Darkly comic, surreal and full of perceptiveness about human vulnerability and eccentricity, Frankie McMillan’s small fictions often duck and dive away from the reader’s expectations. With a poet’s sense of how single words or phrases ripple out with alternate meanings, and a dramatist’s feeling for how apparently small gestures reveal character, and how sudden, cataclysmic change can wrench us out of comfort, routine and unthinking assumptions, the author leaves us ransacking the language for finer genre definitions. This collection teems with both the animal world and a vivid circus of quirky human individuals. The pieces globe-trot all over the planet: from Russia to America to New Zealand; and yet often their piquant wisdom comes from how they bear down into ‘micro-geography’ of intimate relationships: the troughs, peaks, cliff-sides, the warm, still pools of recognition. Frankie McMillan is like a quietly outrageous Zen master, showing us human folly and idiocy, steering us carefully over the dark river of vulnerability that swells under it all. "The Father of Octopus Wrestling, and other small fictions" is an artisan production, designed and printed by Ilam Press, Ilam School of Fine Arts and is published with the support of Creative New Zealand.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 146

Dimensions: 165 x 230 mm

Publication Date: 23-08-2019

Pip Murdoch offers us a raw and honest account of her personal journey, giving birth and placing her child up for adoption during early seventies New Zealand. Her frank and gritty portrayal is set against a period of rapid social change within a narrow and judgemental environment. Pip gives us intimate descriptions of the challenges she faced. She expresses the fear, shame and trauma of having to part with her baby and demonstrates a tireless determination to make the most of every situation. Her story begins with a girl coming of age in the constricting world of the nineteen sixties, when the sexual revolution overlapped the bigotry and puritanism that were our post-Victorian legacy. The cultural context of the time had a big effect on the choices Pip made and profoundly influenced her life. She gives us an insight into the harsh imposed adoption laws and the impact of institutional processes. Relative Strangers captures the realities of female adolescence, its innocence and excitement, accompanied by new freedoms, with the added ingredients of peer pressure and guilt. The memoir reminds us how far we’ve come in our societal attitudes. Pip then takes up the story twenty years later as she endeavours to search for her son. She takes the reader on a roller coaster ride of disappointment and hope through the process of her adoption reunion.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 260

Dimensions: 130 x 211 mm

Publication Date: 16-08-2019

It has been 20 extraordinary and exciting years since SCAPE Public Art began to revolutionise the open spaces of Ōtautahi Christchurch – and public arts practice in Aotearoa New Zealand. This bold initiative stepped outside the gallery and into the streets, to make contemporary art, both national and international, truly public in a fresh and invigorating way. And it did so, uniquely for this country, by involving industry and business, and the city’s various communities, in commissioning and realising arts projects and permanent works. Out There: SCAPE Public Art 1998–2018 tells the story of this fruitful association and celebrates two decades of achievement since SCAPE’s first biennial, then known as Art & Industry, was held in 2000. Drawing on more than 100 interviews with the originators and supporters of SCAPE, and with many of the more than 230 artists who have been involved, well-known arts commentator Dr Warren Feeney has written a lively and appealing account. He considers both the stunning works made possible by SCAPE and the unexpected and beneficial partnerships that have developed in Christchurch, particularly after the 2010–11 earthquakes. Fascinating, richly illustrated and superbly designed, Out There: SCAPE Public Art 1998–2018 is a beautiful and significant book. No one interested in the visual arts will want to be without it.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 245 x 245 mm

Publication Date: 06-09-2019

Ces Gledhill hired on with New Zealand Railways in 1925. Forever the rolling stone in search of better money, overtime and promotion, Ces transferred around New Zealand seeking out opportunities within the railway service. Starting as a cleaner, he worked his way up through the ranks of fireman and eventually first-class enginedriver. Working through the Depression years and the boom of war-time rail traffic, Ces recounts with interest his time living at the various towns and cities, working on both isolated sections, branch lines and main trunk trains. Told with passion are many of his footplate escapades. After a wartime absence, he returned from railway military service in the Middle-east, he settled down on the West Coast of the South Island, both operating and keeping operational, run-down locomotives on the post-war railway. This work is well illustrated with images of the period, many taken by the author.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 115

Dimensions: 210 x 296 mm

Publication Date: 16-08-2019

Not all superpowers are a good thing. Especially NOT if your mum has them. Or if they're fuelled by embarrassment. And what if you can't find your way back home? Jump out of your skin with these hilarious short stories by Tom E. Moffatt. Bu don't leave your body unattended for long!

Bind: paperback

Pages: 266

Dimensions: 127 x 203 mm

Publication Date: 19-07-2019

Discover magical, remote locations around the world, from Africa to the Arctic, that will help you disconnect from modern life and enter a state of wonder. Silence. Calm. Open spaces. These are the new luxuries. In this turbulent era it has become ever more crucial to disconnect and slow down. Remote Places to Stay shares 22 out-of-the-way places where you can get off the grid and reconnect to the essentials, surrounded by raw pristine nature. Some of these remote places are only accessible by foot, others by train, small boat, or bush plane—but they are all places with a very strong sense of space. From lavish to spare architecture, from the Arctic to the desert landscapes of Africa, from a peaceful retreat in the Himalayas to a secret convent in the south of Italy, each exceptional retreat has been carefully selected to inspire and spark a state of wonder. Exploring the pages of Remote Places to Stay is a visual journey you will never forget.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 312

Dimensions: 205 x 270 mm

Publication Date: 31-08-2019

It is often said that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder. In The Touch, Kinfolk and Norm Architects present an alternative: that good design is not only visually appealing—it engages all of the human senses. What do a museum in Marrakech, a mid-century apartment in Berlin, and a graveyard north of Venice all have in common? In The Touch, creative collaborators Nathan Williams of Kinfolk and Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen of Norm Architects explore the idea that these inspiring spaces, and many more like them, share the five essential tenets of haptic, human-centric design: materiality, light, color, nature, and community. Revealing some of the world’s most sensual architecture and interiors, The Touch offers a wealth of inspiration through stunning photography, philosophical essays, and practical tips from the minds of design industry leaders.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 245 x 330 mm

Publication Date: 30-08-2019

Whether they’re threading a barrel or shredding a swell, these amazing women are making enormous waves in the world of surfing. If you thought surfing was a male-dominated sport, think again. The thirty women surfers profiled in this thrilling collection can rip a wave with the best of them. Hailing from all over the world, each surfer is featured in spectacular photography and with their own inspirational words. There’s American professional surfer Lindsay Steinriede on how her father’s death has inspired her career; French board shaper Valerie Duprat on how she got her start “sculpting foam”; Conchita Rossler, founder of Mooana Retreat in Portugal, on connecting mind, body, and spirit; and activist Leah Dawson on empowering women. You’ll also meet surfers who are over sixty, who surf while pregnant, who captain boats, teach yoga, and make movies. Breathtaking photography captures these women from every angle, on and off the waves, in some of the world’s most visually stunning locations. The perfect gift for surfing enthusiasts, this unique compilation of stunning pictures and hard-won wisdom proves that the thrill of catching a wave, riding it, and kicking out belongs to everyone.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 256

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 16-09-2019

Influential director and photographer Floria Sigismondi showcases new images of the biggest names in music and in Hollywood. Floria Sigismondi’s compelling visual narratives have defined the cultural zeitgeist over the course of her 25-year career as a director and photographer. She has worked with Nicole Kidman, Gary Oldman, Tilda Swinton, Marion Cotillard, and Kristen Stewart, and is also behind surreal, career-defining music videos for David Bowie, Katy Perry, Marilyn Manson and Justin Timberlake, among others. She has directed episodes of American Gods, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Daredevil for TV, and her Hollywood film credits include The Runaways, and The Turning (due to release in 2020). Eat the Sun is a star-studded overview of Sigismondi’s photographic and film work. Throughout the years, Sigismondi has stayed true to her distinctive noir aesthetic, pushing boundaries to become one of the best visual artists in the industry.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 240

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 30-08-2019

The original work of Christian Warlich, Europe's preeminent tattoo artist in the first half of the century, is brought back to life in a stunning new volume. Christian Warlich was a world famous German tattooist and his flash book is one of the most coveted objects in the tattoo world. It is now available in this exquisite edition that includes over three hundred hand-drawn designs restored to their original vibrant state. It also includes photographs and other archival material, much of which has never been published before. This book brings Warlich’s career into new focus, reflecting the latest research on how his early years at sea may have influenced his work. Intricate renderings of cowboys and indigenous Americans, Chinese dragons and Japanese geishas, daggers, snakes, and skulls reveal not only Warlich’s influence in the iconography of tattoos, but also suggest the interplay of ideas with tattooists across Europe, North America, and Asia. The book also explores how Warlich’s estate helped shape the state of tattoo art today. This elegant book is invaluable in understanding the importance of Warlich to the history of tattooing.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 108

Dimensions: 320 x 250 mm

Publication Date: 04-09-2019