Kevin's Holiday Gift Picks!

Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Houses by Dominic Bradbury. “A groundbreaking global survey of the finest mid-20th-century homes - one of the most popular styles of our time. A fascinating collection of more than 400 of the world's most glamorous homes from more than 290 architects, the Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Houses showcases work by such icons as Marcel Breuer, Richard Neutra, Alvar Aalto, and Oscar Niemeyer alongside extraordinary but virtually unknown houses in Australia, Africa, and Asia. A thoroughly researched, comprehensive appraisal, this book is a must-have for all design aficionados, Mid-Century Modern collectors, and readers looking for inspiration for their own homes.” Published by Phaidon. $ 150.00

MGM Style: Cedric Gibbons and the Art of the Golden Age of Hollywood. " MGM Style is an overview of the career and achievements of Hollywood’s most famous art director. Cedric Gibbons was the supervisor in charge of the art department at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studios from its inception in 1924 until Gibbons chose to retire in 1956. Lavishly illustrated with over 175 pristine duotone photographs, the vast majority of which have never before been published, this is the first volume to trace Gibbons’ trendsetting career. At its height in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Gibbons was regularly acknowledged by his peers as having shaped the craft of art direction in American film; his work was recognized as representing the finest in motion picture sets and settings. Gibbons and his associates constructed the villages, towns, streets, squares and edifices that later appeared in hundreds of films, and whose mixed architecture stood in for army camps and the wild west, Dutch New York and Dickensian London, ancient China and modern Japan. Inspired by the work of Le Corbusier and the Bauhaus masters, as well as the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris and Frank Lloyd Wright’s experiments with open planning, Gibbons championed the notion that movie decor should move beyond the commercial framework of the popular cinema" Published by Lyons Press. $ 45.00

Scala Cinema 1978-1993 by Jane Giles & Stephen Woolley. " The most infamous and influential of all British cinemas, the Scala’s iconic programs tell their own unique story about culture and society between 1978-1993, a post-punk / pre-internet period of significant change. The Scala rose from the ashes of a defunct socialist collective on the site of an ancient concert hall and theatre in London's West End. Pushed out of its premises by the arrival of Channel 4 television in 1981, the Scala moved to the Primatarium, a former picture palace and one-time rock venue within spitting distance of north London's King’s Cross station. An exceptionally atmospheric repertory cinema with its mysteriously rumbling auditorium and resident cats, people traveled to the Scala from all over the country to have their minds blown by its alchemical mix of Hollywood classics and cult movies, horror, Kung Fu, LGBT+, animation, silent comedy, Psychotronic and unclassifiable films, combined with live gigs and music club nights. Over a million people went through the doors of the Scala, and its reputation spread far and wide. A lone operator, the Scala closed down in 1993 following a perfect storm of lease expiry, the ravages of the recession… and a devastating court case. 2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the first Scala program and 25 years since the cinema's closure, an ideal time to take stock of a legacy which includes many of today’s most exciting filmmakers, who’ve credited the Scala’s influence on their work. Scala Cinema 1978-1993 features the complete collection of all 178 monthly programs plus photographs and ephemera. It is also an in-depth and often outrageous time-traveling history uncovering its deep roots and taking the reader behind the scenes of the Scala. The book will appeal to anyone interested in film or the story of the 1980s." Published by FAB Press. $ 99.95

East German Modern. " This visually arresting tour through the former East Germany shows the best examples of modernist architecture still standing there today. The buildings constructed in East Germany after the Second World War are often dismissed as drab, Soviet-style, prefabricated blocks of cement. But the architecture of the German Democratic Republic was created with an eye toward modernity and efficiency, and heralded the birth of a new country and a new economic and social system. Hans Engels has traveled throughout East Germany to photograph iconic modernist buildings that survived demolition. From movie theaters, high-rises, and restaurants to museums, convention centers, and transit stations, these buildings have all stood the test of time. While the philosophy that drove their design may be outdated, their retro appeal is stronger than ever." Published by Prestel. $ 50.00

Stories on Rye: A Collection of Memories Shared at Canter's Deli Since 1931. "Stories on Rye collects more than 100 stories from the famed LA deli’s patrons and employees, capturing their experiences and memories at Canter’s since it first opened in 1931. Gina Canter’s beautiful illustrations celebrate both the place and its patrons, as voices from the past join the present, to demonstrate that nostalgia can be very much alive. Like the Canter’s booths that have welcomed movie stars and presidents alongside countless everyday people, the book contains a vast range of memories. Most significant, perhaps, is its connection to the Jewish heritage, such as the holocaust survivor who reunites with her family at Canter’s after being separated for over 40 years. Hilarious, touching and perhaps a little magical, Stories on Rye are a testament to the human spirit, and to a restaurant that shares its legacy with each of its patrons.Published by Pomelo & Co. $ 30.00

Holiday: The Best Travel Magazine that Ever Was. "The first book on magazine sensation Holiday, which between 1946 and 1977 was one of the most exciting publications in the world. Renowned for its bold layouts, literary credibility, and ambitious choice of photographers and artists, Holiday portrayed the romance of travel like no other periodical. At Holiday magazine's peak, urbane editor, Ted Patrick, and visionary art director, Frank Zachary, invited postwar America to see and read about the world. On the journey, readers joined the magazine's renowned roster of talent. Some of the most celebrated writing by Jack Kerouac, Ernest Hemingway, Graham Greene, Joan Didion, Truman Capote, Colette, and E. B. White (his piece "Here Is New York" was commissioned for Holiday in 1949) first appeared in its pages. Henri Cartier-Bresson documented a breathtaking Paris and other cities; Slim Aarons captured the glamour of travel around the world; and Al Hirschfeld and Ludwig Bemelmans contributed showstopping illustrations of places and personages.Pamela Fiori writes about the magazine's history, giving it context during the era of the jet age, world turbulence, and the rise of Madison Avenue advertising. Holiday was a vibrant original, inspiring travel magazines that followed and leaving glorious photography and art as well as thought-provoking journalism in its wake. Published by Rizzoli. $ 85.00

NFL 100: Century of Football. "Timed to coincide with the National Football League’s 100th anniversary, NFL 100 celebrates the history of America’s most popular and highly watched sport. From its humble beginnings in Canton, Ohio, to its emergence as a sport cherished by millions, all the key moments and famous athletes are honored within the pages of this handsomely produced book. In addition to the lively text, and action and portrait photography, the story of the game and the context in which it grew are animated by original lists, charts, creative statistics, and infographics, along with beautiful photos of the evolving equipment and artifacts essential to the story of the sport. A perfect gift, NFL 100 will be cherished by every football fan, new or old." Published by Abrams. $ 50.00

Stephen Wilkes. Day to Night. " If you were to stand in one spot at an iconic location for 30 hours and simply observe, never closing your eyes, you still wouldn’t be able to take in all the detail and emotion found in a Stephen Wilkes panoramic photograph. Not only does Wilkes shoot over 1,500 exposures from a fixed angle, he also distills this visual information afterward in his studio, painstakingly composing selected frames into a single image.Day to Night presents 60 epic panoramas created between 2009 and 2018, shot everywhere from Africa’s Serengeti to the Champs-Élysées in Paris, from the Grand Canyon to Coney Island, from Trafalgar Square to Red Square. Each composition is a labor of love as well as patience. Wilkes waited more than two years to gain permission to photograph Pope Francis celebrating Easter mass in the Vatican, ultimately producing a vivid tableau in which the pontiff appears 10 times. The book also features extraordinary details―works of art in their own right that highlight the stories contained within each image. A bride makes her way through Central Park; in Tanzania, zebras gather around a near-invisible watering hole during a drought; in Rio de Janeiro, surfers come and go while a man holds a sign reading “No more than two questions per customer.” “It is exactly these small stories, these details, that draw people into the photographs,” says Wilkes. Once discovered, these mini narratives lend each composition a personal, candid feel." Published by Taschen. $ 150.00

Michael Jang: Who is Michael Jang. "San Francisco–based photographer Michael Jang spent nearly four decades working as a successful commercial portrait photographer. Unbeknownst to the world, however, he was simultaneously assembling a vast archive of thousands of remarkable images documenting, variously: college days, Hollywood celebrities, would-be weather presenters, San Francisco street scenes, his family, Bay Area punks and adolescent garage bands. Jang revealed nothing of his ever-expanding, eclectic archive for almost 40 years until 2001, when he submitted a number of images for consideration to San Francisco's Museum of Modern Art. Jang’s work attracted immediate acclaim, and for the past decade he has continued to unveil his considerable oeuvre in national and international exhibitions and monographs. The photographer’s first major monograph, Who Is Michael Jang? highlights Jang's most important bodies of work. Introduced by his longtime collaborator and SFMOMA curator emerita of photography, Sandra Phillips, this volume offers readers a long-overdue introduction to Jang’s incredible images." Published by Atelier Editions. $ 65.00

French New Wave: A Revolution In Design. “The French New Wave is one of the most important movements in the history of film. Its fresh energy and vision changed the cinematic landscape and it has had a seminal impact on pop culture. The poster artists tasked with selling these Nouvelle Vague films to the masses were at the forefront of a revolution in art, graphic design and photography. This volume is a visual celebration of their explosive and groundbreaking poster art. Featuring posters from several countries, the diverse imagery for films like Breathless, Fahrenheit 451 and Le Mepris is accompanied by biographies on over 100 artists, photographers and designers – the first time many of those responsible for promoting and portraying this movement have been properly recognized.” Published by Reel Art Press. $ 59.95

Jacques Tati: Complete Works. " Oscar-winning French filmmaker/performer Jacques Tati, one of the most important figures in the history of cinema, is the subject of this comprehensive and long-overdue tribute to a singular artistic genius. Made with the support of Tati’s rights holders Les Films de Mon Oncle, who allowed unprecedented access to his archives, and designed by M/M (Paris), this stunning five-volume publication gathers original essays, interviews, and screenplays, plus hundreds of photographs, stills, letters, sketches, notes, and production materials." Published by Taschen. $ 225.00

Rick Baker: Metamorphosis. " This deluxe two-volume set explores seven-time Academy Award-winner Rick Baker's 40-plus-year journey as a special makeup effects artist. Features a foreword by John Landis, a preface by Peter Jackson, and an introduction by Rick Baker. Rick Baker: Metamorphosis chronicles the career of the legendary special effects and makeup artist, best known for his creature effects and designs. This deluxe, two-volume set, replete with more than 1,600 four-color images and original sketches, covers the makeup artist's forty-plus-year journey, from his early days as a young "monster maker," creating body parts in his parents' kitchen, to his more than seventy film and television credits, which resulted in seven Academy Awards, one Emmy, and three BAFTAs, among numerous others. From the gory zombies of Michael Jackson's Thriller and the staggeringly lifelike Bigfoot in Harry and the Hendersons to the creative builds in Men in Black and the groundbreaking effects in An American Werewolf in London, Rick Baker's special effects, makeup, and prosthetics count among some of Hollywood's most enduring legacies. Published by Cameron Books. $ 250.00

Decline of Mall Civilization by Michael Galinsky. "In 1989, I was a sophomore at NYU when I took my first photo class, “Color Printing”. My teacher was awesome and our first assignment was to watch the film “River’s Edge“. At the time, I was dating a girl who went to Stony Brook and I’d take the Long Island Railroad out to see her every other weekend. One weekend, shortly after I had started the class and had to find a subject for my class project, I happened to go to the Smith Haven Mall with her and immediately knew I’d found a place to shoot. I was a Religious Studies major who took a lot of anthropology and sociology courses, which helped me to think of the the mall in complex ways. I was especially interested in considering the mall as something of a privatized public square. While I focused on the people, I thought about the way that they interacted with each other and the space. The teacher loved the work and encouraged me to continue it that summer. So my friend Sebastian and I packed ourselves in his Corolla station wagon and we hit the road without any real plan at all. Our first stop was Columbus Ohio. We stayed with my aunt but we didn’t find a mall. We then hightailed it to Detroit where we hit the jackpot with the Woodfield Mall. It’s a beauty and there are probably a dozen in the book from that one. Next stop was Chicago- then South Dakota, and on and on. All in all, we hit about 15 malls. We got some great images but it wasn’t really their time. By 1989, the “Pictures Generation” – with its focus on more constructed and deconstructed images – had pushed street photography out of the galleries. They were doubling down on big ideas and conceptual work. I went on to take a couple other photo classes, but turned my attention to making music and making films. I shot a lot of images, but my main outlets for them were fanzines and album covers. I moved on to making films. In 2010, I re-discovered these slides and the rest is history." Published by Rumur. $ 52.00

Book of the Day Posted Dec 08, 2019

Isabelle's Holiday Gift Picks!

Doug Meyer: Heroes: A Tribute, Pink Art Edition." Heroes: A Tribute celebrates the lives and contributions of 49 brilliant, creative figures who were early victims of HIV/AIDS—unique portraits by artist Doug Meyer reflect the core of each individual and are paired with insightful obituaries. In Heroes: A Tribute artist Doug Meyer celebrates the lives and accomplishments of creative pioneers who were victims of HIV/AIDS in the early years of the epidemic. Brilliant figures from the worlds of art, design, film, and dance are honored here—people such as Robert Mapplethorpe, Keith Haring, Rudolph Nureyev, Freddie Mercury, Rock Hudson, John Duka, Tina Chow, Klaus Nomi, Halston, and Angelo Donghia. The Art Editions of Heroes are stamped, signed, and numbered by Doug Meyer and include a print of the 49th hero. The Pink Art Edition includes a pink version of the print in the back of each copy. Heroes began as an installation at a Design Industry Foundation to Fight AIDS event and grew into a traveling exhibition. The portraits vary in form, material, and style, and incorporate drawing, painting, sculpture, and photography. In his multi-dimensional artwork, Meyer blends techniques and media, such as terracotta, églomisé, papier-mâché, and computer-generated collage. The text includes essays by Meyer and writer Beth Dunlop as well as brief biographies of each hero that highlight the contributions these figures made to the worlds of art, design, and culture. This beautifully designed book features sophisticated graphic design and includes pages from Doug Meyer’s sketchbooks showing his artistic process. A true celebration, Heroes: A Tribute both pays homage to these visionary creatives who died too soon, and it teaches younger generations about these important figures. This book will appeal to all who have an interest in art, design, fashion, creativity, gay and LGBTQ issues and history, and more." Published by Tra Publishing, $95.00

The New Woman's Survival Catalog. "Originally published in 1973, The New Woman’s Survival Catalog is a seminal survey of the second-wave feminist effort across the US. Edited by Kirsten Grimstad and Susan Rennie in just five months, The New Woman’s Survival Catalog makes a nod to Stewart Brand’s influential Whole Earth Catalog, mapping a vast network of feminist alternative cultural activity in the 1970s. Grimstad and Rennie set out on a two-month road trip in the summer of 1973, meeting and interviewing a range of organizations and individuals, and gathering vital information on everything from arts groups to bookstores and independent presses, health, parenting and rape crisis centers and educational, legal and financial resources. 'These projects express a rejection of the values of existing institutional structures,” Grimstad and Rennie wrote, “and, unlike the hip male counterculture, represent an active attempt to reshape culture through changing values and consciousness.' Arranged in themed sections on art, communications, work and money, child care, self-help, self-defense and activism, The New Woman’s Survival Catalog provides crucial insight into feminist initiatives and activism nationwide during the Women’s Movement. It includes a “Making the Book” section that details the publication’s production." Published by Primary Information. $30.00

Becoming Invisible. "Both an artist's book and a would-be practical guide, this beautiful little book offers occult instructions for becoming invisible by meditating on the color spectrum. It draws on the literature of Rosicrucianism, theosophy and esoteric yoga to demonstrate how, through breathing exercises and visualization, the reader can learn to split light into its constituent parts, then recombine the seven colours of the spectrum to form a glowing white cloud that envelops its creator, rendering him or her invisible. Its author, London-based artist Ian Whittlesea—well known for his book works based on spiritual-physical exercises, such as Yves Klein: The Foundations of Judo and Mazdaznan Health & Breath Culture—notes in the preface: "These exercises are intended to allow you to become invisible. This does not, however, mean that you will physically disappear or dematerialize. Instead you will be hidden from view, concealed within a cloud of your own creation."Gorgeous colour abstractions by Whittlesea illustrate the book throughout." Published by The Everyday Press. $25.00

Art-Rite. "The New York proto-punk zine that defined postconceptualism, now in a facsimile edition. Edited by Walter Robinson, Edit DeAk and Joshua Cohn, Art-Rite was published in New York City between 1973 and 1978. The periodical has long been celebrated for its underground/overground position and its cutting, humorous, on-the-streets coverage and critique of the art world. Art-Rite moved easily through the expansive community it mapped out, paying homage to an emergent generation of artists, including many who were—or would soon become—the defining voices of the era. Through hundreds of interviews, reviews, statements and projects for the page—as well as artist-focused and thematic issues on video, painting, performance and artists' books—Art-Rite's sharp editorial vision and commitment to holding up the work of artists stands as a meaningful and lasting contribution to the art history of New York and beyond. All issues of Art-Rite are collected in this volume. Artists include: Vito Acconci, Kathy Acker, Bas Jan Ader, Laurie Anderson, John Baldessari, Gregory Battcock, Lynda Benglis, Mel Bochner, Marcel Broodthaers, Trisha Brown, Chris Burden, Scott Burton, Ulises Carrión, Judy Chicago, Lucinda Childs, Christo, Diego Cortez, Hanne Darboven, Agnes Denes, Ralston Farina, Richard Foreman, Peggy Gale, Gilbert & George, John Giorno, Philip Glass, Leon Golub, Peter Grass, Julia Heyward, Nancy Holt, Ray Johnson, Joan Jonas, Richard Kern, Lee Krasner, Shigeko Kubota, Les Levine, Sol LeWitt, Lucy Lippard, Babette Mangolte, Brice Marden, Agnes Martin, Gordon Matta-Clark, Rosemary Mayer, Annette Messager, Elizabeth Murray, Alice Neel, Brian O'Doherty, Genesis P-Orridge, Nam June Paik, Charlemagne Palestine, Judy Pfaff, Lil Picard, Yvonne Rainer, Dorothea Rockburne, Ed Ruscha, Robert Ryman, David Salle, Carolee Schneemann, Richard Serra, Jack Smith, Patti Smith, Robert Smithson, Holly Solomon, Naomi Spector, Nancy Spero, Pat Steir, Frank Stella, Alan Suicide (Vega), David Tremlett, Richard Tuttle, Andy Warhol, William Wegman, Lawrence Weiner, Hannah Wilke, Robert Wilson, Yuri and Irene von Zahn." Published by Primary Information. $40.00

Le Corbuffet: Edible Art and Design Classics. "Esther Choi: Le Corbuffet. "Home-cooking meets highbrow art in this one-of-a-kind cookbook that uses food to create edible interpretations of modern and contemporary sculptures, paintings, architecture, and design. It started as a series of dinner parties that Esther Choi—artist, architectural historian, and self-taught cook—hosted for friends after she stumbled across an elaborate menu crafted for Walter Gropius in 1937. Combining a curiosity about art and design with a deeply felt love of cooking, Choi has assembled a playful collection of recipes that are sure to spark conversation over the dinner table. Featuring Choi’s own spectacular photography, these sixty recipes riff off famous artists or architects and the works they are known for. Try Quiche Haring with the Frida Kale-o Salad, or the Robert Rauschenburger followed by Flan Flavin. This cookbook is strikingly beautiful and provocative as it blurs the boundaries between art and everyday life and celebrates food in an engaging and imaginative way." Published by Prestel. $40.00

Objects of Desire: Surrealism and Design 1924-Today. "One of the most influential art movements of the 20th century, surrealism expanded our artistic and quotidian reality by drawing upon myths, dreams and the subconscious as sources of artistic inspiration. The movement began in literature and art, but by the 1930s it was beginning to have an impact on design—an influence that continues to this day. The fascination was often mutual: surrealism opened design up to the realm of dreams, and design could introduce surrealism to the wider world. “I try to create fantastic things, magical things, things like in a dream,” Salvador Dalí said of his work. “The world needs more fantasy.” Designers in fashion, furniture design, advertising, theater, film and architecture took up the call. Objects of Desire: Surrealism and Design is the first book to document this fascinating conversation. The publication includes numerous essays and a comprehensive selection of images which trace the reciprocal exchanges between surrealism and design by juxtaposing exemplary artworks and design objects. Among the artists and designers featured in this volume are Gae Aulenti, Louise Bourgeois, Umberto and Fernando Campana, Achille Castiglioni, Giorgio de Chirico, Le Corbusier, Salvador Dalí, Marcel Duchamp, Frederick Kiesler, René Magritte, Carlo Mollino, Meret Oppenheim, Jerszy Seymour, and many others. Historical texts and short commentaries by contemporary designers round out the publication, putting the extravagant objects in context. In-depth yet appropriately fantastical, Objects of Desire makes one thing abundantly clear: form does not always follow function in design—it can also follow our obsessions, fantasies and hidden desires." Published by Vitra Design Museum. $90.00

Peter Berlin: Icon, Artist, Photosexual. "Peter Berlin was a self-created icon. With his trademark pageboy haircut and his skin-tight costumes that put every detail of his anatomy on display (designed and tailored by Berlin himself to accentuate his already naturally defined physique), he became a gay sex symbol and a walking work of art. Cruising was his career, and with a background in photography, Berlin began taking thousands of erotic self-portraits in the parks, train stations and streets of Berlin, Rome, Paris, New York and San Francisco, where he settled in the early 1970s. As Berlin put it, 'One day I looked at a camera and said, ‘I have found my dream lover.’ Berlin’s ’70s and ’80s self-portrait photography graced the covers of gay magazines, defining a look and a reimagined masculinity in a changing gay male culture. Spotlighting Berlin’s significant body of work, Peter Berlin: Icon, Artist, Photosexual pays tribute to the man who revolutionized the landscape of gay male eroticism and became an international sensation. The book is designed by Omar Sosa, Creative Director of Apartamento magazine, and is edited by Michael Bullock, writer and publisher of BUTT, Pin-Up, Fantastic Man and Gentlewoman magazines. In addition to essays by Hans Ulrich Obrist, Jonathan David Katz, Ted Stansfield and Evan Moffitt, the book includes original quotes about Berlin by Jeremy O Harris, Kembra Pfahler, Andre Leon Talley, Armistead Maupin, John Waters, Arca, Silvia Prada, AA Bronson, Jack Pierson, Simon Foxton, Chris Moukarbel, Telfar Clemens, Paul Sepuya, Tim Blanks, Mariah Garnett and Rick Castro. Artist, model and filmmaker Peter Berlin, nee Armin Hagen Freiherr von Hoyningen Huene (born 1942), created some of the most legendary erotic imagery of his day. What began as studies in self-portraiture and fashion design in the name of cruising, by the early 1970s had turned into a robust artistic practice that included the creation of two films―Nights in Black Leather (1973) and That Boy (1974)―and innumerable photographs, paintings and illustrations." Published by Damiani. $ 50.00

Book of the Day Posted Dec 08, 2019

Jess's Holiday Gift Picks!

Ken Price: Drawings. "Though Los Angeles artist Ken Price (1935–2012) is best known as a sculptor in ceramic, drawing was always a central component of his art: “For me drawing is really flexible,” he once stated, “and I use it in different ways. It’s my way of developing ideas.” Ken Price: Drawings brings out this facet of Price’s work fully for the first time. Featuring 78 of Price’s works on paper―all reproduced for the first time, many at actual size―this book is the most comprehensive ever published on the subject. Technical innovations like five-color printing capture Price’s drawings in all their wayward vitality. From preparatory works, like Price’s early 1960s drawings exploring forms and colors for his abstract sculptures, to his 2000s landscapes featuring wild scenes of erupting volcanoes, cyclonic skies and turbulent seas, Ken Price: Drawings offers a long-overdue survey of Price’s work on paper." Published by Matthew Marks. $60.00

Objects of Desire: Surrealism and Design 1924-Today. "One of the most influential art movements of the 20th century, surrealism expanded our artistic and quotidian reality by drawing upon myths, dreams and the subconscious as sources of artistic inspiration. The movement began in literature and art, but by the 1930s it was beginning to have an impact on design—an influence that continues to this day. The fascination was often mutual: surrealism opened design up to the realm of dreams, and design could introduce surrealism to the wider world. “I try to create fantastic things, magical things, things like in a dream,” Salvador Dalí said of his work. “The world needs more fantasy.” Designers in fashion, furniture design, advertising, theater, film and architecture took up the call. Objects of Desire: Surrealism and Design is the first book to document this fascinating conversation. The publication includes numerous essays and a comprehensive selection of images which trace the reciprocal exchanges between surrealism and design by juxtaposing exemplary artworks and design objects. Among the artists and designers featured in this volume are Gae Aulenti, Louise Bourgeois, Umberto and Fernando Campana, Achille Castiglioni, Giorgio de Chirico, Le Corbusier, Salvador Dalí, Marcel Duchamp, Frederick Kiesler, René Magritte, Carlo Mollino, Meret Oppenheim, Jerszy Seymour, and many others. Historical texts and short commentaries by contemporary designers round out the publication, putting the extravagant objects in context. In-depth yet appropriately fantastical, Objects of Desire makes one thing abundantly clear: form does not always follow function in design—it can also follow our obsessions, fantasies and hidden desires." Published by Vitra Design Museum. $ 90.00

Ben Hassett: Color. "Printed with ultraviolet ink in a hand-numbered, slipcased edition of 1,000 copies, Color is the first monograph by British photographer Ben Hassett. In keeping with his acute sense of the powerful language of color photography, Hassett invites us into his world of photographic experimentation to experience the possibilities of this chromatic medium. Color draws together Hassett’s iconic fashion and beauty images, studio still lifes, abstract in-camera works and landscape photographs to present his unique lexicon of color photography. Putting aside the conventions of chronological and project-by-project sequencing, the book instead pursues a dynamic reading that surveys the past ten years of Hassett’s standing as an influential image-maker. Color is designed by veteran art and creative director Fabien Baron (known for his innovative art direction of Harper's Bazaar, Interview and Madonna’s infamous 1992 book Sex) and includes an essay about Ben Hassett’s photographic approach and effect by renowned curator and writer Charlotte Cotton. " Published by Damiani. $ 60.00

John Gossage: Should Nature Change. In John Gossage's words, this is a book "with a particular context, of photographs to settle the feeling that I did not understand my home. To do that I set out, starting in 2003, to see what clarity my pictures might bring." And so came into being these photos of scenes, things, minor events and the look in the eyes of the young, all taken in everyday non iconic places throughout his travels across America. "Should Nature Change," taken from the Book of Isaiah, is for Gossage both a declaration and a warning: "I am a humanist, like most of us are, I can't really step back to see the beauty and order of all this; closeness brings chaos and dread in this case. We have done harm to the place we live, I'm told, but it seems to me that we have done the most harm to ourselves and our best-laid plans. The planet has a plan to fix this, if we don't." Published by Steidl. $ 50.00

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John Gossage: Jack Wilson' Waltz. "Jack Wilson’s Waltz is, in the words of its author, a book “with a particular context, of photographs to settle the feeling that I did not understand about my home. To do that I set out, starting in 2003, to see what clarity my pictures might bring.” And so came into being these photos of scenes, things, minor events and the look in the eyes of the young, all taken in everyday non-iconic places throughout John Gossage’s (born 1946) travels across America. Gossage’s ongoing look at his country within these pages is like a dance: rhythmic, redeeming, restorative, intuitive; but tentatively hopeful. “I would like to believe all of it,” he writes, “that we will be saved, but on Connecticut Avenue there is graffiti that says ‘Where is Lee Harvey Oswald when we need him?’ All I can hear is the faint echoing gun shots coming from Wounded Knee.” Published by Steidl. $ 50.00

Charlotte Perriand: Inventing a New World. " Charlotte Perriand (1903-1999) was a pioneer of modern design in France during the twentieth century. Her avant-garde vision was expressed in color, organic forms, and streamlined functionality, elements which are still at the heart of contemporary design today. Her furnishings were created from aluminum, rubber, chrome, leather, bamboo, and above all, wood; their appeal is timeless. This lavishly illustrated book, accompanying a major retrospective at the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, explores how much in the vanguard she was in her use of materials, in her social and political awareness, and in her collaborations with artists, architects, and other designers. The show presents a global vision of her creativity, talent, and inventiveness, exploring her commitment to women and to a humanist design ethos that took into account the middle and working classes with an emphasis on rationalizing costs and space. This book, with essays by an international roster of art, architecture, and design historians, offers a plurality of perspectives and explores Perriand's creative legacy through the 20th century and beyond." Published by Gallimard. $ 60.00

Africamericanos. Edited with introduction by Claudi Carreras. Text by Sheila Walker, Abraham Nahón, Germán Rey. "A visual exploration of Afro-Latino identity and the African diaspora in Latin America as seen in the work of 34 contemporary photographers. Surveying photography from all over Latin America, and based on extensive research, The Africamericanos gives special consideration to those from countries with the highest populations of Afro-Latino citizens and whose people have suffered the most systematic erasure of Afrolatino identity. Photographers include: Luján Agustí, Claudia Gordillo y Maria José Alvarez, Liliana Angulo, Hugo Arellanes, Josúe Azor, Christian Belpaire, Maureen Bisilliat, Nicola lo Calzo, Koral Carballo, Pablo Chaco, Angélica Dass, Jonathas de Andrade, Manuel González de la Parra, Jose de Medeiros, Luisa Dorr, Sandra Elet, Nelson Garrido, Maya Goded, Nicolas Janowski, Yael Martínez, Yomer Montejo, Cristina de Middel y Bruno Morais, Carolina Navas, Eustáquio Neves, Jorge Panchoaga, Rosana Paulino, Mara Sánchez Rener, Marton Robinson, Isadora Romero, Lorry Salcedo, Leslie Searles and Karina Skvirsky" Published by RM. $ 50.00

The Family Acid: California. "For more than 50 years, Roger Steffens has traveled the electric arteries of the counterculture embracing mind-expanding experiences, deep social connection, and unadulterated fun at every turn. And he’s captured it all on film. After serving in Vietnam during the final 26 months of the ‘60s, where he won a Bronze Star for founding a refugee campaign that raised over 100 tons of food and clothing, he spent a year lecturing against the war before settling in Marrakech. Finally returning Stateside in 1972, he immersed himself in the vibrant bohemias of Berkeley, Los Angeles, and beyond, touring his highly-acclaimed one-man show, “Poetry for People Who Hate Poetry.” A psychedelic polymath, Steffens worked as an actor, poet, editor, archivist, lecturer, author, NPR radio DJ and interviewer and, yes, photographer. Driven by his own insatiable curiosity and passion, he was on a perpetual quest for the eccentric, the outlandish, the transcendent. Just as often, it found him, smiling, a camera in one hand and a joint in the other. He met his wife Mary under a lunar eclipse in a pygmy forest in Mendocino, California while on LSD. Soon after, they conjured up a daughter, Kate, and son, Devon. Family vacations took the foursome up and down the West Coast, from the gritty glam of Hollywood’s Sunset Strip to reggae festivals in Humboldt, fiery protests in Berkeley to the ancient redwoods of Big Sur and the wilds of Death Valley. Along the way, they’d rendezvous with likeminded freaks, artists, musicians, and writers, from Bob Marley and Timothy Leary to actor John Ritter and war photographer Tim Page, the inspiration for Dennis Hopper’s character in Apocalypse Now. This book is a collection of snapshots taken between 1968 and 2015 during Roger, Mary, Kate, and Devon’s freewheeling adventures across the visionary state they call home. Think of it as a family album belonging to a very unconventional family." Published by Ozma Records. $75.00

The Castle On Sunset: Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont by Shawn Levy. “For ninety years, Hollywood's brightest stars have favored the Chateau Marmont as a home away from home. An apartment house-turned-hotel, it has been the backdrop for generations of gossip and folklore: 1930s bombshell Jean Harlow took lovers during her third honeymoon there; director Nicholas Ray slept with his sixteen-year-old Rebel Without a Cause star Natalie Wood; Anthony Perkins and Tab Hunter met poolside and began a secret affair; Jim Morrison swung from the balconies, once falling nearly to his death; John Belushi suffered a fatal overdose in a private bungalow; Lindsay Lohan got the boot after racking up nearly $50,000 in charges in less than two months. Perched above the Sunset Strip like a fairytale castle, the Chateau seems to come from another world entirely. Its singular appearance houses an equally singular history. While a city, an industry, and a culture have changed around it, Chateau Marmont has welcomed the most iconic and iconoclastic personalities in film, music, and media. It appeals to the rich and famous not just for its European ambiance but for its seclusion: Much of what's happened inside the Chateau's walls has eluded the public eye. Until now. With wit and insight, Shawn Levy recounts the wild revelries and scandalous liaisons, the creative breakthroughs and marital breakdowns, the births and deaths that the Chateau has been a party to. Vivid, salacious, and richly informed, Levy's book is a glittering tribute to Hollywood as seen from inside the walls of its most hallowed hotel." Published by Doubleday. $ 28.95

Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles (Fully Revised 6th Ed.). "Conceived more than fifty years ago by renowned architectural historians Robert Winter and the late, great David Gebhard, this seminal vade mecum of Los Angeles architecture explores every rich potency of the often relentless, but sometimes relenting L.A. cityscape. Beyond an effort of exploration, the guide is an outfit of discovery. And it always has been. When tourists visit, architectural scholars land at LAX, or locals just want to know, they grab the same book: Gebhard and Winter's An Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles. First published in 1965 by Los Angeles County Museum of Art as an architectural overview (when few American cities had such a democratic compendium), the Gebhard and Winter guide has evolved to become the veritable "bible" of built Los Angeles. This sixth edition has been extensively revised and edited by Dr. Winter and his trusted collaborator, the award-winning L.A. urban walker Robert Inman." Published by Angel City Press $ 45.00

Stephen Gill - The Pillar. "A pillar knocked into the ground next to a stream in a flat, open landscape, trees and houses visible in the distance, beneath a vast sky. That is the backdrop to all of Stephen Gill´s photographs in this book. We see the same landscape in spring and summer, in autumn and winter, we see it in sunshine and rain, in snow and wind. Yet there is not the slightest monotony about these pictures, for in almost every one there is a bird, and each of these birds opens up a unique moment in time. We see something that has never happened before and will never happen again. That it takes place in the midst of a landscape characterised by repetition, in which time is cyclical, sets up a keen existential dynamic: on the one hand, everything has happened before, there’s nothing new under the sun; on the other, every moment is unique and carries the hallmark of the miracle: what happens happens only once and never again. But this wasn’t what I thought about the first time I looked at these photographs. In fact, I barely thought at all, for I was shaken, as a person so often is when confronted with an extraordinary work of art. I’d never seen birds in this way before, as if on their own terms, as independent creatures with independent lives. Ancient, forever improvising, endlessly embroiled with the forces of nature, and yet indulging too. And so infinitely alien to us."- Karl Ove Knausgård. Published by Nobody Books. $75.00

Book of the Day Posted Dec 08, 2019

Erin's Holiday Gift Picks!

Bauhaus Ballet." Watch the dancers as they leap, spin and kick their way through this beautiful pop–up book. Inspired by the eccentric and innovative Bauhaus Triadic Ballet, this gorgeous book explores colours, shapes, patterns and movements in a visually stunning and enthralling way. With interactive elements let the reader meet the characters, make them move, and bring their performance to life. With bold artwork rendered in Lesley Barnes' striking style and playful text by Gabby Dawnay, this special pop–up book is a beautiful, unique gift book that will delight children and adults alike. For fans of Bauhaus Ballet by German Modernist painter Oskar Schlemmer and perfect for children!" Published by Lund Humphries. $ 24.99

World Receivers Georgiana Houghton, Hilma Af Klint, Emma Kunz. "Wassily Kandinsky is often recognized as the first artist to paint shapes and colors without regard to visual references in the world. However, abstract paintings were being produced even before Kandinsky’s experiments with the form. In the middle of the nineteenth century, in England, Sweden, and Switzerland, respectively, Georgiana Houghton, Hilma af Klint, and Emma Kunz each developed their own abstract pictorial language. Though working completely independently from one another, these three artists shared a desire to make visible the laws of nature, the intellect, and the supernatural. Working within the context of the spiritual movements of their times—Houghton in Spiritism, af Klint in theosophy, and Kunz in naturopathy—they each produced abstract paintings that bore witness to a “mediumistic” praxis. Presenting their works side by side for the first time, World Receivers explores a fascinating and understudied episode of modernism, offering a long-overdue tribute to three expressive women artists.' Published by Hirmer. $49.95.

Le Corbuffet: Edible Art & Design Classics. "Home-cooking meets highbrow art in this one-of-a-kind cookbook that uses food to create edible interpretations of modern and contemporary sculptures, paintings, architecture, and design. It started as a series of dinner parties that Esther Choi--artist, architectural historian, and self-taught cook--hosted for friends after she stumbled across an elaborate menu crafted for Walter Gropius in 1937. Combining a curiosity about art and design with a deeply felt love of cooking, Choi has assembled a playful collection of recipes that are sure to spark conversation over the dinner table. Featuring Choi's own spectacular photography, these sixty recipes riff off famous artists or architects and the works they are known for. Try Quiche Haring with the Frida Kale-o Salad, or the Robert Rauschenburger followed by Flan Flavin. This cookbook is strikingly beautiful and provocative as it blurs the boundaries between art and everyday life and celebrates food in an engaging and imaginative way." Published by Prestel. $40.00.

Dennis Stock: California Trip. " In 1968, Magnum photographer Dennis Stock took a 5-week road trip along the California highways, documenting the height of the counterculture hippie scene. These black and white photos were compiled to create California Trip, originally published in 1970, and became an emblem of the free love movement that continued to inspire throughout the decades. In print for the first time since its 1970 publication, California Trip is a faithful reproduction of Stock’s timeless work." Published by Anthology Editions. $35.00

Autonomic Tarot. "Autonomic Tarot is the product of a collaboration between writer, David Keenan and artist, Sophy Hollington. The pair have combined forces to create a 30 card linocut tarot deck, and instruction booklet, that retains an umbilical to the card’s archaic roots, yet future-visions it as a glam-punk portal deep into the Now. The deck accompanies (and was born from) Keenan’s experimental novella To Run Wild In It published by ROUGH TRADE BOOKS (Edition No. 7)." Published by Rough Trade Books. $31.00 CURRENTLY OUT STOCK

Enchanted Modernities: Theosophy, The Arts and the American West. ”When the occult came to the American West: individualism and magic in the art of California, from Agnes Pelton to Jess. “It is in America that the transformation will take place, and has already silently commenced.” With these words, written in The Secret Doctrine in 1888, occultist philosopher Helena Blavatsky drew a direct connection between the Theosophical Society and the dynamic energy of 19th-century Americanism. Blavatsky and her successors identified the American West as the perfect site for a rebirth and re-enchantment of humanity, drawing those seeking spiritual fulfilment outside of organized religion to the dramatic landscapes of California, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico—places which have long beckoned searchers of all kinds. The syncretic nature of Theosophy allowed for and even encouraged individualism in belief, making Theosophy a good fit for the notions of freedom and personal agency that characterized the American West in the popular imaginary. Through a series of color plates, contextual essays, interviews and interpretations of individual works by artists such as the Dynaton group (Wolfgang Paalen, Gordon Onslow Ford, Lee Mullican), Oskar Fischinger, Emil Bisttram, Lawren Harris, Raymond Jonson, Agnes Pelton, Wolfgang Paalen, Beatrice Wood, Dane Rudhyar and Jess, Enchanted Modernities explores the role of Theosophical thought in redefining the relationship between enchantment and modernism, and fostering lively cultural networks in a region that that has long captured the world’s imagination." Published by Fulgur Press. $55.00

Ken Price: Drawings. " Though Los Angeles artist Ken Price (1935–2012) is best known as a sculptor in ceramic, drawing was always a central component of his art: “For me drawing is really flexible,” he once stated, “and I use it in different ways. It’s my way of developing ideas.” Ken Price: Drawings brings out this facet of Price’s work fully for the first time. Featuring 78 of Price’s works on paper―all reproduced for the first time, many at actual size―this book is the most comprehensive ever published on the subject. Technical innovations like five-color printing capture Price’s drawings in all their wayward vitality. From preparatory works, like Price’s early 1960s drawings exploring forms and colors for his abstract sculptures, to his 2000s landscapes featuring wild scenes of erupting volcanoes, cyclonic skies and turbulent seas, Ken Price: Drawings offers a long-overdue survey of Price’s work on paper." Published by Matthew Marks. $60.00

Book of the Day Posted Dec 08, 2019

Whitney's Holiday Gift Picks!

Francois Halard: A Visual Diary. "Francois Halard's unique photographic sensibility--old-world elegant and bohemian, accessible and personal--is unmistakable. Each image is imbued with the intimate knowledge of design history, each story a lesson in a master's point of view. This book is a continuation of his last volume of gorgeous photography of grand interiors, artists' studios, and architectural pilgrimage sites. Each story's subject matter is not just a personal passion of the photographer, but also an indispensable chapter in design history: Philip Johnson and Charles James's de Menil House, Giorgio Morandi's studio, Rick Owens's radical Paris apartment, Eileen Gray's recently restored modernist home on the French coast, Dries Van Noten's verdant garden and home, the home and studio of Louise Bourgeois in New York, and many more. Like his first book, Francois Halard: A Photographic Life will be a coveted, indispensable must-have visual resource for all lovers of interiors, glamour, and style." Published by Rizzoli.$ 95.00

Nazraeli Cold Press 100% Spanish Arbequina Olive Oil - Ed Templeton Edition. "Estate grown, organic, and bottled on Nazraeli's hillside farm in Paso Robles, California, 'Maya’s Arbequina' is an early harvest, Spanish variety olive oil. It is relatively mild, with hints of freshly-cut grass. Its clean and mild flavor make it the perfect olive oil for everyday use." 375ml $25.00

Bibliostyle: How We Live at Home With Books. "A visual delight and an inspiration for every bibliophile with a growing home library, this dream-and-drool design book features some of the most jaw-dropping book collections of homeowners around the world. Interior designer Nina Freudenberger, New Yorker writer Sadie Stein, and Architectural Digest photographer Shade Degges give readers a peek at the private libraries and bookshelves of passionate readers all over the world, including Larry McMurtry, Silvia Whitman of Shakespeare and Co., Gay and Nan Talese, and Emma Straub. Throughout, gorgeous photographs of rooms with rare collections, floor-to-ceiling shelves, and stacks upon stacks of books inspire readers to live better with their own collections." Published by Clarkson Potter. $ 35.00

Steve McCurry: Animals. "In Animals, we discover a different side to the famed photographer who skillfully explores animals’ complex relationship with humans and the environment. Tenderness abounds, particularly in scenes of unkempt street dogs sleeping contentedly next to a human. But there’s also a kind of essential solitude, with animals belonging to no one and simply wandering through life with only their survival instincts to guide them. We witness camels caught in the crossfire during the first Gulf War; a shepherd from Northern Pakistan tenderly feeding his goats; Beverly Hills designer dogs; race horses on a Hong Kong rooftop; elephants in Thailand, and more images selected by McCurry from his vast archives. Through McCurry’s lens, we discover an appreciation for each creature’s beauty and silent dignity. This kaleidoscopic collection is at once a beautiful travelogue and a touching tribute to the creatures who share our planet." Published by Taschen. $ 60.00

Prince: The Beautiful Ones. "Prince was a musical genius, one of the most beloved, accomplished, and acclaimed musicians of our time. He was a startlingly original visionary with an imagination deep enough to whip up whole worlds, from the sexy, gritty funk paradise of “Uptown” to the mythical landscape of Purple Rain to the psychedelia of “Paisley Park.” But his most ambitious creative act was turning Prince Rogers Nelson, born in Minnesota, into Prince, one of the greatest pop stars of any era. The Beautiful Ones is the story of how Prince became Prince—a first-person account of a kid absorbing the world around him and then creating a persona, an artistic vision, and a life, before the hits and fame that would come to define him. The book is told in four parts. The first is the memoir Prince was writing before his tragic death, pages that bring us into his childhood world through his own lyrical prose. The second part takes us through Prince’s early years as a musician, before his first album was released, via an evocative scrapbook of writing and photos. The third section shows us Prince’s evolution through candid images that go up to the cusp of his greatest achievement, which we see in the book’s fourth section: his original handwritten treatment for Purple Rain—the final stage in Prince’s self-creation, where he retells the autobiography of the first three parts as a heroic journey. The book is framed by editor Dan Piepenbring’s riveting and moving introduction about his profound collaboration with Prince in his final months—a time when Prince was thinking deeply about how to reveal more of himself and his ideas to the world, while retaining the mystery and mystique he’d so carefully cultivated—and annotations that provide context to the book’s images. This work is not just a tribute to an icon, but an original and energizing literary work in its own right, full of Prince’s ideas and vision, his voice and image—his undying gift to the world." Published by Spiegel & Grau. $ 30.00

Encyclopedia Of Flowers 4 - Makoto Azuma & Shunsuke Shiinoki. ""The fourth book featuring works by master Japanese flower artist and botanical sculptor Makoto Azuma, this edition adds five new series to the ones established in previous editions: Earth, Horizon, Ambiguity, Torus, and Matrix. Filled with Shunsuke Shiinoki’s breathtaking photographs of flowers and botanical displays, the book celebrates nature’s diversity and beauty, as well as the poignant, temporal notion of a plant in bloom. It gives an overview of Azuma’s numerous experiments in presentation and new compositions, with hopes that flowers might be seen as a kind of prayer that goes beyond national and religious boundaries, transcending sex, race, and ethnicity." Published by Seigensha. $ 52.00

Issues: A History of Photography in Fashion Magazines. "A showcase of ground-breaking photography of fashion magazines over the last century. Acclaimed photography critic Vince Aletti has selected 100 significant magazine issues from his expansive personal archive, revealing images by photographers rarely seen outside their original context. With his characteristic élan and featuring stunning images, Aletti has created a fresh, idiosyncratic, and previously unexplored angle on the history of photography. Issues, a luxury, oversized object, richly illustrated with brilliant reproductions, and enclosed in an elegant archival-style magazine-file box, is an essential addition to every book collection on photography, fashion, and graphic design. It's the first survey to explore the history of photography through the lens of fashion magazines, spanning the years 1925 to 2018. Magazines featured include American, British, and French Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, W, Details, Purple Fashion, The Face, Dutch, and many more." Published by Phaidon. $ 95.00

Book of the Day Posted Dec 08, 2019

Book of the Day > French New Wave: A Revolution In Design

Book of the Day > French New Wave: A Revolution In Design. Published by Reel Art Press. “The French New Wave is one of the most important movements in the history of film. Its fresh energy and vision changed the cinematic landscape and it has had a seminal impact on pop culture. The poster artists tasked with selling these Nouvelle Vague films to the masses were at the forefront of a revolution in art, graphic design and photography. This volume is a visual celebration of their explosive and groundbreaking poster art. Featuring posters from several countries, the diverse imagery for films like Breathless, Fahrenheit 451 and Le Mepris is accompanied by biographies on over 100 artists, photographers and designers – the first time many of those responsible for promoting and portraying this movement have been properly recognized.”

Book of the Day Posted Dec 06, 2019

Book of the Day > Todd Hido: House Hunting

Book of the day & book signing tomorrow (Saturday! 4-6) – PLEASE JOIN US > Todd Hido: House Hunting. Published by Nazraeli Press. “’Todd Hido’s large color photographs of suburbia are lonely, forlorn, mysterious… and strangely comforting. Hido photographs the interior rooms of repossessed tract homes, and the outsides of similar houses at night whose habitation is suggested by the glow of a television set or unseen overhead bulb. Seldom does the similar evoke such melancholy. Yet rather than passing judgment on his anonymous subjects, Hido manages to turn the banal into something beautiful, imbuing his prints of interiors with soft pastels, and allowing the exteriors to glow in the cool evening air.’ — From Nazraeli’s description of the first printing of House Hunting, announced in 2000. We are excited to announce a newly remastered edition of Todd Hido’s iconic and highly sought-after first monograph, House Hunting. To celebrate the upcoming 20th anniversary of this important book – certainly one of the most influential and oft-cited photography monographs of our time – Nazraeli has collaborated closely with the artist to achieve a new impression of the highest possible fidelity. Printed on heavy weight matte art paper, using cutting-edge technologies in both the pre-press and production phases, this new edition of House Hunting stays true to the original design and format while delivering even more accurate color rendition and nuances in tone and saturation. It will be a welcome addition to collections lacking access to the very scarce original printings; and to those fortunate enough to own a copy of the original edition, it further illuminates the images themselves that first catapulted the artist and his first monograph to fame. Todd Hido’s photographs have been the subject of solo exhibitions at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City, and most recently at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Le Locle, Switzerland. Other major institutions that have exhibited Hido’s work include the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.; Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago; Miami Art Museum, Florida; Netherland Architecture Institute, Rotterdam; Palazzo Ducale, Genova, Italy; Samsung Museum of Modern Art in Korea; and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. His work was recently on view in the 49th edition of Les Recontres d’Arles, France. Work by Hido is held in public and private collections including the Guggenheim Museum, New York; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; the Art Institute of Chicago; the Smithsonian; and Fotomuseum Winterthur.”

Book of the Day Posted Dec 05, 2019

Book of the Day > New York Club Kids

Book of the Day > New York Club Kids. Published by Damiani. "New York: Club Kids is a high-impact visual diary of New York City in the 1990s, seen through the eyes of Walt Cassidy, known as Waltpaper, a central figure within the Club Kids. The Club Kids—named thus by New York Magazine in 1988—were an artistic, fashion-conscious youth movement that crossed over into the public consciousness through appearances on daytime talk shows, magazine editorials, fashion campaigns and music videos, planting the seeds for popular cultural trends such as reality television, self-branding, “influencers” and the gender revolution. Known for their outrageous looks, legendary parties and sometimes illicit antics, the Club Kids were the embodiment of Generation X and would prove to be the last definitive subculture group of the analog world. The ’90s have come to be known as the last discernible and cohesive decade, cherished by those who experienced it and romanticized by those who missed it. The first comprehensive visual document of ’90s nightlife and street culture, New York: Club Kids grants special access to an underground world, providing exclusive insight into the lifestyle of this celebrated and notorious clique. Featuring rare and previously unseen photographs along with magazine editorials and ephemera, the book culls from the personal archives of various photographers and artists—some celebrated, and many others whose recognition is long overdue."

Book of the Day Posted Dec 04, 2019

Book of the day > Do You Compute? Selling Tech from the Atomic Age to the Y2K Bug, 1950-1999

Book of the day > Do You Compute? Selling Tech from the Atomic Age to the Y2K Bug, 1950-1999 by Ryan Mungia & Steven Heller. Edited by Ryan Mungia & J.C. Gabel , Designed by Ryan Mungia, Cover design by John Zabawa. Published by Hat & Beard Press with Boyo Press. “Before Alexa and the iPhone, there was the large and unwieldy mainframe computer. In the postwar 1950s, computers were mostly used for aerospace and accounting purposes. To the public at large, they were on a rung that existed somewhere between engineering and science fiction. Magazine ads and marketing brochures were designed to create a fantasy surrounding these machines for prospective clients: Higher profit margins! Creativity unleashed! Total automation! With the invention of the microchip in the 1970s came the PC and video games, which shifted the target of computer advertising from corporations to the individual. By the end of the millennium, the notion of selling tech burst wide open to include robots, cell phones, blogs, online dating services, and much, much more. Do You Compute? is a broad survey featuring the very best of computer advertising in the 20th century. From the Atomic Age to the Y2K bug, this volume presents a connoisseur’s selection of graphic gems culled from museums, university archives, and private collections to illustrate the evolution of the computer from its early days as a hulking piece of machinery to its current state as a handheld device. Accompanied by two essays—one by cultural anthropologist Ryan Mungia and the other by graphic design historian Steven Heller—and including five different decade-long timelines that highlight some of the most influential moments in computer history, this fun yet meaningful volume is a unique look at the computer and how it has shaped our world.

Save the date for LA Book Launch at Arcana: 2/15/2020!

Book of the Day Posted Dec 03, 2019

Book of the Day > Ben Hassett: Color

Book of the Day > Ben Hassett: Color. Published by Damiani. "Printed with ultraviolet ink in a hand-numbered, slipcased edition of 1,000 copies, Color is the first monograph by British photographer Ben Hassett. In keeping with his acute sense of the powerful language of color photography, Hassett invites us into his world of photographic experimentation to experience the possibilities of this chromatic medium. Color draws together Hassett’s iconic fashion and beauty images, studio still lifes, abstract in-camera works and landscape photographs to present his unique lexicon of color photography. Putting aside the conventions of chronological and project-by-project sequencing, the book instead pursues a dynamic reading that surveys the past ten years of Hassett’s standing as an influential image-maker. Color is designed by veteran art and creative director Fabien Baron (known for his innovative art direction of Harper's Bazaar, Interview and Madonna’s infamous 1992 book Sex) and includes an essay about Ben Hassett’s photographic approach and effect by renowned curator and writer Charlotte Cotton."