Like no other 20th-century movement, Surrealism was keenly inspired by tropes of magic, myth and the occult. In their engagement with the irrational and the unconscious, numerous of its members looked to magic as a poetic and deeply philosophical discourse, related to both arcane knowledge and individual self-empowerment. In their works, they heavily drew on esoteric symbols and cultivated the image of the artist as a magician, visionary, and alchemist. This catalog explores the myriad ways, in which magic and the occult informed the development of the Surrealist movement in international perspective, from the "metaphysical paintings" of Giorgio de Chirico through to works of the post-war period. Lavishly illustrated, it combines longer research essays with focused chapter introductions, all penned by leading scholars in the field. Amongst the many fascinating artists included in the volume are Victor Brauner, Leonora Carrington, Paul Delvaux, Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Leonor Fini, Rene Magritte, Roberto Matta, Kay Sage, Kurt Seligmann, Dorothea Tanning, Yves Tanguy, and Remedios Varo.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 240

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 10-06-2021

A brave young girl, a whimsical house, and a ticklish dragon help young readers see the world through Gaudí’s eyes. Set in Casa Batlló, one of Antoni Gaudí’s most renowned buildings, this joyful story introduces young readers to the architect’s work, inciting their curiosity and imagination along the way. While her nanny is sleeping, young Paloma hears a noise. She climbs the stairs of her house until she reaches the roof, where a dragon is perched. Unafraid, Paloma reaches out to pet the dragon—but he is ticklish, and as he laughs, he spews a myriad of sea animals that he had unwittingly swallowed. The house is transformed into a dreamy aquarium and the dragon settles into a deep sleep on the roof. Cécile Alix’s playful story and Fred Sochard’s boldly graphic illustrations are the perfect accompaniment to Gaudí’s exuberant vision. As readers make their way through Paloma’s home, they are introduced to its fabulous elements—columns shaped like elephant legs; marine-inspired tiles, glass, and ironwork; and of course the spectacularly undulating, iridescent roof, which resembles a sleeping dragon. The end of the book includes a brief history of Gaudí’s career and provides helpful background to Paloma’s story. Kids will want to linger over the pictures and imagine what their own house would be like if a dragon were living on their roof.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 32

Dimensions: 240 x 320 mm

Publication Date: 10-09-2019

This title deals with the challenges that architects and designers face in creating spaces that can be rapidly constructed, taken down and even relocated. In revealing the cutting-edge techniques that are allowing static architectural forms to go mobile, the diverse examples provided in this book will capture readers' attention and imagination.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 240

Dimensions: 218 x 290 mm

Publication Date: 18-11-2014

Virtually no other musical discipline is as closely linked with the culture and essence of a country as the chanson with France. With roots in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, this secular, lyric-driven form of song has been reborn throughout French history-and continues to influence today's pop artists. Featuring the work of such celebrated photographers as Robert Doisneau, this fascinating history of the chanson profiles some of its most beloved artists, their music, and the cultural moments they represent. Readers will learn about Aristide Bruant-the red scarf-wearing subject of one of Lautrec's most recognizable posters. It recounts the lives of Josephine Baker, Maurice Chevalier, and their contemporaries as it peeks inside the Folies Bergere and the Moulin Rouge. It introduces readers to the "Piaf Generation," which produced the likes of Yves Montand and Georges Moustaki. And it explores the bohemian enclaves of postwar France, when revolutionary artists remade the chanson in their own melancholy image. In addition, this volume shows how classic songs of the all American song book, such as "My Way," or "September Morning" have their roots in the chanson tradition. Whether you're a fan of 1920s torch songs or prefer the electronica of ZAZ, you'll learn how the chanson is important to just about every French musical tradition-and why this genre is the perfect expression of the country's history and culture.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 256

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 05-10-2021

Like no other 20th-century movement, Surrealism was keenly inspired by tropes of magic, myth and the occult. In their engagement with the irrational and the unconscious, numerous of its members looked to magic as a poetic and deeply philosophical discourse, related to both arcane knowledge and individual self-empowerment. In their works, they heavily drew on esoteric symbols and cultivated the image of the artist as a magician, visionary, and alchemist. This catalog explores the myriad ways, in which magic and the occult informed the development of the Surrealist movement in international perspective, from the "metaphysical paintings" of Giorgio de Chirico through to works of the post-war period. Lavishly illustrated, it combines longer research essays with focused chapter introductions, all penned by leading scholars in the field. Amongst the many fascinating artists included in the volume are Victor Brauner, Leonora Carrington, Paul Delvaux, Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Leonor Fini, Rene Magritte, Roberto Matta, Kay Sage, Kurt Seligmann, Dorothea Tanning, Yves Tanguy, and Remedios Varo.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 56

Dimensions: 230 x 280 mm

Publication Date: 01-06-2021

Teach your kids what’s delicious and safe to eat—and what’s not—with this stylish board book. In their hip and often humorous Instagram accounts, Amanda and Cree Jones invite the world into their life with two young kids. Now, the Joneses are sharing another experience—the struggle to keep their kids from putting everything they see into their mouths. Using simple, bright illustrations, irresistible colors, gentle repetition, and a lighthearted tone, this stylish board book teaches babies and toddlers what they should and shouldn’t put in their mouths. Delectable treats like an ice cream cone, a pear, and a donut are interspersed with not-soyummy things kids find irresistible—like coins, boogers, and sand. Facing pages display the correct use of these items—boogers go in tissues, coins in a piggy bank, and sand in a bucket. Designed to appeal to modern parents, this durable and attractive book will have kids and their parents going back to it and sharing in the fun of all the delicious and disgusting things kids like.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 30

Dimensions: 180 x 180 mm

Publication Date: 17-09-2019

This celebration of contemporary street photography—in all its edgy, strange, beautiful, haunting, colorful, and humorous glory—brings together the work of a new generation of talented artists. Over the past few decades, the long tradition of street photography has been wholly transformed by the proliferation of digital cameras, the Internet, and smartphones. A new generation of photographers have embraced this modern technology to capture the world around us in a way that is un-staged, of-the- moment, and real. Exploring this rich seam of emergent and exciting street photography, the 100 photographs featured in this book—the majority of which are previously unpublished and taken in the last few years—are presented on double-page spreads along with commentary about the work and its creator. Curated by David Gibson, a street photographer and expert in the genre, this stunning book offers a truly global collection of images. Gibson’s insightful introduction gives an insider’s overview of street photography, illuminating its historic importance and its renaissance in the digital age.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 208

Dimensions: 230 x 250 mm

Publication Date: 04-09-2018

Whether it's diving off a cliff, cross-country skiing in Antarctica, or free climbing the Picos de Europe in Northern Spain, women in extreme sports are proving every bit as strong, determined and ambitious as their male peers. As in her extremely popular previous books, Surf Like a Girl and Skate Like a Girl, Carolina Amell has compiled spectacular photography that evokes the thrill and beauty of female nontraditional sports in every corner of the world. There's Lynn Jung tackling a parkour course with exquisite grace; Anna von Boetticher skimming the ocean floor hundreds of feet below the surface; Heather Larsen slacklining across a canyon wall; Ashley Fiolek, the world's only deaf professional motocross racer, kicking up dirt on her BMX bike; and other female wakeboarders, Pro-Base jumpers, aerobatic pilots, wingsuit pilots, and, ironically, Ironman champions. Each of the athletes contributes her own motivating words of encouragement that will inspire girls of every age and from every culture to chase their dreams, shatter every glass ceiling, kick down the men's clubhouse door-and have fun doing it all.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 256

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 07-09-2021

This book accompanies Yayoi Kusama’s first major European retrospective exhibition, offering a comprehensive overview of the Japanese artist’s influential oeuvre, which spans more than eighty years. The companion to the groundbreaking new retrospective at the Gropius Bau, this publication examines Kusama’s life and work through wholly original insights by leading experts. The book traces the development of Kusama’s creative output from her early paintings and accumulative sculptures to her immersive environments, as well exploring her lesser-known artistic activity in Europe and Germany in particular. It illuminates Kusama’s commitment to political and social issues in Europe, the US and Japan. A diverse selection of images and archival documents feature alongside texts by authors from different theoretical backgrounds. Essays discuss Kusama’s accomplishments in the worlds of fashion, film, art marketing and publishing. They focus on her engagement with different artistic spheres and offer genre-specific observations about her performances, installations and painting series. As panoramic and fascinating as its subject, this monumental retrospective guides viewers interested in Kusama towards a deeper understanding of her creative trajectory and of the breadth of her extraordinary career.

Pages: 352

Dimensions: 220 x 280 mm

Publication Date: 30-04-2021

Spanning seven centuries, this selection of fifty iconic paintings offers readers a crash course in art history while presenting gorgeous color reproductions that are a pleasure to contemplate. Starting with Giotto's Arena Chapel frescoes and continuing through Botticelli's The Birth of Venus, da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring, as well as works by Monet, van Gogh, Cassatt, Cezanne, Dali, Kahlo, Hopper, Pollock, Rothko, and O'Keeffe, nearly every important painter is represented in this book. It features works that may be familiar to the eye, but whose histories are even more fascinating. Readers will learn about the painters who created them, the reasons for their importance and the places the paintings can be found. As entertaining as it is informative, this beautiful book is the perfect introduction to great paintings that have stood the test of time.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 160

Dimensions: 195 x 240 mm

Publication Date: 01-03-2016