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Phaidon Press
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The Architecture in Detail series comprises books that focus on individual buildings noted for their exceptional character, innovative design or technical virtuosity. Each volume contains a text by a respected author, a sequence of colour and black-and-white photographs and a set of technical drawings and working details. The Dessau Bauhaus encapsulates the ethos of that design school's revolutionary new thinking. With its interlocking cubic forms, reinforced concrete frame and glass curtain walls, it was the first large building to crystallize the Modern Movement's conception of form and space. |
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History of the Poster, co-written by Josef and Shizuko Muller-Brockmann, is a landmark account of one of the most prolific visual traditions of our culture. Originally published in 1971, this seminal study is clearly written and richly illustrated. Now reprinted by Phaidon Press, History of the Poster is an essential read for anyone intrigued by this most modern medium. The book presents an exhaustive collection of posters, ranging from the end of the nineteenth century until the early seventies, when the book was published for the first time. Conceived, written and designed by one of the best and most influential poster designers of the twentieth century, the book defines the nature of a poster and indicates the laws of designing it. Muller-Brockmann defines and describes four fundamental conceptions of the poster, approaching the function-type of each and presenting an array of methods used to capture the attention of the viewer. The author employs sure aesthetic judgement in his selection of images as he guides us through the formation and evolution of style, emphasis and connotation in poster design. This reprint has not tampered with the original edition's design or layout and stays true to Muller-Brockmann's original concept. |
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Alexey Brodovitch (1898 — 1971) a legend among graphic designers. Escaping from the Bolshevik revolution and settled in Paris and then in new York, AB was one of the pioneers of graphic design of the twentieth century. He more than 20 years has taken the place of the main artist of magazine Harper's Bazaar, he has worked on several collection of publications together with Richard Avedonom and Andre Kertesom, he himself was a talented photographer and informally spent in new York activities called «Design-laboratory», which brought up the young generation of photographers and designers, who later became famous artists or art-Directors. This is a book about his life and creativity, based on the stories of his colleagues and those with whom he worked. In it you will find a previously unpublished materials from the archives and private collections from around the world. It offers deep analysis and evaluation of unique and large contribution AB in visual art. |
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Before you is the first comprehensive and exhaustive monograph Elliott Erwitt (1928), one of the most talented photographers of his generation. This album features pictures of famous personalities and ordinary people, strange and funny photos, made over fifty years of the period of his career. More than 200 previously unpublished photographs являютя the best reflection of their Creator, his undoubtedly bright and often humorous style. This book Elliott Erwitt Snaps («Clicks»), consisting of 500 pictures, speaks about the fact that the photographer nothing to invent, to take the picture, everything is already there in this world and in just one click of the camera to make a unique frame. In the photographic lexicon of Elliott Erwitt the word «personal» refers to the photos, taken for themselves. Erwitt rented as a professional for many customers, but always found the time to do and «Amateur» photos. In his opinion, the word «Amateur» there is no negative meanings: because it comes from the word «love». Shoot for his own pleasure. Or, as he would have said, to complicate the picture... Its work cannot be confused either with whose other, because only he could see, it would seem, in the everyday moments of life something ironic, not serious, and, on the contrary, in comic situations to see and capture the serious moment. |
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«The nature of photography» — this is the ABC of photography. The book became the results of the training course, which Stiven Shart led for many years, but publication will be useful not only to students. Its goal is not to study the subject of the image, as in the description of the physical and external properties of picture elements, which are the tools of the photographer for the definition and interpretation of the content. Stiven Shart teaches us how to look at the photo, helps us to look at the surrounding world through the eyes of the man with the camera. «The nature of photography» will serve as a tool for critical analysis and understanding of the photos at all. In addition to the work Stiven Shart, in the book you will find photos, and other photographers, both classic and modern — all genres. On their example, the author shows how what is in front of the lens, is transformed into an image. |
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A short version of the «Atlas of the world architecture of the XXI century». This so-called travel publication of a small, handheld, format, that is very convenient for those who travel on vacation or a business trip. The material posted on the geographical principle, is equipped with a large and small maps, maps of the cities, so the described constructions on them easy to find. Constructions of more than 1,000, including new projects. Each is equipped with one photo and a brief description, addresses, web sites, phone numbers. |
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«Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863) was one of the greatest French painters of the Romantic period. Passionately opposed to the sterile conventions of David and the other academic artists, he took up again the broken threads of the great Baroque style and created a long run of masterpieces. But even if he had never put brush to canvas, he would still live as a famous diarist. «Delacroix's Journal» is one of the great documents in art history, a work of literature as well as a vital documentary source for scholars and students. In it the artist discusses his own paintings, his life, his sorrows and hopes; the paintings and sculptures of Rubens, Michelangelo, Constable, Bonington and others; old and new literature and the music of Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini and his close friend Chopin; the events of his tune; the beauties of nature; life in foreign countries. Throughout he never loses his grip on the reader, though it seems that he wrote for himself only and never thought of being read. The resulting unselfconscious spontaneity and freshness give the work its unique quality, both as literature and as a source of insight into the mind of a great artist. The complete text of the journal is immensely long, and the selection of this volume, edited by Hubert Wellington and translated by Lucy Norton, comprises about half of the original. The 80 illustrations complement the text by reproducing relevant portraits, works in progress at certain dates, and pictures by Rubens and others which are commented on in the journal or form important sources of influence.» |
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American photographer Larry Fink (b.1941) is the Jack Kerouac of photography. This accessible monograph reviews his 40-year career as a photographer, during which he celebrated the expressiveness of the human body and its colourful and energetic sensuality. A strong supporter of social values and grassroots activism, Fink has never shied away from political and cultural critiques in his imagery. The genius of Fink lies in the way he melds social commentary with exquisite pictorial composition of his subjects. |
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«Boarding House» shows an imaginary space of transient residence, of coming and goings, of people without homes, sheltering in an abode that they are using for their immediate survival. The structure is basic and fundamental and it is furnished with objects that are necessarily for an elementary existence. Remnants function here as physical symbols of events that have occurred in this space; broken pieces of a functional reality exist as the leftovers of scenarios that were played out here.The altered sense of place of this temporary abode for by-passers who play out their sense of alienation on the stage gives the work depth of significance as both a psychological and aesthetic statement. Having evolved from and developed out of Roger Ballen's previous work, «Boarding House» differs significantly in that the work has become even more formally sophisticated and more focused on the drawing and sculptural elements of the photographs, and the sense of collaboration between the artist and his subjects increasingly evident. In his introductory essay, veteran photography curator David Travis addresses this new body of work in an accessible way, looking at these new images in the wider context of Ballen's career.» |
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Egon Schiele was an Austrian Expressionist painter and is widely recognised as a major figure in the history of modem art. In this revised edition Simon Wilson explores the influences which helped shape his art. The Austrian painter Egon Schiele is now recognised as a major figure in the history of modern art and in the development of the Expressionist movement. He was only 28 when he died in 1918, yet in his short life he produced a remarkable series of intense and powerful images, and although dogged by unfounded accusations of pornography he pursued his vocation as an artist with uncompromising intensity, giving expression to his most powerful feelings with an anguished honesty. In this recently revised book, Simon Wilson explores Schiele's obsession with sex, life and death, which gave rise to his famous female nudes and nude self-portraits, and examines his vision of the artist in society, and his work as a landscape and portrait painter. |
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Ever since his brief but stunning performance as a thief in Thelma and Louise, Brad Pitt was destined to become one of Hollywood's major stars of the 1990s. Following the huge success of his roles in Legends Of The Fall and Interview With The Vampire, this status has been confirmed by the controversial films Seven, Sleepers and The Devil's Own. It is not only as an actor that Brad Pitt is hugely in demand: his good looks have been compared to those of Robert Redford, and People Magazine voted him 'The Sexiest Man Alive'. This intimate biography looks behind Pitt's glamorous image and discovers the truth behind his strict upbringing, his relationships and how Pitt himself has come to terms with his sudden rise to fame. It has been updated to examine the scandal and revelations surrounding his breakup with Gwyneth Paltrow just months after they had been dubbed Hollywood's 'golden couple'. Brad Pitt also details the acting career of a man who has starred in roles as diverse as the scene-stealing stoner in Tarantino's True Romance, the undead Louis in Interview With The Vampire, the romantic lead in Legends Of The Fall, an idealistic rookie cop in the blockbuster Seven, and the disturbed son of a scientist in the Oscar-nominated Twelve Monkeys. Brian Robb, a film journalist and writer from Edinburgh, is author of the highly acclaimed River Phoenix: A Short Life, Johnny Depp: A Modern Rebel, and The Leonardo DiCaprio Album, all published by Plexus. |
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Achille Castiglioni (1918 — 2002) was one of the most important and prolific designers of the twentieth century. This comprehensive monograph is the only detailed study of his remarkable career and includes a catalogue of his complete works from 1938 — 2000 spanning architecture and exhibition, interior and product design. An essay by Sergio Polano describes Castiglioni's important collaborations with his brothers Livio and Pier Giacomo and discusses his diverse range of projects including the spatial design work that dominated his early career as well as his later, better known product designs. Castiglioni's work is celebrated for its combination of technical innovation with an aesthetically-pleasing form, as demonstrated in his elegant Luminator floor lamp for Gilardi & Barzaghi (1955) and the distinctive Frisbi hanging light for Flos (1978). His designs also demonstrated wit — the 'readymade' furniture designs created with Pier Giacomo in 1957 incorporated tractor and bicycle seats into new stools. He created hundreds of pieces of furniture, lighting and products for a distinguished client list including Kartell, Knoll, Zanotta, Alessi and Siemens. With more than 800 photographs and drawings, this monograph does full justice to his designs, which won eight prestigious Compasso d'Oro prizes. |
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Born in Bombay and based in London since the 1970s, Anish Kapoor (b. 1954) has been a vital force in contemporary art for over three decades. His sculptures are hermetic but unmistakable, both for their striking abstract forms and for their distinctive use of materials, from the traditional (marble, bronze) to the high-tech (stainless steel, fibreglass). His work, in its pursuit of the sublime and the spiritual, updates an artistic lineage that spans from Abstract Expressionism to German Romantic painting and beyond. At the same time, his sustained exploration of the uncanny, centred on the morphology of the human body, gives his work its unique and timeless psychological depth. This is the most complete monograph ever published on the artist, covering more than thirty years of work and illustrated with hundreds of full-colour images, including sketches and technical diagrams from his most ambitious projects. It also features an extensive chronology covering the artist's life in detail and illustrated with snapshots, sketches and ephemera, some never before published. Kapoor has received numerous awards and distinctions, including the Turner Prize in 1991 and a CBE in 2003. His work has been featured in solo exhibitions at major museums around the world, including Haus der Kunst in Munich, Musee des Beaux-Arts in Nantes and Tate Modern in London, as well as important international exhibitions, such as Documenta 9 in Kassel, Expo '92 in Seville and the 44th Venice Biennale, where he represented Great Britain. He is also responsible for some of the world's best known public sculptures, including Taratantara (1999, Gateshead and Naples), Sky Mirror (2001, Nottingham, and 2006, New York) and Cloud Gate (2004, Chicago). |
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Arata Isozaki is one of the most important and influential Japanese architects working today. Born in Oita, Japan, in 1931 he attended Tokyo University and later worked and studied under Kenzo Tange. In 1963, he opened his own practice and since then has realized a large number of buildings in Japan, Europe and the United States. Through his work, both as an architect and as a theorist, Isozaki has acted as a bridge between the East and the West, exporting Japanese architecture into the Western world and importing outside trends and movements into Japan. Arata Isozaki has conceived this book in collaboration with Ken Tadashi Oshima. It presents a unique, monographic tour through his architecture from the first visionary urban projects of the 1960s to his latest buildings, realized all over the world. The projects featured in the book have been carefully selected from Isozaki's vast portfolio. They are not presented in chronological order but are grouped in chapters titled and arranged in accordance with Isozaki's instructive categorizations of his own work. Each of the six chapters contains conceptual texts by Isozaki (many previously untranslated or unpublished); critical analysis by Oshima; a main case study project (extensively illustrated and explored); and a survey of related projects. Emulating one of Isozaki's central tenets that 'the city, architecture, and various social systems are nothing more than processes', there is an emphasis on process throughout the book — from conception, through construction, to use. We are introduced to projects through drawings and images of models, led through plans and ultimately presented with photographs of the final construction, as each is newly born and then matured in its existence and function. |
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David Seymour, or Szymin, was born in Warsaw in 1911, the son of a Polish publisher. In 1929 he studied graphic arts and photography at the academy in Leipzig, where he specialized in the new techniques of printing pictures in colour. In 1931 he moved to Paris to study sciences at the Sorbonne but with the political problems that developed in Poland he was advised to take up photography by David Rappaport, founder of the Rap agency, who in 1932 provided him with his first 35 mm camera. He began to contribute to magazines such as Vu, Regards and Ce Soir, travelling throughout Europe to capture significant events that have left their mark on much of the history of the twentieth century. He travelled to Spain in 1936 to cover the Civil War, and in his photographs of the plight of the civilian population he achieved some of his finest work This book covers the full range of Seymour's career, from early photos of unrest in France for European and American magazines to his UNICEF-sponsored study of children in postwar Europe, which attracted worldwide attention. Among his many photographic essays are outstanding portraits of personalities such as Bernard Berenson who were treated with the same intensity as anonymous sitters. A founder member of Magnum, Seymour was President at the time of his death in 1956 while photographing Suez. This monograph on Seymour forms an elegantly produced introduction to one of the key figures in twentieth-century photography. |
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In the mid-1980s the sprouting of new movements that had driven modern art since the nineteenth century finally went dormant, sputtering out with a last few half-hearted labels ('pattern painting', 'neo-geo', 'commodity art'). But this was not the end of art history — far from it. In the years since, art's creative development has remained more vibrant than ever, resulting in a staggering diversity of new forms. Defining Contemporary Art responds to this unique landscape with an innovative approach to art history. Assembled and written by eight of the most prominent curators working today, all of whom have both witnessed and shaped this period, Defining Contemporary Art tells the story of the two hundred pivotal artworks of the past twenty-five years. These artworks include not only the most talked about pieces but also the quietly influential works, those which may have been overlooked at the time of their making but which went on to change the paradigm of their era. Arranged year by year, these two hundred works provide a true chronological depiction of creativity in our era, forming a mosaic in which readers may find their own patterns. Each author, in addition to selecting twenty-five artworks from 1986 to 2010, has singled out one year from this period as a key moment in its development, tracing the shifts in the artistic climate and the important exhibitions of new art, influential retrospectives, milestones and anecdotes that serve as the seeds of more conventional histories. Defining Contemporary Art is not a conventional history. In a period when artistic developments no longer proceed via tidy movements, when narratives of progress no longer hold sway, when the art world has not one centre but many, this book provides the reader with all the materials to compose a picture of the most vital period in art: our own. |
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Ancient Egyptian art has an enduring fascination. From the geometrical precision of the great pyramids at Giza to the golden treasures found in the tomb of Tutankhamun, the products of the Egyptian civilization attract and intrigue. Far from being art work in the modern sense, they represent the concrete expression of a profound belief in the primacy of the Egyptian way of life and the continuation of the spirit in the afterlife. This comprehensive book traces Egyptian art from its origins in prehistoric times through the supreme achievements of the pharaohs to the Roman period. Placing the works of art in their historical, geographical and spiritual context, Jaromir Malek seeks to create a more complete and realistic view of this fascinating culture. Beyond the period of ancient Egyptian art itself, Malek traces the history of Egyptology and looks at the influence of Egypt on modern art, a topic which has so far been almost completely ignored. Through its wealth of illustrations, this book reveals the immense variety and superb quality of the objects and buildings that have survived from ancient Egypt. |
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Graphic Agitation 2 explores graphic protest in the digital age, in particular over the years since the Gulf War. The book deals with a range of protest imagery from hi-tech and low-tech to no-tech and is comprehensively illustrated with images ranging from lollipop wrappers to websites. Graphic Agitation 2 is a survey of social and political graphics since the early 1990s. It illustrates and contextualises work produced in relation to key themes such as: environmental movements; the rise of corporate power; branding; wars (e.g. in the Balkans and the Gulf War); and human rights — all of which have been prominent items in the news over the last few years. The graphic design projects discussed in this book are all of 'the digital age' but they are not all digital-based. The author deals with the impact of digital innovations on traditional methods of social and political protest and also looks at how they work together. This mix of media is both appealing and informative. |
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«Jeff Wall (b.1946) adopts the nineteenth-century poet Baudelaire's famous description of one of his contemporaries as 'a painter of modern life' to describe his own very different work: huge transparencies mounted on to light boxes that diffuse a brilliant glow of white light evenly through his photographs of contemporary urban scenes and 'constructed' social situations. Wall is foremost among the pioneering artists who since the late 1960s have brought photography to the forefront of contemporary art. His constructed images employ the latest sophisticated technology in the creation of compelling tableaux, which are evocative of subjects ranging from Hollywood cinema to nineteenth-century history painting. When exhibited in their glowing light boxes they evoke both the seduction of the cinema screen and the physical presence of minimalist sculptures such as Dan Flavin's fluorescent light installations or Donald Judd's metal and Perspex wall reliefs. All of these elements — traditional figurative painting, cinema, Minimalism, Conceptual art, documentary photography — are consciously evoked and explored in Wall's work. Associated closely since the late 1960s with Conceptual artists such as Dan Graham, with whom he collaborated on The Children's Pavilion (1988-93), Wall has engaged at a sophisticated level with theories of representation and its social dimensions both as an artist and as a theoretical writer on contemporary art and culture. The survey by Thierry de Duve, author of «Pictorial Nominalism» and «The Definitively Unfinished Marcel Duchamp», proposes an alternative history of modernism. Critic and curator Arielle Pelenc talks with the artist on themes ranging from storytelling to cinematography. Boris Groys, author of «Contemporary Art from Moscow», focuses on the meaning of light in Wall's work. The update section by French art critic and historian of photograpy Jean-Francois Chevrier surveys Wall's work from 1995 to the present. The artist has chosen texts by Blasie Pascal and Franz Kafka for the «Artist's Choice», and the «Artist's Writings» celebrate Wall as an art historian and theorist by including key essays and important interviews.» |
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