of the history, geography and climate of the region. He then introduces readers to the native varieties that make the distinctive wines in this region – including less familiar grapes such as Brachetto, Freisa and Grignolino. After a brief discussion of Italian wine law, he leads us in an exploration of the denominations themselves with a selection of producers.
We begin in the Langhe and Roero, where we find denominations centered on the varieties of Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, Barbera and Arneis. The gentle hills of Monferrato are Barbera heartland but also yield wines made from interesting local varieties. Heading west, we visit the valleys of the western Alps, where producers are smaller and the varieties they grow more obscure. After exploring Colli Tortonesi and the white wines of its neighbor, Gavi, in the east, we look to the cooler regions of northern Piemonte. Finally, we are treated to Piemonte’s sparkling wines, made in a range of styles. Complete with color photos and regional maps, whether you are looking for an interesting everyday wine or something to treasure and age, The wines of Piemonte will enhance your enjoyment of the region.
In 1925, at the age of 30, Jean Luce was the only artist specializing in tableware to have his own space at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris.
His long career took him through many 20th-century movements, including Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Modernism. Initially admired in the 1920s for the quality and originality of his geometric decorations and ornamentation, he made a name for himself thanks to his work in renewing forms. Designers and interior decorators such as Pierre Chareau, Charlotte Perriand, Rob Mallet-Stevens and Djo Bourgeois used his designs on their stands and in their interiors. He creates services for prestigious clients such as the Maharajah of Indore and Paul Cavrois. His creations were also aimed at a wider public, which he reached both in France through outlets such as Steph Simon and Pilote, and in the United States, where he made his mark in the early 1950s.
Richly illustrated, in particular by the Luce collection held at the MAD, Paris, this book presents the unpublished biography of Jean Luce, as well as the work of his contemporaries such as Marcel Goupy, Suzanne Lalique, Paul Follot, Mathurin Méheut and Francis Jourdain.
Text in French.
Issam Kourbaj was born and grew up in Syria before settling in Cambridge in 1990. Following the uprising in Syria in 2011, Kourbaj has been a constant creative witness to the continuing conflict in his home country, his art increasingly addressing the endemic pain and suffering that accompanies displacement and forced migration everywhere. Published to accompany two substantial solo exhibitions at Kettle’s Yard, University of Cambridge and The Heong Gallery, Downing College, Cambridge, Issam Kourbaj explores the life and work of an artist characterized by collaboration and endless curiosity. Kourbaj’s art is expressive and alive, suggesting even in the darkest hours the potential for change and renewal.
“How can we grasp the remarkable artistic breadth of Issam Kourbaj? Here is an art so full of invention and purpose that its images and ideas reverberate well beyond the walls of any gallery. Kourbaj’s achievement is to make us look, pause and imagine. Engaging with his acute and powerful work makes us consider our responsibility for the conditions of others on our shared planet” – Andrew Nairne, Director of Kettle’s Yard
Art for Baby is India’s first medically vetted art book designed to stimulate cognitive development in newborns (0-3 months) while introducing them to contemporary art. Since babies at this age can only see black, white, and shades of grey, this high-contrast picture book—featuring works by leading Indian artists—enhances their early visual recognition and engagement.
Created by Rudritara Shroff, Art for Baby includes contributions from Dhruvi Acharya, Jyoti Bhatt, Jyotsna Bhatt, Jogen Chowdhury, Atul Dodiya, Anju Dodiya, Shilpa Gupta, N.S. Harsha, Bijoy Jain, Reena Saini Kallat, Shakuntala Kulkarni, Manish Nai, Amol K. Patil, Gigi Scaria, and Sudarshan Shetty. The accompanying flashcards offer insights into each artist’s work, fostering caregiver-baby bonding.
Proceeds from the book support children’s projects through UNICEF India and Outset UK. Original artworks featured in the book were exhibited at Christie’s in Mumbai and New York, raising $57,582 for these initiatives.
Praise for Art for Baby:
“This book is a testimony to Rudritara Shroff’s commitment to catalyzing healthy brain development and engaging young minds in creative pursuits.” – Vikram Patel, PhD, MBBS, Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
“This book balances traditional infant learning therapies with a groundbreaking visual approach, enhancing artistic tendencies among newborns.” – Dr. Amin Jaffer, Museum Director and Art Historian,Curator of the Al Thani Collection, Paris
“The process of creating this book was exciting and enriching. It is remarkable that such a young person has taken this on!” – Shilpa Gupta, Indian Contemporary Artist, Mumbai
This book explores the figure of Ghitta Carell (1899–1972), a Hungarian-born photographer who was naturalized Italian. Ghitta was born into a Jewish family of humble origins; at a very young age she moved to Italy, where she quickly became a very sought-after portrait photographer. Intellectuals, actors, generals, and political leaders posed in her studio in Rome, as well as famous women and members of royalty and the middle class.
Her black-and-white pictures were taken with a view camera: Ghitta crafted her photographs with mastery and delicacy, and thus created luminous and soft images, intervening through subtraction by removing the most superficial layers. This is how she achieved a kind of unmasking, thanks to which she restored not only the face but first and foremost the soul of those photographed. Ghitta Carell died in Haifa, Israel, leaving behind more than 50,000 plates now mostly dispersed.
Text in English and Hebrew.
“Glamour is what I sell,” Marlene Dietrich once said. “It’s my stock in trade.”
For decades this iconic actress and singer commanded global attention as a thrilling enigma whose allure would transcend time. Dietrich Through the Lens, a collaboration between ACC Art Books and Iconic Images, is a tribute to a mesmerizing 20th-century talent whose influence is still felt today.
Featuring both world-famous and never-before-seen images, the book includes work by nine renowned photographers – Eve Arnold, Terry O’Neill, Norman Parkinson, Douglas Kirkland, Lawrence Fried, Eugene Robert Richee, Don English and William Walling. Amongst the wide-ranging photographs, we find on-set moments, intimate shoots, one-off encounters and striking portraits of one of the most famous actresses of all time. Accompanied by the stories behind those prints, this book also includes an essay covering early images of Dietrich, curated by the former head of photographs at the National Portrait Gallery, Terence Pepper OBE. The historical sweep and stylistic variety of these photographs creates a rich visual tableau, shedding light on Dietrich’s famously mysterious character, which combined the sultry cabaret singer, the fierce patriot, the lover, the mother, and the independent thinker.
Explore deep into the heart of Phoenix to find its best kept secrets, natural wonders, and inspiring people – not to mention a few ghosts – and discover the Old Western charm that still permeates the culture here. Visit a giant, golden panda, a gleaming white pyramid on a hilltop in Papago Park, and a curiosity shop on 7th Avenue. You can stargaze on horseback or at the top of a spiral tower resembling the Milky Way. Offer your respects at sites honoring the USS Arizona and the famed Navajo Code Talkers. Revel in the sight of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture, find true beauty beneath a gorgeous peacock staircase, and ponder why a giant robot is reading a book instead of tapping on its smartphone. From the world’s tallest Kachina doll to a serving of rattlesnake and cactus fries, Phoenix is a haven for those who are adventurous and have a passion the Wild West of yesterday and today.
The very first retrospective book showcasing the renowned high jewelry Maison Chaumet features a collection of iconic editorials and campaigns captured by major photographers such as Guy Bourdin, Peter Lindberg, Mario Testino, Mario Sorrenti, Richard Burbridge, and Paolo Roversi. Additionally, it presents previously unreleased autochromes from the early 20th century, offering a captivating glimpse into the Maison’s historical archives.
A photographic reference title authored by Carol Woolton, a leading authority on high jewelry at British Vogue, Sylvie Lécallier, director of the photographic collection at Palais Galliera Musée de la Mode in Paris, and Flora Triebel, a curator specialist in 19th-century photography at Bibliothèque Nationale de France, delves into the close ties Chaumet has woven with photography since its inception, revealing its innovative collaborations over the years. From the 1930s to the present day, the book offers a portrait of high jewelry and women, making it an essential read for photography and high jewelry enthusiasts worldwide.
Jaime Fernandes was born in 1899, in a small village, near one of the most unspoiled and rebellious rivers of Portugal, the River Zêzere. He grew up in an idyllic rural landscape, a crossing site with a geography of fertile lands, where gold, wolfram, and tin were extracted from its entrails. A small rural landowner, he married and watched over his five children up to 38 years of age, when he entered Miguel Bombarda Lunatic Asylum in Lisbon, 300 km from his village.
He is the most important Portuguese author of art invented in a psychiatric asylum context. About ninety drawings in ink, lead pencil, and ballpoint pen on paper, of varied sizes and quality, are known.
His artistic activity, entirely lacking the supervision of any visual art atelier, was encouraged by his hospital psychiatrist, who collected most drawings by Jaime. The crudeness of these drawings impresses the unwitting observer: they are anthropomorphic and zoomorphic representations — cattle, goats, elephants, fish, and birds. The human figures burst through as bodies are placed on hold, arms in the air, eyes wide open that observe, others, sometimes, appear merged with animals. Jaime practiced drawing and wrote lengthy semantically indecipherable texts, in a singular calligraphy, where time is set in long numbers.
He did this solely motivated by the pure pleasure gained from this slow exercise of revisiting his memories. In that pleasure, he would have acquired a taste for the imaginary, the world of dreams and fantasies of creation, of being cherished by all who participated in the portraits that he gave us to observe. Jaime died in Lisbon in 1969.
Text in English and French.
This monograph’s title, The Hand of Others/La Main des Autres, could not be more appropriate, as it aptly summarizes Emmanuel Babled’s work and essence. The French designer, who now operates his studio in Lisbon after stints in Paris, Milan, and Amsterdam, initially graduated as an industrial designer. However, early in his career, inspired by the great Ettore Sottsass, he realized that his true passion did not lie in the mass production of plastic objects, but rather in creating distinctive, precious functional pieces through close collaboration with master craftspeople. These artisans are situated in specific production centers where age-old traditions and highly skilled craftsmanship continue to produce magic today, albeit increasingly challenged by the signs of our times.
Babled’s objects encapsulate the collective knowledge of master craftspeople, his design talent, and his ability to collaborate with masters worldwide. His unparalleled talent for integrating out-of-the-box design thinking with cutting-edge technology culminates in limited editions that contain intangible world heritage. Precious traditions, local history, and groundbreaking innovation converge in Babled’s work, breathing new life into ancient crafts and precious materials such as marble.
Within this monograph, we gain a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Babled’s limited editions, delving into the spirit of the designer as he celebrates a successful career spanning over 30 years. Through him as an intermediary, we are initiated into the rare craft of highly skilled craftspeople in places inaccessible to the public, where secrets are passed down from generation to generation.
The book captures the essence of Babled’s career: he transcends the role of an individual designer and instead utilizes his brand to represent an entire industry and culture deeply rooted in tradition and local knowledge. He achieves this through an impressive multidisciplinary use of contemporary design and technological applications, propelling ancient tradition into the 21st century.
In this manner, Babled surpasses his own ego and individual signature, embodying the idea that a designer is not a solitary entity but rather a collective enterprise, beautifully illustrated in this unique monograph.
Text in English and French.
This book is published on the occasion of the exhibition Helen McNicoll. An Impressionist Journey at Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec, Quebec City, Canada 20 June 2024 to 05 January 2025. Edited by Anne-Marie Bouchard, curator of Modern Art, the volume focuses on the idea of mobility in the life of the Canadian artist Helen McNicoll (1879-1915).
In the early 1900s, when women from well-to-do backgrounds were often confined to family and domestic life, Canadian Impressionist Helen McNicoll stood out for her love of travel and the discovery of new spaces. The artist emphasized painting outdoors and researching the effects of light and atmosphere that her numerous trips sustained. Her favorite subjects were scenes of everyday life, although she succeeded in offering an interpretation distinct from the Impressionists in that she focused more extensively on women’s labor.
The Helen McNicoll. An Impressionist Journey exhibition presents more than 60 works by the artist, 25 of them from the Pierre Lassonde collection. Through the prism of travel, the book thus examines the themes of female independence, risk-taking, friendship, and freedom for women in the stimulating context of the struggle by English suffragettes to win the right to vote.
Text in English and French.
An artist travels to Communist China to learn the secrets of Chinese ink painting
Was it really reasonable to drop everything overnight and go off alone into the depths of Communist China in search of the forgotten secrets of ancient Chinese art? Fabienne Verdier never stopped to ask herself: in the early 1980s, the brilliant young Beaux-Arts student thought of nothing else but her desire to learn the art of painting and calligraphy – something that had been devastated by the Cultural Revolution.
And when, a foreigner in the province of Sichuan, she found herself in an art school run by the Party, she was determined to adjust to the situation: the language and the mistrust of the Chinese, the unbearable lack of privacy, the poverty and disease and an inquisitorial administrative system. Blocking the West from her mind, Fabienne Verdier became the pupil of great artists working at the margins of society, who introduced her to the secrets and techniques of an age-old art form.
This unique experience amounted to a true adventure story, leading eventually to Verdier’s fascinating artistic practice that combines east Asian inspiration with contemporary painting. Passenger of Silence, an autobiographical travel journal by turns gripping and wholly moving, is an expanded English edition of the original French language text published by Albin Michel in 2005. New color photographs supplement the already richly illustrated volume, with over 100 images alongside a newly written glossary of aesthetic terms.
Alan Glass’s drawings from the 1950s are like swirls of smoke on the verge of assuming solid shape, like rock coming alive and metamorphosing, like plants and animals commingling, their branches and limbs, their eyes and tendrils seeking new paths. Utilizing the newly invented ballpoint pen from 1954 to 1962, Glass used this modest instrument to create remarkably intricate and detailed drawings, using variations in pressure and density to conjure forth alternately lush and thick, light and crowded shapes with the appearance of inert matter coming alive. Among the several hundred drawings that Glass produced, there are some in which he used such an abundance of ink that the drawings almost take on the texture of paintings. Here, the flimsy paper is saturated to the degree of appearing soaked in the intense blues that have been a frequently recurring element of Glass’s art for almost 70 years. It was the ballpoint-pen drawings that led to Glass’s first solo exhibition, organized at Galerie Le Terrain Vague by André Breton and Benjamin Péret in January 1958.
Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840), one of the great visionaries of European art, spent all his life in Northern Germany, apart from four years studying in Copenhagen, and his output appears to consist almost entirely of German landscapes. But far from being parochial, he was, in the words of the French sculptor David d’Angers, the artist who ‘discovered the tragic in landscape’. His paintings assemble minutely observed elements of nature into compositions that celebrate the riches and the melancholy of a cosmos fully imbued with the divine, while never losing an almost hallucinatory engagement with reality. For all their clarity, they are the quintessence of Romanticism.
Almost too familiar today, to Friedrich’s contemporaries these extraordinary paintings were astonishing and challenging. This volume records the reactions of some of the most prominent figures of German Romanticism: Kleist, Brentano and Arnim (in a witty series of dialogues between gallery visitors alternately bewitched and bewildered by Friedrich’s Monk by the Sea), the painter and physiologist Carus, the psychologist Schubert, the Russian poet and translator Zhukovsky. A piece by Goethe and his colleague Heinrich Meyer records the somewhat baffled admiration of the earlier generation; and Friedrich’s own Commandments of Art breathes the almost overwhelming passion with which he approached his vocation. An introduction by the leading scholar Johannes Grave situates Friedrich’s art and its reception in the context of the Romantic movement both in Germany and in Europe as a whole.
The New York jewelry firm of Marcus & Co. (1892–1942) created exceptional examples of Art Nouveau and Art Deco jewelry for an art-loving, wealthy elite. Innovative in their collaboration with contemporary artists, and in their captivating window displays and advertisements, the firm captured the imagination of Gilded Age families such as the Rockefellers. This volume chronicles their story, from the founder’s apprenticeship in Dresden to the firm’s grand premises on Fifth Avenue neighboring Tiffany and Cartier. The triumphs and tragedies of three generations of Marcus jewelers, both artistic and entrepreneurial, are presented here together with exquisite jewelry and archival design drawings spanning 50 years.
Paul Ibou designed during his career more than 350 logos & symbols and is one of the important pioneers in modern graphic design. Next to his design activities he published numerous books on symbols and logo’s. In 1991 he built the foundations of the book Letters As Symbols: the concept, the cover and the basic layout. The book was never released and remained untouched for decades until young graphic designer Christophe De Pelsemaker and Paul Ibou established a collaboration in 2017. Paul Ibou acquired an enormous amount of logos through submission forms that were sent to him by the leading logo and brand identity designers of that time like Saul Bass, Burton Kramer, Anton Stankowski, Yasaburo Kuwayama, Ken Cato, Wim Crouwel and many more. Letters As Symbols, contains logos from these submissions and was completed with contemporary work. Each logo is based on a letter of the Latin alphabet (A-Z) and forms an excellent source of inspiration for designers, artists, agencies, teachers, typographers, students, and many others.
Introducing Karel Fonteyne, one of Belgium’s foremost contemporary and fashion photographers. Since 1968 the artist has created an extensive oeuvre that has its place in the history of photography. His timeless visual storytelling relates to nature, darkness and loneliness, the inner world, and esotericism, while touching uncovered dimensions. For more than 15 years Fonteyne was active as a fashion photographer, breaking boundaries by introducing his narrative approach as a contemporary artist in the traditional fashion world. He had early collaborations with Martin Margiela, Dries Van Noten, Walter Van Beirendonck and Dirk Bikkembergs, and internationally he collaborated with Vogue, Interview, Bazaar, Marie-Claire and Brutus Magazine in Japan.
Text in English and French.
Building on her experience following a several-week trip to Taliesin West, Kora Bürgi investigates Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture and traces his work in the USA and Switzerland. The result of the field research is a presentation of his influence on the Central Swiss architectural landscape – a theme that has not been studied before. That influence ranges from partial copies of elements of Wright’s architecture to own interpretations of his architectural ideas.
This publication analyzes 14 buildings in Central Switzerland – from the Heimbach school and the Villa Schnyder (both in Lucerne) to the residential buildings in Brodhubl (Canton of Obwalden) – including Wright’s influence on various architects, such as Josef Gasser, Lisbeth Sachs and Otto von Deschwanden. The author also sheds light on the distribution of Wright’s urban-planning principles and the future of his architecture in Switzerland.
Text in German.
Decades after the death of the artist and aesthetic heretic James Lee Byars, episodes from his life have taken on the aura of urban legend. Born and raised in Detroit, he spent much of his adult life outside the United States. His first sojourn overseas was to Japan in 1958 at age twenty-six, and over the next ten years he traveled between Japan and the U.S. seven times. Later in life he spent several years in Europe, and died in Cairo in 1997.
Curator and art historian Sakagami Shinobu here traces Byars’s formative years in Detroit, a period about which virtually nothing has been published. Extensive interviews with those who knew him do much to clarify facts about his early growth as an artist and to provide a picture of the environment that nurtured it. This companion book to the author’s lauded James Lee Byars: Days in Japan illuminates a similarly crucial yet overlooked period in the artist’s development.
This book focuses on the floor covering traditions of Kashmir, one of the two distinct regions that constitute the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir has been historically famous as a producer of the world-renowned and esteemed pashmina shawl. However, the region also produces a variety of floor coverings that are an essential part of its households and its handicraft industry. The variety of floor coverings produced differs in design, their mode of production, the raw material used and the region of production.
Kaleen-weaving is a long-standing tradition, dating back to over 600 years, while floor coverings such as the wagoo mats trace their antiquity to the Indus Valley Civilization. This book intends to serve as a lasting narrative of the rich material culture of the Kashmir region. It identifies significant cultural units in design to showcase the age-old craft traditions in production that are integral to regional tangible and intangible cultural practices. It enables an understanding of the cultural context of Kashmir that has a strong influence on the production of floor coverings, lending a unique identity to its kaleen, which is otherwise often associated with Persian carpets. The author has used descriptive, thematic and ethnographic modes of analysis to highlight instances of carpet-weaving traditions that resonate distinctly with Kashmir.
Well-researched and richly illustrated, the book will appeal to those interested in textiles, carpets and indigenous tangible and intangible cultures and craft traditions.
“He’s been behind the camera forever. A friend of the light. Does he have a pact with the heavens? Do they tell him secrets? The language of light? He somehow travels on the same frequency. Respectfully engaging with the source.” — Samantha Morton
“Most portraitists kill their subjects. He keeps them alive. He doesn’t want to freeze you in time. He’s made portraiture sexy again, but not stupid. Vulnerable but never weak.” — Marlene Dumas
The ultimate showcase of photographer and filmmaker Anton Corbijn’s iconic work, spanning from the 1970s to today.
Anton Corbijn (b. 1955) is one of the most important photographers and directors working today, renowned for his iconic portraits of musicians, actors, and artists, as well as his distinctive visual work in music videos and album covers.
This gloriously illustrated, oversized book pays homage to Corbijn’s love for the arts – an interest that has led to lifelong friendships with Bono, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, Michael Stipe, Dave Gahan, and other iconic musicians. Looking back over five decades, it features hundreds of creative, offbeat images that Corbijn was able to capture largely as a result of his close relationships with his subjects.
Corbijn, Anton highlights and rediscovers iconic images, celebrating his legacy and lasting influence on visual art and pop culture to this day.
With text contributions by Adam Clayton (U2), Anton Corbijn, Marlene Dumas, Johan Faes, Samantha Morton and Tom Waits.
This publication accompanies a grand retrospective exhibition at Fotografiska Stockholm, from 13 June until 12 October 2025. The exhibition will be traveling to Fotografiska Berlin, Tallinn and Shanghai.