Today surrealism may be firstly known as a school in literature and fine arts, but the influence of this 20th-century school on other domains cannot be underestimated. The world of contemporary design doesn't escape a healthy portion of surreal humour. Forms with a smile bundles designs and objects of modern surrealists and shows that nothing is what it seems to be. Hairy carpets, lamps in the shape of a milk bottle, USB sticks cut from wood branches or chairs made from plush toys. Is it just humour? Or is it a stimulating statement wrapped in a contagious smile? Just like surrealism, design sometimes tells more than we think. Armed with subtle irony these new surrealists wage war against a world reigned by a certain sérieux. Text in English and Dutch.

Showcases world-class hotel interiors in the US and Asia by the very best of today's designers.

Delft earthenware is widely known by the mostly spectacular flower vases with spouts. From about 1680 these vases, also called tulip holders, were put on the market in all colours, sizes and get-ups. In this publication the significance of the flower holder in the past and the future will be discussed and about 150 examples of these unique Delft, Frisian and other flower holders are described an illustrated.

In contrast with urban hotels that began by providing upscale dining and banquet facilities to city dwellers, resort hotels have their historical roots in the hospitality industry that started with hospitals and sanatoriums. For the forerunners of today's resort hotels we can look to the beginning of the nineteenth century to facilities such as like Badischer Hof in the German spa town of Baden Baden, with its hot and cold water bathtubs, where the form of the modern resort hotel was already being established. This stunning volume, illustrated with superlative colour photographs and plans, present the very best resort hotels from around the world, including the USA, Germany, Austria, Italy, Cambodia, France, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

• New research on this very popular part of the National Gallery of Scotland s collection, including informative commentaries on each of the works • Accompanies an exhibition of to be held in January 2007 in the National Gallery of Scotland J. M.W.Turner (1775-1851) was perhaps the most prolific and innovative of all British artists. His outstanding watercolours in the collection of the National Gallery of Scotland are one of the most popular features of its collection. Bequeathed to the Gallery in 1899 by the distinguished collector, Henry Vaughan, they have been exhibited, as he requested, every January for over 100 years. Renowned for their excellent state of preservation, they provide a remarkable overview of many of the most important aspects of Turner's career. This new, richly illustrated book, will provide an authoritative commentary on the watercolours, taking account of recent research, and addressing questions of technique and function, as well as considering some of the numerous contacts Turner had with other artists, collectors and dealers. The introduction will concentrate on Henry Vaughan, one of the greatest enthusiasts for British art in the late nineteenth century, whose diverse collections have not previously been fully studied and appreciated.

With the death of Aubrey Beardsley in 1898, the world of the illustrated book underwent a dramatic and exciting change. The age of decadent black and white images of scandal and deviance was softened and coloured to delight rather than shock. A pastel toned world of childish delights and an innocent exoticism unfolded in the pages of familiar fables, classic tales and those children's stories like The Arabian Nights and Hans Andersen's Stories. Published with lavish colour plates and fine bindings, these were the coffee table books of a new age. As a result, a new generation of illustrators emerged to develop this burgeoning market, intent upon borrowing from the past, especially the fantasies of the rococo, the rich decorative elements of the Orient, the Near East, and the ethereal, fairy worlds of the Victorians. The masters of this new art form were artists like Edmund Dulac and Kay Nielsen, whose inventive book productions, with those of Arthur Rackham, became legendary. Disciples gathered, including Jessie King and Annie French (Scottish masters of the ethereal and the poetic), the Detmold brothers (masters of natural fantasy), Sidney Sime, a joyously eccentric coal-miner turned artist, Laurence Housman, master of the fairy tale, the Irish fantasies of Henry Clarke and the rich, exotic world of Alaistair.Children's stories were transformed by the imaginations of a group still bowing to the Victorians: Walter Crane, Randolph Caldecott and Kate Greenaway, but these were now given a more colourful intensity by Charles Robinson, Patten Wilson, Anning Bell, Bernard Sleigh and Maxwell Armfield. Published to accompany the exhibition of British fantasy illustration at Dulwich Picture Gallery in November 2007, the first such exhibition in Britain and the first world wide for over 20 years (the last being in New York in 1979), this is a fascinating and delightful presentation of the exceptional work of illustrators of fantasy themes at the turn of the 20th century.

This book examines the role of the architect and the influence of the client in creating a visually pleasing and functional kitchen. Colorful photography and personal quotes portray the kitchens within the context of their surrounding rooms, as well as their most important design features.

A stunning collection of residential beach architecture in this, the newest addition to the series.

Showcases the work of talented interior designers the competitive world of the beauty salon in Japan. A pictorial guide, the photographs and line drawings will provide endless inspiration.

Giving this versatile material new respect, the timeless and enduring qualities of wood are brought into focus through this full color, illustrated volume. The Sustainable House: Building in Wood provides a deep insight into the amazing properties of this much misunderstood material.

Celebrates the holiday home, featuring projects from luxurious, sleek beach villas to isolated wooden cabins, a book that may be enjoyed again and again.

Three-times winner of the Eric Hosking Award for BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Vincent Munier takes us on a tour of this silent, frozen world. From the Far East to the Wild West, via the craggy peaks of the European Alps, we encounter swans, cranes, eagles, chamois, foxes, and many other animals in the hush of their stunning, snowbound habitats. Shadows, shapes, contours, and the occasional flash of color are all that reveal the creatures huddled into the snow and braced against the wind, quite in their element in the elements.

This book illustrates trends in contemporary living by showing twenty projects carried out by leading architects and interior designers. They demonstrate that contemporary living nowadays calls for more than the harmonious integration of the latest designer furniture in a modern context.

Everyone has their own opinion about how the ideal family home should look. This difference out clearly in the various reports in this book, which range from historic country houses that have belonged to the same family for generations to distinctive, recently built homes for young families with children.

Features more than 60 great homes from around the world.

Living by the water appeals to an almost universal desire to be at one with nature.Whether it's an exclusive villa on the Ctte d'Azur, a minimalist holiday home by the Atlantic Ocean, a Mediterranean beach house in a protected nature reserve, an idyllic house with a view of the Indian Ocean, all of the owners and architects have gone in search of the essence of living close to the sea: a relaxed style of living, simple and pure, in keeping with the constantly changing natural elements and the boundless horizon.

Hotels around the world will offer a 'Presidential Suite' or 'Royal Suite' for the use of VIP guests. Some of these wuites are larger than 1000 square meters, and some provide special security measures. In London, the famous Claridge s Hotel has a Royla Suite that s used by the British Royal Family so often that it s been given the nickname 'Buckingham Palace Annex'. During a two-week period when President Reagan stayed in the Presidential Suite in new York s landmark waldorf Towers, the floors above and below his suite were kept empty, and the ceilings, floors and walls were carefully checked for listening devices. it is said that for security reasons, Reagan slept in an adjoining room, rather than the master bedroom. A top-class Presidential Suite may include a private lobby, a drawing room with attached toilet, a dining/meeting room, a library/study, a main bedroom with attached bath, a second bedroom with attached bath, guest bedrooms and other facilities. This lavishly illustrated publication looks at the very best Super Suites, which cater for VIPs in Europe America and Asia.

This is no ordinary sketchfile with mundane illustrations. These are professional renderings of the most recent designs in window decorating, along with beautiful historical samples. This Sketchfile is all about custom designer window treatments — from a simply executed Roman shade to an over-the-top period style masterpiece. This book will kindle your creativity and stimulate your imagination. You can mix and match the various designs to create a truly unusual treatment that will be your creation — one of a kind — something no-one else in the world has. Plus, download images from the CR-ROM onto your computer and manipulate them into your next masterpiece!

The twentieth century offers the new collector a wide range of opportunities to build up a collection, from coffee sets, dinner wares, decorative plaques, egg cups and even chamber pots to a whole range of novelties that were manufactured by the pottery industry across Europe and America. The market for collectables has expanded greatly over the last twenty years with many people starting to buy their first examples from local flea markets, car boot sales and auction houses. More recently new opportunities to buy and sell pottery have been established via the internet with auction sites such as eBay. This book is for any collector interested in 20th century ceramics, whether a collector who concentrates on one factory, on a single designer, such as Clarice Cliff, or on a type of item, such as toast racks, egg cups or preserve pots. Written by the award-winning author Andrew Casey, an acknowledged expert on twentieth-century ceramics, this book covers the diverse range of pottery produced during the twentieth century, aiming to provide a starting point for all those collectors.

Every day we use objects designed to make our lives easier and more pleasant. Chairs, tables, lamps, and drinking glasses all form part of our domestic routine. Many of the most eye-catching examples of these objects were created by Italian industrial designers. But what happens when these designers turn their creative energy toward their own homes? Italian Designers at Home opens the doors to the homes of architects and designers and discovers their routines, idiosyncrasies, and original stories. Like Enzo Mari who cultivates bonsai trees, or Michele De Lucchi who carves miniature houses out of wood, or Dino Gavina who slept in a small cubic structure, in the center of a sixteenth-century room, because it reminded him of the cozy atmosphere of a passenger-train sleeping compartment. Every house has a unique story; every house is a surprise. Beautifully illustrated with 280 color photographs, Italian Designers at Home offers an unprecedented look at more than twenty homes styled by the hand of celebrated Italian design professionals including: Andrea Branzi, Cleto Munari, Alessandro Mendini, Dino Gavina, Mario Bellini, Riccardo Dalisi, Cini Boeri, Stefano Giovannoni, Enzo Mari, Michele De Lucchi, Bob Noorda, Vico Magistretti, and Ettore Sottsass.