When she discovered that nearly half of France's 44,000 heritage sites were chateaux in various states of repair, Catherine Scotto embarked on a journey to find out who, exactly, lived in these medieval fortresses and, more importantly, what they were like on the inside. From Normandy to Provence and everywhere in between the owners of these chateaux-including decorators, antique dealers, artists, and collectors-represent the epitome of French culture and taste. Each chateau is presented in double-page full-color spreads that feature alluring interiors and information about the hosts and their design journeys. There's something for everyone here-whether it's homes where simplicity and minimalism reign, rooms as exuberantly busy as a 14th-century tapestry, or interiors transformed by surprising, era-bending feats. Morel's breathtaking, naturally lit photographs of generous kitchens, cozy drawing rooms, spacious bedrooms, ingeniously imagined bathrooms, and intriguing hallways and stairwells offer endless inspiration, while Scotto's engaging text gives readers a feel for the kinds of people who take on such a daunting yet satisfying challenge.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 240

Dimensions: 240 x 310 mm

Publication Date: 15-03-2022

Creatively laying the bricks of tomorrow: how an ancient material is building the future. The venerable brick is one of the oldest and most sustainable building materials in the world. It is simple yet versatile, modest yet resilient, global in usage yet local in appear-ance. Recently, young architects have been rediscovering the circular use of brick and embraced its warm, aesthetic appeal to design some of the most exciting buildings of the day. Brick by Brick showcases the best examples of modern brick applications, with a focus on residential buildings and interiors. These forward-looking projects from around the globe push the boundaries of brick architecture and design. Brick by Brick reveals how traditional forms are revitalized and made contemporary, and how this LEGO block of human civilization can help build our future.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 304

Dimensions: 240 x 300 mm

Publication Date: 31-03-2022

Whether it be Cosplay, Rockabilly, HipHop or Gothic: when the Japanese immerse a subculture, they do it like no other. For the Otaku, their passion is their life, and it pervades every aspect. From cosplayers and colourful anime-covered vehicles, to hotrodders and leather-clad rockabillies: sub-cultures in Japan are as varied as they are fascinating. Delving into this world of passions, The Obsessed reveals the all- consuming approach that many people take to their hobbies and lifestyle choices. With dazzling photography and background information, this book show-cases a panoply of scenes and people that make up Japan’s many countercultural groups.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 240

Dimensions: 210 x 260 mm

Publication Date: 31-03-2022

Celebrating the centenary and legacy of Charley Harper, a master of mid-century American illustration. Ladybugs, dogs, owls, otters: Charley Harper’s whimsical illustrations are more than a source of delight. With a never-ending curio-sity for the world, especially for wildlife and flora, Harper developed a unique style that influenced a whole generation of artists and designers. His œuvre is, simply, synonymous with mid-century modernism. Wild Life is a vast collection of works originally created as posters, magazine covers, murals, and others. Compiled by illustration expert Margaret Rhodes and the artist’s son, Brett Harper, this definitive monograph offers a rare glimpse into Charley’s private and creative universe. Telling the story of his life and of his masterpieces, Wild Life is essential for enthusiasts of the American master and for those interested in mid-century visual culture.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 320

Dimensions: 245 x 330 mm

Publication Date: 31-03-2022

The golden era of industrial design that revolutionized home appliances. The fascinating world of product design that emerged between the 1960s and 1980s sym-bolized the birth of a new age and human behavior. From coffee grinders to fondue sets to hairdryers, each home appliance was in-tended to help in the daily household rou-tines—but they were also masterpieces of style. Based on Jaro Gielens’s collection, one of the largest in the world, Soft Electronics explores a nostalgic and unique set of prod-ucts from a very distinct time for design. Each object possesses a sense of longevity, quality, and innovation—one that has been hard to match since manufacturing was moved overseas and planned obsolescence redefined our relationship with electronic goods. Soft Electronics pays homage to an iconic era of design.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 210 x 260 mm

Publication Date: 31-03-2022

This highly visual book explores the seldom-told story of how glamour, fashion, design, and styling became the main focus of automotive marketing from the postwar 1940s through the 1970s. With the expansion of the American suburbs after WWII, women suddenly needed cars of their own. By adopting the fashion industry's yearly model changes, as well as hiring many designers and stylists from the fashion industry, the automobile industry made a direct appeal to the rising sophistication and influence of women. By perfecting the fashion-centric concept of planned obsolescence, it became the dominant economic engine of American postwar prosperity. The dramatic photography, elegant fashion, and use of color and materials in midcentury automotive marketing created a groundswell of demand for new cars. Much of the marketing imagery of the period hasn't been published since it first came out, and this book features some of the best.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 256

Dimensions: 304 x 228 mm

Publication Date: 28-03-2022

Subways are a great equalizer that supersede social barriers separating people in the aboveground city. In his microcosmic portrayals of everyday human dramas and performances, renowned photographer Herb Robinson profoundly captures the interconnection and alienation of human beings underground and on the move. Readers experience the excitement and extraordinary diversity of three celebrated metropolises in motion. METRO / New York / London / Paris tells a global-local story of immigrants and natives, showing how our worlds are linked and enriched through our common humanity. Innovative concepts and design by Eve Sandler transport viewers forward in this subterranean world. Woven throughout, commentary by Lady Gaga, James Baldwin, King George Vl, Coco Chanel, and others imparts historical context, insider insights, and humor. METRO provides many meaningful windows into the character of each city and its inhabitants, while illuminating modern issues of identity, equality, and the human condition.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 224

Dimensions: 254 x 304 mm

Publication Date: 01-04-2022

While Munch's pessimistic, melancholy world view crucially defines our understanding of his work, many important postwar and contemporary artists have drawn inspiration from several aspects of his oeuvre. This richly illustrated book explores how nine such artists-Francis Bacon, Georg Baselitz, Louise Bourgeois, Miriam Cahn, Peter Doig, Marlene Dumas, Tracey Emin, Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol-engaged with Munch's work at different points in, or throughout, their careers. It features elaborate reproductions of sixty works by Munch juxtaposed with those inspired by him. Readers discover how Baselitz cunningly pays tribute to his artistic hero how Tracey Emin's practice, like Munch's, is autobiographical, both drawing from their personal torment to create their unnerving works ; how Marlene Dumas was drawn to the expressiveness of Munch's portraits; how Louise Bourgeois' works are illustrative of Munch's fixation on fear and isolation; how Francis Bacon modelled "Screaming Pope" after Munch's most renowned painting; and how Peter Doig draws on Munch's radical treatment of pigments and materiality. Essays by leading scholars detail each artist's unique preoccupation with Munch and offer a focused exploration of the ways women artists in particular were inspired by his examinations of loneliness, fear, and trauma.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 280

Dimensions: 245 x 285 mm

Publication Date: 15-03-2022

Told for the first time in graphic novel form, the story of Francis Bacon's life is as complex, colorful, and highly charged as his paintings. Drawn in shades of mauve, red, yellow, and blue that distinguished his palette, these illustrations weave together a troubling but compassionate narrative, one that draws on the tragic events of Bacon's childhood and youth, as well as reflecting the profoundly passionate yearnings of the artist he became. Separated into thematic and chronological sections the novel highlights the prevailing influences of Bacon's life and times: his early autodidacticism and estrangement from his family; his struggles to make his way as a surrealist painter and his destruction of his early work. It traces his gradual success in postwar Europe, his powerful and often violent romantic relationships, his foray into portraiture, and his never-ending search for subject matter and meaning in his work. Alternating between full-page illustrations and smaller, captioned works, Portolano imagines not only the known details of Bacon's biography, but also his inner life-the dreams, fears, and obsessions that were equally formidable underpinnings of his oeuvre. Woven to gether with historical facts and figures, this graphic novel reconstructs a life as only a cartoonist could-image led, thoughtfully composed, and deeply evocative of its subject matter.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 128

Dimensions: 170 x 240 mm

Publication Date: 15-03-2022

The main character of this extraordinary graphic novel is not a person but an idea-the school of Bauhaus, which arose in the wake of World War I, and emerged as the fundamental reference point for virtually every avant-garde artistic movement that followed. Visually arresting illustrations and engaging texts place the novel's protagonist squarely in the middle of the twentieth-century debate on the relationship between technology and culture. The novel is divided into three chapters that trace the evolution of the Bauhaus, as its center moved across Germany-from Weimar to Dessau to Berlin-and as its philosophy responded to this economically, politically and intellectually highly charged era in Europe. Sergio Varbella's inventive drawings bring to life the theories of founder Walter Gropius, as well as the basic design ideals of unity and equity. Valentina Grande's thoughtful texts highlight crucial moments within the movement's history and in the lives of principal figures such as Klee, Kandinsky, Albers, and Mies van der Rohe. The perfect introduction to a radical but highly influential chapter in the history of design, this novel shows how the Bauhaus school broke down barriers and built up ideals that are still applied today.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 128

Dimensions: 170 x 240 mm

Publication Date: 15-03-2022