After the initial explosion of art deco in Europe in the mid-1920s, American designers were soon making their own contribution to the style. The illustrations in this book seek to demonstrate that a dynamic American tradition developed in sculpture, ceramics, furniture, architectural decoration, graphics, and virtually all the applied arts. Alastair Duncan explores the subject of American art deco, reassessing and putting into perspective the work of artists such as Donald Deskey, Paul Manship, Gilbert Rohde, Walter von Nessen, and many others whose vision helped transform American art and design.

«By the time of the Paris exhibition of 1925 from which Art Deco took its name, the idea that an interior and its furnishings should form a complete design — a «total look» — dominated the thinking of both designers and their clients. Studios began to emerge to serve the needs of a design and style-conscious middle-class. This text displays the flourishing design ingenuity through contemporary photographs and illustrations of selected interiors complemented with modern photographs of individual pieces. It traces the sylistic evolution and dominant motifs of Deco, the triumph of the 1925 exhibition and the pure «high style» of the Paris ensembliers; the growth of Streamline Moderne offshoots in the US; the international revival of Deco as a decorative style for a new generation of post-modern designers; and the restoration of many Art Deco interiors to their original state.»

This text traces the use of ornamental features throughout the history of the Western garden, and explores the variety that are still being sold in salerooms. It presents some tried and tested principles of design that can still be applied to the typical modern garden.

The furniture designs of William Morris, C. R. Ashbee and Charles Rennie Mackintosh are even more popular today than in their own lifetimes. The work of other figures, such as William Burges and Christopher Dresser is also being avidly collected. Jeremy Cooper’s survey contains an astonishing range of photographs and drawings: nearly 700 illustrations offer a uniquely comprehensive coverage of nineteenth-century furniture. Every major designer is represented, and the choice of pictures includes little-known pieces from private collections. Rare contemporary photographs of Victorian and Edwardian interiors show how the furniture formed part of complete decorative ensembles. Extensive commentaries on the illustrations and detailed text provide the essential background – wherever possible using the actual words of the designers, architects and critics themselves.

Frank Lloyd Wright is a one-man phenomenon — between 1887 and 1959 he completed more than 400 commissions in the USA as well as writing numerous books and giving frequent lectures. Thousands of visitors annually flock to the fifty Wright buildings in America that are open to the public and he is an inspiration to countless architects and designers everywhere. 50 Favourite Rooms by Frank Lloyd Wright showcases his very best work in interior design. Here are the most glorious living rooms, dining rooms and kitchens, public spaces and more from the buildings that Wright designed over his prolific seven-decade career. Exemplifying the architect’s unfailing principles of unity, simplicity and respect for nature, these rooms also present a chronological picture of his stylistic development. Stunning photographs highlight furniture, fireplaces and lighting, carpets and fabrics, stained glass and china. A visual delight, this is the perfect gift for lovers of this most famous and popular of architects.

This volume presents photographer Cartier-Bresson's own selection of 130 of his photographs of Paris, taken over 50 years. Accompanying text discusses the history of Cartier-Bresson's engagement with the city and its place in his achievement.

Jewelry was one of the most successful expressions of Art Nouveau style. This book provides an account of the movement that spread through Europe and the US. Biographies of over 300 designers are included, with a guide to identification, from the elegance of the French masters — Vever, Lalique and Fouquet — to the linear, geometric designs of the Viennese — Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser.

Photography's most original artist presents the celebrities of her time in a remarkable collection of portraits. This work reveals the growth of an artist who saw no artificial boundary between art and the paying job and who succeeded in putting her indelible stamp on the visual imagination.

The arts and crafts of Morocco express a centuries-long intermingling of influences from Africa, Islam, and from the alliance of the Moors and the Spaniards. Yet despite their versatility and diversity, Moroccan crafts are relatively little known outside the country. The author's account, based on his own first-hand research, examines all the media one-by-one: textiles, jewelry; leather, wood and metalwork; and pottery and ceramics. These objects derive either from a rural lifestyle, with symbols and patterns that express the powerful animistic beliefs of the Berber country artisans, or from the cities, in which Islamic tenets provide the vigorous context. All of them are thus endowed with a spiritually charged meaning to add both their utility and to their beauty. This book contains guidance for collectors and analyzes the belief systems, festivals and ceremonies to which the arts relate.

A collection of over 360 photographic images of the human body. As well as bodies celebrated by photographers of sport, dance and fashion, the are bodies scrutinized by medical and anatomical photographers. The artists featured include Nadar, Alfred Stieglitz and Robert Mapplethorpe.

Alastair Duncan introduces us to the work of more than eighty architects, furniture makers and interior designers. The colour and monochrome photographs – almost all of them specially commissioned for this book – form a valuable portfolio of Art Deco furniture for anyone seeking comprehensive information about this design movement. This volume will have lasting appeal for collectors as well as the general public.

The National Railway Museum in York has a large and varied collection of railway art and artefacts; this books shows over 200 of the best posters dating from the railways' heyday prior to nationalization. In this period, renowned poster artists of the calibre of Edward McKnight Kauffer, Tom Purvis and Cassandre were commissioned by the railway groups to promote not only their lines but also the most beautiful and appealing cities and towns in their areas for tourists to visit. The railway companies virtually invented the package tour, and promoted it intensively not only in the UK but also in the USA. The introduction explains the history of the companies during the period covered, and examines their attitudes to poster advertising. The book is then divided into four sections, one for each of the railway groups: the resulting selection makes an analysis of poster art in the UK in its golden age of the Twenties and Thirties. Extended captions explain the context of the works, and information about the artists is provided. The authors are on the curatorial staff of the National Railway Museum, York.

Explore a truly astonishing range of interests, philosophies, religions, and cultures — from alchemy to angels, Buddhism to Hinduism, myth to magic. The distinguished authors bring a wealth of knowledge, visionary thinking, and accessible writing to each intriguing subject in these lavishly illustrated, large-format paperback books.

From his early work for Vogue to his portraits of the rich and famous, Helmut Newton (1920–2004) conveys a unique vision of a wealthy and glamorous world that often shocks but never ceases to fascinate. He lived and worked all over the world and was one of the most internationally famous and controversial photographers of the 20th century. His shots of haute couture and the beau monde are instantly recognizable, having appeared in virtually every major magazine in Europe and the United States. PHOTOFILE brings together the best work of the world’s greatest photographers, in an attractive format and at an easily affordable price. Handsome and collectable, the books are produced to the highest standards. Each volume contains some sixty full-page reproductions printed in superb duotone, together with a critical introduction and a full bibliography. The series has been awarded the first annual prize for distinguished photographic books by the International Center of Photography, New York.

Born in 1932 in Pennsylvania, Duane Michals has become best known for his compelling narrative sequences, including The Voyage of the Spirit After Death, Paradise Regained and The Fallen Angel. His oeuvre reflects a haunting obsession with life and death, fantasy and reality – thematic opposites expressed through his technical use of double exposures, superimposed images, props, mirrors and the ambiguous notations that often appear on the margins of the photographs. PHOTOFILE brings together the best work of the world’s greatest photographers, in an attractive format and at an easily affordable price. Handsome and collectable, the books are produced to the highest standards. Each volume contains some sixty full-page reproductions printed in superb duotone, together with a critical introduction and a full bibliography. The series has been awarded the first annual prize for distinguished photographic books by the International Center of Photography, New York.

Some 15 years ago Cartier-Bresson decided to lay down the Leica and return to his first love painting and drawing to which he brings the same magic that infused his famous photographs. The foreword by John Russell (chief art critic, The New York Times) and introduction by Jean Clair.

Neville Brody is an alumnus of the London College of Printing and Hornsey College of Art, and is known for his work on The Face magazine (1981–1986) and Arena magazine (1987–1990), as well as for designing record covers for artists such as Cabaret Voltaire and Depeche Mode. He created the company Research Studios in 1994 and is a founding member of Fontworks. He has been announced to be the new Head of the Communication Art & Design department at the Royal College of Art commencing in January 2011.

Pop Art embodied the spirit of the 1960s. Despite its carnival aspects, its orgiastic color and giant scale, it was based on a tough, no-nonsense, no-refinement standard appropriate to its time. Here several critics, each involved in Pop Art, but with different backgrounds, vividly bring the movement to life. Lucy Lippard examines Pop's precursor and related styles, ranging from folk art, Surrealism and Dada, to Assemblage, Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns. Lawrence Alloway contributes a chapter on the development of pop in England; Nancy Marmer considers Californian pop; Nicolas Calas, a member of the Surrealist movement in the 1930s and 40s assesses Pop icons. 187 illus., 18 in color.

‘His ability to survey the accomplishments of the art since Rodin … is unsurpassed … This history is necessary reading for all who are interested in the art of our own day’ – Studio International ‘Straightforward, intelligent approach to a complex subject’ – The Economist ‘Compactly written, profusely illustrated survey of the modern movement which is distinguished by the knowledge, sincerity and deeply felt convictions of the author’ – British Book News Sir Herbert Read traces the development of modern sculpture from Rodin to the present day and brings order into the apparently chaotic proliferation of styles and techniques during this period.

The first volume of The Mr Porter Paperback: The Manual for a Stylish Life is a witty compendium of life and style advice for the modern man. Compiled by Mr Porters Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Langmead, it covers everything from the essential (how to take care of dress shoes or charm the in-laws) to the just-in-case (how to pull off daring feats or dance at a wedding). Derived from the sites online journal (which has a large readership), the diverse content includes interviews with male icons inside and outside the fashion world (John Pawson, David Hockney, Irvine Welsh...); profiles of style icons past and present (Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bob Dylan, River Phoenix, Haile Selassie, Tom Waits and many more); mini-features on fashion classics including the knitted tie, the biker jacket, the polo shirt; sixty pages of The Knack, snippets of advice on everything from how to behave in a spa to how to mix a Bloody Mary; and much more. The cover is crafted to evoke traditional letterpress printing methods and the book comes with a silk ribbon bookmark.