Art & Photography Books

Book SynopsisCrete was famous in Greek myth as the location of the labyrinth in which the Minotaur was confined in a palace at somewhere called ‘Knossos’. From the Middle Ages travellers searched unsuccessfully for the Labyrinth. A handful of clues that survived, such as a coin with a labyrinth design and numerous small bronze age items. The name Knossos had survived – but it was nothing but a sprinkling of houses and farmland so they looked elsewhere. Finally, in 1878, a Cretan archaeologist, Minos Kalokairinos discovered evidence of a Bronze Age palace. British Archaeologist and then Keeper of the Ashmolean Arthur Evans came out to visit and was fascinated by the site. Between 1900 and 1931 Evans uncovered the remains of the huge palace which he felt must be the that of King Minos, and he adopted the name ‘Minoans’ for its occupants. He employed a team of archaeologists, architects and artists, and together they built up a picture of the Bronze Age community that had occupied the elaborate building. They imagined a sophisticated, nature-loving people, whose civilisation peaked, and then disintegrated. Evans’s interpretations of his finds were accurate in some places, but deeply flawed in others. The Evans Archive, held by the Ashmolean, records his finds, theories and (often contentious) reconstructions.

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Book SynopsisThe fourth installment of the Ashmolean Now series focuses on sculptures by Irish artist Daphne Wright. Conceived with the Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin, the exhibition features several new works in plaster which consider the tradition of still lifes and respond to the sculptures in the Ashmolean''s Cast Gallery collection. Artist Daphne Wright is fascinated with the collections of the Ashmolean Museum and the history of seeing they present. Her latest project grows out of a lifetime’s engagement with this theme. Much of Wright’s existing body of work is steeped in a deep understanding of the iconography and history of Western art, as represented in the Ashmolean’s extensive collection. This book establishes connections to the Ashmolean’s rich collection of 17th century Dutch Still Life paintings. These genre paintings portray a range of subjects from arrangements of flowers to fruit, fish and game. Sometimes the paintings include a symbolic reference to the transience of life, in the form of fruit that has begun to rot or flowers that are losing petals. In Fridge Still Life, the exposed body of a fridge, containing upon its shelves a raw chicken and bundle of asparagus, is topped with a vase of wilting tulips. This is a contemporary re-telling of a still life painting, with its various familiar elements, such as a brace of hanging pheasants, a bowl of fruit and a vase of blooms, with can connote status or vanitas. Wright has explored the transitory nature of life throughout her practice. In previous work, Wright has used plants and animals, with their shorter life spans, to stand in for the human. Wright’s work also resonates strongly with the Ashmolean’s extensive and celebrated cast collection. Prominent amongst the plaster casts of Greek and Roman sculptures are the gods and heroes of Homeric legend. These idealized images of men still form the basis of our ideas of masculinity today. With Sons on Couch Wright is seeking to capture the elusive moment of transition into manhood. The athletic figures in the cast court may have been updated to social media influencers, but the pressure young men face today to achieve a perceived ideal body type remain the same.

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Book SynopsisPlants have always moved between land masses with human aid. European colonialism accelerated this, and its legacy can be seen in landscapes across the world and the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. In in this companion book to the exhibition, Shipping Roots, Keg de Souza creates a narrative around plant species relating to her own cultural removal, drawing from her experiences as a person whose ancestral lands were colonised. The exhibition explores how plants moved over oceans and lands, transported in the hulls of ships, all part of the colonial legacies of the British Empire. Specifically, these stories link Australia, India and the UK and shows us that the entanglement of plants and people are tied to understanding place and belonging. This book includes high quality photography of the exhibition as well as essays and recipes by numerous contributors.

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Book SynopsisA stylish and informative guide to the best of Midcentury Modern chair design. These are the top 100 most interesting, most controversial, or simply most beautiful chairs from the period spanning 1930–1970, according to expert curator and chair addict Lucy Ryder Richardson. Get to know the designers of the Modern era, and find out about the controversies, drama, gossip and intrigue that accompanied these fascinating figures. Featuring a range of top international names, including Robin Day, Charles and Ray Eames, Ernest Race, Arne Jacobsen, Pierre Paulin, Finn Juhl, Harry Bertoia, Ero Saarinen and Norman Cherner. There is also an exploration into materials and manufacturing processes, plus lots of information about the manufacturers that brought chair designs to the masses, such as Knoll, Herman Miller, Fritz Hansen and Asko. Packed full of design details, historical facts, quotes and anecdotes – you can even find out the position in which the designers intended you to sit in their chairs! With a ‘chair timeline’, showcasing the very best of European, Scandinavian, Japanese and American design, this is the perfect book for collectors, enthusiasts and design junkies alike. Word count: 50,000

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Book SynopsisBerlin Then and Now captures the stark contrast between what came before and after the great conflicts of the twentieth century, using archival photographs of the city's grand buildings, monuments, and boulevards alongside modern views of the same scenes today.Few cities in Europe have undergone as many transformations as Berlin in the past hundred years, or have risen from the rubble to stand as proud and vibrant as the city does today.Nick Gay''s book shows the effects of Hitler''s building plans of the 1930s, Allied bombing in World War II and the post-war division of the city into East and West and the subsequent reunification after 1989.Sites include: Brandenburg Gate, Pariser Platz, Hotel Adlon, the Reich Chancellery, Ministry of Aviation, Unter den Linden, Royal Opera House, Neue Wache, Berlin University, Palace Bridge, Lustgarten, Berliner Dom, Rotes Rathaus, Nikolaiviertel, Alexanderplatz, Muhlendamm, Gendarmenmarkt, Checkpoint Charlie, Wertheim Department Store, Potsdamer Platz, Death Strip, SS Headquarters, Anhalter Station, Siegessaule, Soviet War Memorial,Tempelhof Airport, Charlottenburg Palace, Olympic Stadium, Spandau Prison and Wannsee Conference Villa.

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Book Synopsis1996 And The End of History examines the year as it panned out in the UK not just in politics but in music, light entertainment and sport. It was the zenith of a decade which will go down as remarkably untroubled bymodern standards; following the collapse of the Berlin Wall, prior to 9/11, in which political conditions of peace and apparent economic prosperity created an overall mood of frivolity, postmodern anti-seriousness and a desire to get back to sunnier times before the grim onset of the strife-ridden 70's and 80's.

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Book SynopsisKnown today for his atmospheric views of the river Oise, Charles Francois Daubigny was a pioneer of modern landscape painting and an important precursor of French Impressionism. Although commercially highly successful he was often criticised for his broad, sketch-like handling and unembellished view of nature, and was dubbed the leader of 'the school of the impression'. As a result he drew the attention of the next generation of artists, among them Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh, who were inspired by Daubigny's frank naturalism, bold compositions and technical innovations. Theirs was an artistic dialogue which spanned thirty years, from the early 1860s to the end of Van Gogh's short life.

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Book SynopsisThis richly illustrated publication explores the work of contemporary artist Nathan Coley. It offers a detailed look at three of his most significant sculptural works: The Lamp of Sacrifice, 286 Places of Worship, Edinburgh 2004, 2004; Paul, 2015; and Tate Modern on Fire, 2017, which is reproduced and discussed here for the first time. In a newly commissioned text, award-winning novelist, screenwriter and director Ewan Morrison focuses on these three sculptures to explore the complexity and ambiguity of Coley's artistic practice. Morrison brings into play different narrative forms and voices to draw attention to the realms of history, art history and politics that Coley's work inhabits, as well as the deeply personal responses that Coley's work can generate. This book accompanies the exhibition NOW at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh (25 March to 24 October 2017).

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Book SynopsisRevealing an alternative story of modern Scottish art, A New Era examines the most experimental work of Scottish artists during the first half of the 20th century. It challenges the accepted view of the dominance of the Scottish Colourists and uncovers the hitherto little-known progressive Scottish art world. Through these works, we can see the commitment of Scottish artists to the progress of art through their engagement and interpretation of the great movements of European modern art, from Fauvism and Expressionism, to Cubism, Art Deco, abstraction and Surrealism, among others. Looking at the most advanced work of high-profile artists such as William Gillies and Stanley Cursiter, and lesser-known talents, like Tom Pow and Edwin G. Lucas, A New Era takes its name from the group established in Edinburgh in 1939 to show surreal and abstract work by its members.

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Book SynopsisA vibrant, colourful and beautiful book that introduces readers to Impressionism and Post-Impressionism. It explains the difference between the two movements and the main artists associated with each. Illustrations are drawn from the renowned and outstanding collection of French art held by the National Galleries of Scotland and they include a number of rarely seen works. This book tells the fascinating stories of how key paintings and drawings found their way into the collection. Artists include Monet, Millet, Gauguin, Bastien-Lepage, Charles Jacque, Troyon, Corot, Degas, Seurat, Van Gogh, Cézanne, Vuillard, Bonnard, Derain, Matisse, Legros and Rodin.Table of ContentsForeword Introduction 1 Collecting the Barbizon School 2 Impressionism and Post-Impressionism 3 Alexander and Rosalind Maitland 4 The impact of the Maitland gift 5 Looking to the future Notes and references Acknowledgements and credits Index

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Book Synopsis"Hooray for clay! Projects that put clay and ceramics centre stage are invaluable - be it in architecture, public sculpture, cups and saucers on your breakfast table, passing on an understanding of the material is invaluable. Clayground Collective are true clay ambassadors. Their extraordinary work is exemplary."--Kate Malone, Ceramic Artist; Judge, BBCTV Great Pottery Throw Down *** "This is not a "how to" book but a "Can you?" book. There is a real passion to discover though materials. This book challenges those with specialist skills to engage the public in that discovery and provides a route to get started."--Amanda Bright, Head of School of Art, U. of Brighton *** "If you're a practitioner setting out to work with schools and the public where do you go for advice? Clay in Common is a great starting point."--Steve Moffitt, Chief Executive, A New Direction *** As clay and ceramic courses decline in schools, craft and hand skills risk being lost. Clay in Common makes a strong case for the vital role of clay in schools and wider society. For teachers, parents, school governors, artist-facilitators and education policy-makers, the book has detailed case studies with ideas for projects and activities that can bridge school and community life. [Subject: Art Studies, Education]

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Book SynopsisPhil Smith (Crabman/Mythogeography) and Tony Whitehead join forces with master photographer John Schott to lead readers on a `virtual’ journey to explore difference and change on their way to an unknown destination. “What is most real is what you have still to discover.” “Relax in your seat. Allow the train to take you along the water’s edge to the beginning point of your walking pilgrimage… When the train pulls into the platform, step off. Hidden behind the platform is a broken machine; a mechanised fortune teller – the `voice of truth’ – discarded from the nearby arcade of slot machines. Propped against the side of a building, its mouth is silent, its pronouncements have ceased; any truths you find today will be your own.” Pilgrimages – real and imagined - are always popular, sometimes compulsory. Bodh Gaya, Santiago, Mecca, Jerusalem, Puri: a few of the sites that beckon. The pilgrimage to the authentic self takes a similar path in an interior landscape. In the 15th century, Felix Fabri combined the two, using his visits to Jerusalem to write a handbook for nuns wanting to make a pilgrimage in the imagination, whilst confined to their religious houses. For Guidebook for an Armchair Pilgrimage, the authors followed Fabri’s example: first walking together over many weeks – not to reach a destination but simply to find one – then, in startling words and images, conjuring an armchair pilgrimage for the reader… along lanes and around hills, into caves and down to the coast. “We arrived again and again at what we assumed would be a final `shrine’, only to be drawn onwards and inwards towards another kind of finality… rather than reaching a destination, the pilgrimage was repeatedly reborn inside us, until its most recent rebirth in this book.” Over the course of the 19-day Armchair Pilgrimage, they invite us to experience the world around us just as they did as they walked. So, over the first three days, they suggest that we contemplate, among other things: • Our habit of generalising – acquired 40-50,000 years ago, when our `chapel’ mind of specialisms became a `cathedral’ mind • Our tendency to let one thing remind us of another thing • What it might be like to be an ocean where fish swim through us • How the world experiences us just as we experience it: `gently feel for the feelers feeling for you’ • A world where we tend to `add’ meaning and intensity • A world where we let go (without the aid of dementia) of memory, imagination, desire and wild fancy. And, as the pilgrimage concludes: “Returning is never going back to the same place.” “A brilliant idea, inviting us to `be present’ to a reality that is imagined and recorded, mediated by words and images. The feelings and emotions are no less `real’ than if we were actually standing in and experiencing that reality. I love the genius of words and images displayed here -- no less than the reality itself.” Carol Donelan, Professor of Cinema and Media Studies, Carleton College, MinnesotaTrade Review“A brilliant idea, inviting us to `be present’ to a reality that is imagined and recorded, mediated by words and images. The feelings and emotions are no less `real’ than if we were actually standing in and experiencing that reality. I love the genius of words and images displayed here -- no less than the reality itself.” Carol Donelan, Professor of Cinema and Media Studies, Carleton College, Minnesota

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Book SynopsisIsamu Noguchi's Skyviewing Sculpture was created by invitation for Western Washington University, north of Seattle, in 1969. The 14-foot high sculpture, which sits in the university's central quad, acts as an observatory, encouraging viewers to enter and turn their gaze to the sky. 'Skyviewing' was a leitmotif in Noguchi's art throughout his long career as an artist and landscape architect, from his early work alongside Constantin Brancusi in Paris in 1928 to his death in 1988. Some sculptures act as reflecting telescopes with polished stone that mirror the firmament while others trace the path of the sun with cast shadows or lead the eye up towards the sky. The work at Western invites the viewer in, and guides the eye upwards to observe the sky in all of its variety. Looking Up explores Noguchi's work on the themes of space, and our place in the universe; examines the changing artistic climate during his long career; and places Noguchi in context with a younger generation of artists, including Robert Smithson, Nancy Holt, James Turrell, and Charles Ross. The book includes essays by leading specialists, as well as a plate section and contemporary photos of the creation, transportation and installation of Skyviewing Sculpture .Table of ContentsAcknowledgments; Looking Up by Hafthor Yngvason; Noguchi and the Jantar Mantars of Northern India by Matthew Kirsch; Plates by Kate Wiener with Matthew Kirsch; Sculpture in Progress; Bibliography; Picture Credits; Index

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Book SynopsisA draughtsman of remarkable ability, matching even his mentor Augustus John, Henry Lamb (1883–1960) was a founder-member of the Camden Town Group, exhibiting at their inaugural exhibition in 1911. He was a powerful and original War artist, and an engaging and sensitive portrait painter, whose group portraits in particular are as successful as those by any British painter of the age. To date unfairly eclipsed by the glamorous and culturally infl uential circle around him, Lamb is now probably best known through these fi gures and his many compelling portraits of them, amongst them Lady Ottoline Morrell, Evelyn Waugh and Lytton Strachey, whose monumental full-length portrait by Lamb in Tate Britain is probably the artist’s best-known work. Lamb abandoned a promising medical career in Manchester to pursue his training as an artist at the London art school run by William Orpen and Augustus John. He found inspiration in the rural simplicity of Brittany, and a later visit to Ireland inspired his great genre painting Fisherfolk, Gola Island of 1913 – not seen in public since the last major retrospective in 1984. Following active service during the First World War as an army medical offi cer (for which he was awarded a Military Cross), he contributed two of the greatest artworks to the proposed National Hall of Remembrance a year after armistice in 1919. Following a productive period in Poole after the War, where he produced some evocative townscapes of its streets and skylines, he eventually settled in Coombs Bissett near Salisbury. Here he established a reputation as a sought-after portrait painter, executing a constant stream of landscapes, still lives, genre pictures and fi ne domestic subjects. Accompanying an exhibition at Salisbury Museum in 2018 and Poole Museum in 2019, Henry Lamb: Out of the Shadows will focus on over 50 works by the artist from across his career. As well as loans from major national collections, the group will include signifi cant works from private collections, including a substantial archive from the artist’s family and a number of re-discovered masterpieces. The catalogue will also feature an introductory essay by Lamb’s cousin, the writer Thomas Pakenham who knew the artist well.

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Book SynopsisWilliam Jackson, one of Gainsborough’s closest friends and biographers, noted that if he had “to rest his [Gainsborough] reputation on one point, it should be on his Drawings”. Gainsborough was indeed a draftsman of rare talent and creativity, and his experiments in drawing inspired an entire generation of British artists, from John Constable (1776–1837) to J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851). When not occupied with his lucrative portrait business, Gainsborough devoted much of his time to his true passion, the depiction of landscapes, and more than 600 of the artist’s approximately 800 surviving drawings depict the British countryside. Like most artists from his generation, Gainsborough did not draw directly from nature but instead re-invented landscape “of his own brain,” laying out on his work table stones, branches, leaves, and soil of various colors. His passion for drawing extended to technical experimentation. Gainsborough mixed diff erent kind of media and invented recipes to make drawings in his own personal fashion: he would sometimes immerse his drawing paper in milk, or varnish it to give his landscapes a lucent tint. The exhibition is based on the group of Gainsborough drawings in the permanent collection of the Morgan Library& Museum, one of the richest holdings of Gainsborough drawing in the United States. Additional drawings from private and public collections, among them some borrowed for the exhibition, are included in the introductory essay of the catalogue.

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Book SynopsisThis book recounts the exciting rediscovery of Giorgio Vasari’s painting Allegory of Patience, painted in 1551–52 for the Bishop of Arezzo, Vasari’s hometown. The painting was conceived in Rome with the aid of Michelangelo, as many surviving letters reveal. The work will be on view to the public at the National Gallery, London, through 2023. The monumental figure of a woman, life-sized, with arms crossed, watches time run down. The passing of time is symbolized in the drops that fall from an antique water clock beside her, gradually wearing away the stone on which she rests her foot. The Bishop of Arezzo regarded patience as the key to his career and achievements, and wished it to be represented in a picture. Vasari consulted his contemporaries and fellow humanists as well as the great sculptor Michelangelo when deciding what form it should take. The image represents more exactly the Latin tag ‘diuturna tolerantia’ (daily tolerance). The painting quickly became famous in its time and numerous copies were made of it – but not until now has the original emerged. Thanks to letters between those involved, the painting and the process of its creation are richly documented, and in particular provide insights and quotations about picture-making from Michelangelo. The book carries full documentation of the work and its known copies, some of which can be traced to leading patrons in Renaissance Italy. It also examines Vasari’s own autograph technique and artistic aims.Trade Review"The book is beautifully produced with excellent colour illustrations and well chosen details." * Burlington Magazine *

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Book SynopsisNew edition of the classic collecrtion of Ted photography, originally published in 1979.

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Book SynopsisRecognised internationally as one of the UK's leading photographers, Simon Roberts deals with our relationship to landscape and notions of identity and belonging.

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Book SynopsisCaptures a period of time when British Society was going through enormous change.

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Book SynopsisAn exploration of street art and its role in gentrification in East London.

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Book SynopsisPaul Hart s new book Reclaimed concludes his three-part series on The Fens in the UK.

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Book SynopsisShare: Conversations about Contemporary Architecture ? The Nordic Countriesis the first book in a new global series of investigative interviews about the modern architectural process. Initiated and undertaken by the Norway-based Canadian architect Todd Saunders, the Nordic Countries edition features interviews with 30 architectural practices from Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Iceland.With more than 25 years of professional practice behind him, Saunders has always been fascinated by the role of creativity in everyday practice and the potential power alluded to it. In a series of interviews undertaken over the past year, Saunders has queried the changing role of the architect, the challenges of contemporary practice ? especially the impact of the pandemic ? and the ways in which architects can achieve the right balance in the relationship between site, client, craft and innovation.Presented as a series of candid conversations between architect and architect, the book offers insights that go beyond the polished histories that usually make it into print. In particular, the interviews explore the role of challenge and failure, conflict and mistakes, chance and coincidence; all familiar aspects of the architectural process yet elements that tend to be glossed over in conventional monographs.The Nordic Countries edition will be followed by companion volumes that explore the work of architects in North and South America, central Europe and the Far East.

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Book SynopsisExisting histories of modern architecture typically give their highest praise to private houses and their most severe condemnation to architect-authored urban plans, often neglecting the built works that are no smaller than a single building and possibly as large as an urban block, the middle or institutional scale, where culturally significant urban transformation actually takes place.Urban architecture is a timely topic as today cities worldwide are suffering accelerated urbanisation, which is often dehumanising and destructive, especially to the unbuilt environment, airs, waters and soils. The middle or institutional scale is shown to activate and actualise latent potentials for cultural experience and environmental intelligence, allowing the city to surprise itself and delight in its discoveries.In Projecting Urbanity, David Leatherbarrow, via author-architect texts by his former doctorate students, lays out the basis for a revision of modern architecture’s contribution to cities and their culture. Presenting a series of texts featuring buildings or their parts of various scales - from the construction detail, to the room or garden, to ensembles within a neighborhood - the contributors introduce concepts for contemporary and future urban architecture, together with richly indicative examples from the past several decades.While architecture cannot “solve” today’s urban problems, it certainly has a role to play in their productive transformation, articulating opportunities for life and culture that are more humane, less wasteful, and more beautiful.

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Book SynopsisForty years ago, London’s Docklands had become 6,000 acres of forgotten wasteland after over a century as the busiest port in the world. Now these once-derelict docks are again filled with ships and boats, forming homes and businesses for an extraordinary range of people. Whether millionaires visiting on their superyachts, country house executives needing a London base, young tech workers wanting a cheaper place to live, jobbing craftsmen keeping ancient marine trades alive or homeless people finding refuge, these are varied and dynamic communities. Highly acclaimed London photographer Niki Gorick focuses on St Katharine Docks, the Surrey Docks and the Isle of Dogs to illustrate the rich mix of personalities and activities in these converted commercial docks. They enjoy central London locations but as floating communities with their own nautical customs and rules, they are a world apart from their land-based neighbours. These images reveal the amazingly diverse modern-day life within these urban marinas.Trade Review"so beautiful that words will not do justice to the work ... Niki Gorick has a good eye for detail and can touch the soul of an area and its community through her photographs and text." London Society "Gorick has snapped some wonderful images" Londonist "Niki Gorick has a keen eye for fascinating subjects. The book is clearly a love affair with the people and waterborne activities around the area where she lives." London Historians

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Book SynopsisAlthough Hong Kong has produced many internationally renowned architects and designers who have contributed significantly to its cityscape, there are many talented local architects who have played the role of an unsung hero in shaping this beautiful city. This book aims to capture the stories of theses talents whose unique work should be more widely known and appreciated. This lavishly illustrated book is the first to provide this essential showcase.

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Book SynopsisRonald Rae is a rare example of a 'total artist' or Gesamtkunstler. Since penning his first cartoon at the age of 14, closely followed by taking a chisel to his first stone at 15, Rae created artworks almost every day for the next 60 years. Rae is best known as a granite sculptor, being the only artist working at scale on this most obdurate of materials using hand tools. After coming home exhausted from carving, Rae would also draw prolifically, and create work in a bewildering variety of media including ink and wax on paper, collage, carved and sun-inscribed wood, cardboard, found objects, books and newspapers. Themes included war, racism, social exclusion and alienation, humans and the animal world, early artforms, religion, and loss. Rae created extensive piano improvisations and he was also a published poet in Spain. This monograph contains a biography and covers the broad aspects of Rae's artistic development and his approach to his work. Extensively illustrated, the volume will introduce the artist to a new audience and bring attention to his visceral yet ultimately tender depiction of the human condition.Trade Review“This is a much-needed book, with Robert De Mey’s rigorous text tracing the career of a significant and singular artist. Ronald Rae’s haunting and expressive biro and mixed media illustrations give insight into his complex and turbulent imaginative world, whilst images of his often monumental, extraordinarily expressive stone sculptures convey his passion for humanity and the natural world. Ronald Rae: An Inner Life reveals the tremendous compassion and prowess of a larger-than-life artist and man.” – Clare Lilley, Director, Yorkshire Sculpture Park

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Book SynopsisManchester International Festival (MIF) has invited some of the world's greatest living artists to delight and often challenge crowds in spaces of all shapes and sizes; from disused railway stations to atmospheric concert halls. It's crossed boundaries and artistic disciplines, leapt over them, determinedly broken them down, to create unique productions that have gone on to tour the world. Radical and unpredictable, the Festival started in 2007 and has been on every two years since. Everything That Happened is a celebration of that journey to date. With selected images from the last eight iconic Festivals, the book will showcase the extraordinarily ambitious work that has made MIF a landmark cultural event and will continue to do so at its new permanent home. Each image is accompanied by a reflection from an artist, a participant, a supporter or audience member capturing a unique voice and personal meditation on that moment.Trade Review“From Marta Minujín’s toppled Big Ben made of books to Kenneth Branagh’s Macbeth in a deconsecrated church to Skepta’s dystopian mixed reality rave in a railway depot, it has been a joy to revisit some of our most celebrated festival moments in this book marking 16 years of extraordinary world firsts in Manchester, ahead of the opening of our landmark new year-round venue in the heart of the city.” John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International and Manchester International Festival

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Book SynopsisExotic lair, freezing garret or convivial rendezvous, artists’ studios reflect their personalities, the way they work, their dreams and obsessions. Some are battlegrounds where hopes are dashed and original concepts fail dismally in their execution. A few artists became celebrities and flaunted their success by furnishing huge studios with exotic objects, while others lived in a haze of opium in squalid tenements in Montmartre. Spanning 500 years of Western art history from 1400 to 1900, and accompanied by glorious images, Caroline Chapman describes the skilful techniques employed in a Renaissance workshop; Michelangelo’s agony and ecstasy while painting the Sistine Chapel; the murky world of the artist’s model; the looting by Napoleon of Veronese’s masterpiece; Van Gogh’s wretched first studio; how Géricault painted his Raft of the Medusa; the way Rodin worked in his plaster-spattered environment and the ateliers of the Impressionists in Paris.Trade Review“a judicious and entertaining guide through these artists’ numerous eccentricities — this is a book of some brilliance.” Daily Mail

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Book SynopsisLight is the material of Architecture. Ian Ritchie is one of the UK’s most visionary architects, and remarkable for synthesising multiple creative disciplines to bring the essence of his architectural projects into focus. A poet and artist as well as an architect, Ritchie distills his ideas into verse and pithy aphorisms that probe the complexities of architectural commissions and the art of composition. In this volume, Ritchie's aphorisms and musings revolve around the topic of light, a fundamental element in the way we perceive both the natural and the built world. They are accompanied by his calligraphic etchings and illustrations of the architecture that emerges from them. This illuminating blend of poetry and design is a trove of inspiration for anyone seeking to expand their understanding of the creative process, and offers a fresh perspective on the profound interplay between thought, practice, and the radiant world of light.

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Book Synopsis100 Theatres showcases an eclectic range of paintings of theatres, from ancient to modern and from the smallest travelling theatre in Rome to one of the largest in New York. We are lucky to still have some of them; it is surprising how many of these world-famous theatres were scheduled for demolition in the second half of the twentieth century: Carnegie Hall in the 1950s and several London West End Theatres in the 1960s. Some of course did not survive, demolished to make way for yet another modern office block. In this book Paul Tracey has painted some of our most attractive survivors and even a couple that are no longer with us. There is a broad mix of the familiar and lesser-known but equally important buildings. Many of the paintings are accompanied by notes, old postcards of the buildings and programmes featuring some of the actors who performed there. The introduction is written by the bestselling author Tracy Bains, who worked in the theatre as a young woman.

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Book SynopsisAachen Equestrian Beauty is a celebration in photographs of CHIO Aachen, the world's greatest horse event held annually at Aachen in Germany and founded in 1898. Readers are treated to a front seat as the photographer follows the action, relishing this world festival of the horse and horsemanship.As well as the traditional dressage and show jumping, CHIO Aachen includes eventers, carriage drivers and vaulters in stunning displays of horse riding skill. The book is a portrait of brilliant riders and beautiful horses, whose feats visitors marvel at every year as they compete in the superb Soers setting.As well as winners and stars, the photographer includes the supporting cast, the gala opening and closing ceremonies and the Horse and Symphony programme, an evening of magical equestrian pageantry and music.CHIO Aachen attracts all that is best in the horse world. The book is a lasting record of a glorious event.

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Book SynopsisIn Scotland's Outer Hebrides on the rugged Isle of Lewis, five powerful award-winning monuments commemorate the island's Land Heroes. Their courageous struggle for Land Law Reform resulted in the thriving Gaelic speaking community that Lewis encompasses today.The intention of this book is twofold: through the photography of Robin Gillanders, the design, setting and materials of these sentinels in stone' are brought together for all to enjoy, while essays by distinguished Scottish art historians, and Gaelic speaking island historian Dr Joni Buchannan, tell a vivid story of the events commemorated by each monument, examining their iconography, and exploring each work within the context of a wider cultural rebellion against the hegemony of imposed values.Compelled by Memory also pays tribute to the artist Will Maclean. He oversaw all five memorials installed between 1994 and 2019, initially designing those at Balallan, Aignish and Gress River, and then with fellow artist Marian Leven designed An Sùileachan on the west coast. They were joined by the sculptor Arthur Watson in undertaking the meditational site to mark the centenary of the tragic loss of HMV Iolaire, wrecked in a terrible storm on New Year's Day 1919, just outside Stornoway Harbour.In each case the projects grew from wide consultation. Maclean took no fee, working in cooperation with a team of Lewis men archaeologists, historians and the stone mason James Crawford to fulfil the brief honouring their ancestors through these narratives in stone, to create a group of the finest examples of land art in the British Isles.

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