Book of the day > Revelations by Ben Burbridge. MACK Books.  “Published alongside a major exhibition, Revelations explores a radical expansion of the visual field brought about by early scientific photography, and the ways this informed and inspired photography's applications within modern and contemporary art.  Early scientific imagery such as X-Ray, photomicrography and experimental high-speed photography exposed and surpassed the limits of human vision. In doing so, it revealed important formal possibilities to artists, and spoke to them in clear and articulate terms about man’s changing relationship to science and technology. Drawing on the National Collections held in Bradford and London, and further international collections, a selection of photographs, book spreads and other documents demonstrate new modes of representation established by early scientific photography and their profound impact on the histories of photographic art.”

Book of the day > A Man Walks Into A Bar... Hatje Cantz. "This collection features jokes written on postcards by John Baldessari, André Butzer, Tacita Dean, Andy Hope 1930, Christian Jankowski, Ragnar Kjartansson, Jim Lambie, Erik van Lieshout, Jonathan Meese, Julie Mehretu, Jonathan Monk, Tal R, Tobias Rehberger, Daniel Richter, Ed Ruscha, Thomas Scheibitz, Thomas Schütte, David Shrigley, Lawrence Weiner and Erwin Wurm." Have a great weekend!

And while we’re on the topic…We are sorry not to have been in NYC this week and missed the opening of the unendingly chic Hayward House – the new flagship store for the luxury handbag brand - and its launch for Drugstore Camera. If you’re lucky enough to score an invite to visit Hayward House, take some time to ogle the “Hopper” side of the space where you’ll be treated to a men’s-wear emporium featuring a special selection of books from us here at Arcana and “the vibe that Dennis Hopper just left the room.” @onetrippass, @johngoldstone, #haywardhouse

Book of the day > Dennis Hopper: Drugstore Camera. Damiani. “Drugstore Camera feels like a stumbled-upon treasure, a disposable camera you forgot about and only just remembered to develop. Yet in this case the photographer is Dennis Hopper and the photographs, remarkably, are never before published. Shot in Taos, New Mexico, where Hopper was based following the production of Easy Rider in the late 60s, the series was taken with disposable cameras and developed in drugstore photo labs. This clothbound collection documents Hopper's friends and family among the ruins and open vistas of the desert landscape, female nudes in shadowy interiors, road trips to and from his home state of Kansas and impromptu still lifes of discarded objects. These images, capturing iconic individuals and wide-open Western terrain, create a captivating view of the 60s and 70s that combines political idealism and optimism with California cool.”

Book of the day > Public Art (Now): Out of Time, Out of Place. Art/Books. “The face of public art is changing. In recent years, a new generation of artists has rejected the monumental scale and mass appeal of conventional public sculpture, instead favoring unconventional forms that disrupt rather than embellish a particular location. Public Art (Now) is the first survey of the most influential forms of the past decade that are redefining the practice of public art today. Some 40 key projects from around the world are highlighted, with detailed descriptions and installation and process shots. Interviews and quotes from practitioners, commissioners and commentators reveal the context for each project, while an introduction sets out the conceptual, practical and ethical issues raised by the work. This dynamic combination of projects, places and people is both a must-have reference book for art-world specialists and an accessible introduction to the subject. Among the featured artists are Mike Kelley, Francis Alÿs, Superflex, Paul Chan, Susan Philipsz and Theaster Gates.”

Book of the day > Peter Schlesinger Sculpture. Acne Studios. “Acne Studios is proud to announce the publication of a new monograph of the artist Peter Schlesinger. Schlesinger is a New York-based artist who, by way of numerous contributions to Acne Paper, has formed a friendship with Acne Studios creative director Jonny Johansson. The book celebrates nearly three decades of Schlesinger’s work, photographed by his partner of 40 years Eric Boman. Published by Acne Studios and printed in Sweden, the monograph uses materials painstakingly selected to reflect the exactitude of Schlesinger’s work. The copperplate paper, one of the three used inside, is imported from Japan, while the cover is bound in jute cloth made to order in Belgium. Inside, Schlesinger’s work is  presented in chronological order from the 1980s up to the present day, photographed by the artist’s partner Eric Boman. It also features a selection of Schlesinger’s works on paper connected to each of the periods presented. The book comes in a limited edition of 1000 copies, each one manually numbered with a stamp.”

Book of the day > Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck. Insight Editions. “Kurt Cobain, legendary lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of Nirvana, “the flagship band of Generation X,” remains an object of reverence and fascination for music fans around the world. For the first time, his story will be told in Brett Morgen’s Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, a fully authorized feature documentary that in 2015 will be released theatrically around the world by Universal Pictures and shown exclusively by HBO in the United States. Visual artist Frances Bean Cobain, Cobain's daughter, is executive producer. This riveting book accompanies Morgen’s highly anticipated documentary and delves further into the material created for the film, presenting an illuminating and honest portrait of the Nirvana frontman that captures the contradictions that made up his character. The book is composed of the extended versions of the exclusive interviews featured in the film. The book also showcases the film's visuals with a mixture of animation stills, rare photography, and other treasures from Kurt Cobain's personal archive. Taking fans into and beyond Morgen’s movie with unparalleled insight into the world of the late Nirvana frontman, this book will be the perfect complement to a milestone documentary that will forever change the way fans view Kurt Cobain.”

Book of the day > Playground, Photographs by James Mollison. Aperture. “James Mollison's photo projects are based on smart, original concepts applied to serious social and environmental themes. For his latest book, Playground, Mollison has photographed children at play in school playgrounds, inspired by memories of his own childhood, and interested in how we all learn to negotiate relationships and our place in the world at a young age through play. For each picture, Mollison sets up his camera during school break time, making multiple frames, and then composing each final photograph from several scenes, in which he finds revealing "play" narratives. With photographs from rich and poor schools, in countries including Argentina, Bhutan, Bolivia, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Nepal, Norway, Sierra Leone, the United Kingdom, and the U.S., Mollison also provides access for readers of all ages to issues of global diversity and inequality."