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Thames and Hudson
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If you've ever found yourself transfixed by a Renaissance painting, fascinated by an Inca textile, or filled with wonder by an exquisite piece of Ming porcelain, this is the book for you. Venture inside its pages and discover exactly what the great artistic periods and movements of the world were all about. Written by an experienced international team of artists, art historians and curators, this absorbing and beautiful book gives you priceless insights into the worlds most iconic images those that bombard us every time we open a newspaper, visit a gallery, or look at the front cover of a novel. Art: The Whole Story is a must for everyone who loves art and who wants to find out more. |
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«Photographer Robert Lebeck was interested not only in «the event» in and of itself, but also in the stories on the fringes and the people behind the images. Lebeck was frequently to be found in that elusive terrain most photographers dream of: the right place at the right time. When he took the photo «Rapier Thief» on his tour of Africa in 1960, for instance, he captured a symbolic portrait of the end of European colonial power--an image which has since become a classic of press photography. His photographs of Japan contrast the wealth of a few with the poverty of many. And when he photographed in the Soviet Union in 1962, he demonstrated a rare understanding of its culture. This handsomely slipcased three-volume monograph gathers images from Moscow, Tokyo and Leopoldville (current-day Kinshasa). These pictures of Africa, Asia and the Soviet Union, mostly made in the early 1960s, show a world in upheaval, a world in which extremes were colliding. Furthermore, they suggests that there is much more to be considered than that which is presented in the photographic image.» |
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«The art of sculpture in Baroque Italy reached unprecedented heights of technical perfection and emotional intensity. This book offers a view of this rich and varied period, ranging from the exuberance of Gianlorenzo Bernini's «Apollo and Daphne» and Nicola Salvi's ever-popular Trevi Fountain to the restraint and simplicity of Alessandro Algardi's «St Philip Neri». Expressive papal tombs and subtly idealized portrait busts reflected contemporary debates on identity and the afterlife; multi-sensory compositions such as Bernini's Cornano Chapel embodied an unforgettable and wholly new combination of spirituality and sensuality; and dazzling fountains and angelic statuary transformed the urban spaces of the Eternal City forever.» |
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The classic Photofile series brings together the best work of the world’s greatest photographers in an attractive format and at a reasonable price. Handsome and collectible, each book contains some sixty duotone photographs plus an introduction and a bibliography. 59 b&w illustrations |
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Central Asia is the subject matter of this travelogue by a photographer working in the tradition of the great nineteenth-century explorers. The Silk Road, Transcaspia, the Pamir Highway, the Alai Corridor, the Khyber Pass, the Taklamakhan Desert: this is the magnificent terrain where the geopolitical ambitions of empires have played out. Central Asia is the largest natural fortress on earth, traversed by a few routes that have been used by traders and armies since earliest times and are still today the arteries for those in search of power, profit, or refuge. Warlords, border officials, businessmen, smugglers, and refugees are among those who populate the landscapes depicted here, from desert heartlands to zones of war and uneasy peace. 165 color photographs |
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Jürgen Vollmer has lead the traditional peripatetic life of a photographer and this book contains images of the people he has photographed in different countries across the globe. What is different from the usual collection of travel portraits is that often his subjects have been famous actors and literary figures. The first part of the book, On Filmsets, consists of a series on two dozen American and a dozen French filmsets over the past four decades. The filmstars include among many others Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp, Sean Connery, Heath Ledger, Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert and Jeanne Moreau. The portraits of directors include among others Francis Ford Coppola, Tony Scott, Roman Polanski, Barbra Streisand and Alain Resnais. Prominently featured are photos of Rudolf Nureyev, taken in 1966 during the filming of a ballet film. The second part of the book, On Other Locations, are photographs taken between 1961 and 1996, of local people in different countries, among them Turks, Sicilians, Egyptians and Senegalese as well as portraits of a few famous people, like John Lennon in Hamburg and William Burroughs in New York. |
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Robert Capa (1913-1954) gave the world some of the most moving and memorable images of war ever taken, and redefined journalism for ever. Through his photographs we see the suffering, confusion, boredom and courage of the soldiers and civilians affected by the five wars that he covered. Yet he was more than a war photographer: Capa's portraits of politicians and artists are equally memorable. A participant, not an observer, Capa lived his life on the edge and died in action, killed by a landmine in Vietnam. 68 b&w photographs |
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«No one wants to be a prophet, if the job can be avoided. What you want to try to be is a psalmist.» Robert Adams Robert Adams began by photographing suburban landscapes along the edge of the Rocky Mountains. His goal was then, and remains, to acknowledge the disappearance of wilderness but also to discover a basis for affirmation. In the 1980s he went on to revisit semi-rural areas through which he had walked as a boy — landscapes no longer pristine but still notable for their quiet, space and light. The views in this book, none published before, record some of what he found compelling.» |
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This comprehensive survey the history of realist painting and argues that realism has had a continuous yet restlessly changing place in American and European painting throughout the 20th century. Artists discussed include Eakins, Bellows and Homer, Vuillard, Bonnard, Schiele, Morandi, Hopper and Giacometti, through to Balthus, Lucian Freud, and David Hockney. The author provides the historical, artistic and critical contexts in which painting has taken a realist turn, from the Ashcan School to Soviet Social realism, from painting of the Existentialist era to the time of Photorealism, to recent developments. He argues that the western tradition of pictorial realism has in fact been renewed and modified through the diverse influences of modernism, political conflict and new visual technologies. |
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Robert Rauschenberg made a tremendous impact on Modern art in the twentieth century. As a pioneer of Pop art, he was a key figure in the postwar tradition that brought American art to the forefront of the international scene. This new volume in the MoMA Artist Series, which explores important artists and favorite works in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, guides readers through a dozen of the artist's most memorable achievements. A short and lively essay by Carolyn Lanchner, a former curator of painting and sculpture at the Museum, accompanies each work, illuminating its significance and placing it in its historical moment in the development of Modern art and the artist's own life. This volume provides a unique overview of someone who shaped the development of American art since mid-century and is an excellent resource for readers interested in the stories behind the masterpieces of the Modern canon. |
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This is an exceptional monograph-catalogue revealing the innovative drive in Gauguin's work. This catalogue offers a unique opportunity to view Gauguin's entire artistic development from his early impressionist works to his final masterpieces painted on the Marquesas Islands where the artist went in search of an Arcadian kingdom of ecstasy, peace and art, far from the typical European struggle for money. In reality such a paradise on earth no longer existed, not even on the other side of the globe, however the wealth and complexity of life that he found before him there, inspired the creation of a series of works which are among the most vivid and durable in the history of painting. |
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The design of multiple housing — a new building type, especially for growing urban populations — was a major new area of activity for architects at the beginning of the twentieth century, and one that continues into the twenty-first century. This book features 87 of the most influential modern housing designs of the last 100 years by some of the best-known architects in the field. Each project is explained with a concise text and photographs and specially created scale drawings, including floor plans and site plans, sections and elevations where appropriate. The projects are organized in six roughly chronological chapters tracing the history of both public and private housing around the world. The detailed drawings allow each project to be analyzed in depth, which, alongside the author's authoritative text, will make this an invaluable resource for architects and students. As an added bonus, the book includes a CD-ROM containing digital files of all the drawings featured in the book. |
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The Fundamentals of Landscape Architecture provides an introduction to the key elements of this broad field. From climate change to sustainable communities, landscape architecture is at the forefront of today's most crucial issues. It serves as a guide to the many specialisations within landscape architecture, such as landscape strategy and urban design. This book explains the process of designing for sites, including historical precedent, evolving philosophies, and how a project moves from concept to design to realisation. This book will be valuable for young adults making career choices, design students studying foundation courses, and professionals seeking to gain a better understanding of landscape architecture as it gains in importance and prominence internationally. |
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Naked Architecture Valerio Paolo Mosco: An account of one of the most interesting phenomena of contemporary architecture: the return to the structure and methods with which contemporary constructions are realized. Over the last ten years architecture would seem to have rediscovered engineering. Now that the Postmodern period, in which the structure of buildings was camouflaged by coverings of every kind, has passed, architecture today seems to have undressed, almost as though wishing to show how it is made (and to render this spectacular). On the other hand, the rediscovery in recent years of plastic form has brought about a closer relationship between architects and engineers. In the wake of the phenomenon that is the work of Santiago Calatrava, figures of engineer-architects have emerged such as Cecil Balmond, Sasaki and Guy Nordenson, who have been able to give a strongly engineering-oriented guise to ever more complex building sites. To this we must add the rise of new issues, such as that of environmental engineering, which has changed from being a specifically technical sphere to one of many other realms of knowledge, not least the aesthetic. If, therefore, there is a phenomenon today that is able to hold together the various expressions of contemporary architecture, it is precisely this return to the structure and methods with which it is realized. |
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These small, but perfectly formed, book collections of kitsch and kooky images come complete with fascinating facts and weird and wonderful tales. These digests of the best from classic Fifties comics contain everything from ghastly ghouls and racy romances; through wise-guy gangsters and vampish vixens; right up to battle-scarred heroes and outer space adventures. There's a fascinating introduction giving a brief background to each genre Horror, Crime, Combat, Sci-Fi, Sauciness and Romance and every one contains complete strips, text stories, unusual adverts and mind-blowing covers. Plus, each book has a free fridge magnet, making them the perfect quirky gift, either individually or as a whole set. |
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Today it is no longer a matter of taste as to how and which coffee we drink, as it is even more important where we enjoy it. A multitude of new cafes, coffee shops and coffee houses around the world honor a centuries old tradition, setting thereby new design trends. The task is to create communicative and inspiring locations and spaces, which at the same time measure up to the functional demands. The design solutions are as varied as the concepts, the transitions to lounge, club or restaurant are flowing. After an informative introduction, Coffee Time presents current projects that show the exciting conceptual and stylistic breadth of cafe designs today. |
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The freshest, finest and most exciting talents working in fantasy art today are collected in this luxurious postcard collection. Fantasy Art: Postcards gathers the best contemporary artists from around the world, including Robert Chang, Matt Dixon, Raymond Swanland and Matt Gaser. Works include modern twists on traditional themes such as dragons, orcs, fairies and adventurers, and the art can be shared with friends and family through the post. This beautiful showcase is also perfect for giving as a gift to any fantasy fan or lover of quality contemporary art. |
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This is the definitive catalogue on the first woman artist to be a glamour star. A cosmopolitan painter and icon of the Art Deco movement, Tamara de Lempicka created images that became the symbols of an era, the crazy 1920s and 1930s. She was possibly that periods most brilliant exponent. Driven by an iron will to achieve, Tamara not only cultivated her artistic talent, he also consciously built an image, that of an elegant and sophisticated woman, the extravagant protagonist of the European high life. |
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