Thames & Hudson strana 16 z 126

A lavishly illustrated retrospective of Pedro Almodóvar, Spain’s foremost filmmaker, published to coincide with his 75th birthday. Pedro Almodóvar is a master of contemporary cinema. An auteur with an infinite imagination, the creator of unforgettable characters, and promoter of a challenging and captivating cinema, his list of accolades is virtually unmatched. Almodóvar came to prominence during La Movida Madrilena, a cultural renaissance that followed after the end of Francoist Spain. His first few films characterized the sense of sexual and political freedom of the period. In 1986, he established his own film production company, El Deseo, with his younger brother Agustín Almodóvar, who has been responsible for producing all of his films since Law of Desire. Almodóvar achieved international recognition for his black comedy-drama film Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and went on to further success with the dark romantic comedy Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, the melodrama High Heels and the thriller Live Flesh. His subsequent two films, All About My Mother and Talk to Her, each earned him an Academy Award, for Best Foreign Film and Best Original Screenplay respectively. His subsequent films Volver, The Skin I Live In, Julieta and Pain and Glory were all in contention for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Pau Gómez provides unique insight on every one of Almodóvar’s twenty-two major films. Profusely illustrated with unseen archive and behind-the-scenes stills, and featuring many first-person observations, this is an insider’s perspective on Almodóvar’s legendary achievements.

At its height, the Ottoman Empire spread from Yemen to the gates of Vienna. Western perceptions of the Ottomans have often been distorted by Orientalism, characterizing their rule as oppressive and destructive, while seeing their culture as exotic and incomprehensible. Based on a lifetime’s experience of living and working across its former provinces, Diana Darke offers a unique overview of the Ottoman Empire’s cultural legacy one century after its dissolution. She uncovers a vibrant, sophisticated civilization that embraced both arts and sciences, whilst welcoming refugees from all ethnicities and religions, notably Christians and Jews. Darke celebrates the culture of the Ottoman Empire, from its aesthetics and architecture to its scientific and medical innovations, including the first vaccinations. She investigates the crucial role that commerce and trade played in supporting the empire and increasing its cultural reach, highlighting the significant role of women, as well as the diverse religious values, literary and musical traditions that proliferated through the empire. The Ottomans: A Cultural Legacy presents the magnificent achievements of an empire that lasted over 600 years and encompassed Asian, European and African cultures, shedding new light on its complex legacy.

A concise compendium of the lives and work of the 101 most significant Surrealists by one of the last surviving members of the movement, bestselling author and artist Desmond Morris, who knew several of the key participants personally. 2024 marks the centenary of Surrealism, one of the most influential artistic movements of the modern era. In 1924, André Breton wrote the Surrealist Manifesto, a call to arms which established Surrealism as a literary and artistic movement. Rather than attempting to analyse the work of the Surrealists, bestselling author and Surrealist artist Desmond Morris focuses on them as remarkable individuals. What were their personalities, their predilections, their character strengths and flaws? Did they enjoy a social life or were they loners? Were they bold eccentrics or timid recluses? Featuring 101 artists, from the famous – Duchamp, Dali, Magritte, Miro, Carrington, Kahlo, Picabia, Ernst and others – to the neglected – Mesens, Rimmington, Sage, Fini, Bellmer, Colquhoun and Gonzalez – this book draws on the author’s personal knowledge of the Surrealists, capturing in concise form their life histories, idiosyncrasies and often-complex love lives. Surrealism was both spectacular and international, shaped by the darkest, most irrational workings of the unconscious. Shocking, witty and always entertaining, Morris's potted summaries and punchy anecdotes illuminate striking variations in artistic approach to the Surrealist philosophy, both in the artists’ works and lives. A complement to Morris's earlier biographical volumes, 101 Surrealists encapsulates each artist in new and abridged texts that convey with immediacy the impact and significance of each of the 101 artists featured.

T.J. Clark offers profound insights on Bruegel’s art, where we encounter a reality formed from wholly worldly materials, yet suspended between belief and disbelief.

The first in an exciting and inspirational new V&A sketchbook series that explores the sketching processes and techniques of artists from the 16th century to the present day. Artists have been using sketchbooks for many hundreds of years, particularly as part of the preparatory process that leads to the creation of great works. Selected by curators from the extensive sketchbook collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and organized chronologically by artist, The Artist’s Sketchbook introduces around eighty profiles from different eras and movements, including John Constable, Beatrix Potter, Paul Nash, and Julie Verhoeven. Each profile includes a short text on the artist and their use of the sketchbook. The book brims with exquisite examples of drawings from life and the imagination, material experimentation and the planning of greater works. With rich, detailed photography, the sketchbooks are shown to be very much works of art in themselves, with open-book shots and selected covers reproduced as well as single pages. The book also highlights less well-known names as well as unrecognized artists, mostly women, for whom sketchbooks provided a creative outlet. While working within the limits of the V&A collection, the selection includes sketchbooks from beyond Britain and Europe by drawing on expertise from across the museum. Just as artists do, some inevitably blur the line between art, design, and fashion. With an introduction by Jenny Gaschke, Senior Curator of Paintings and Drawings at the V&A, the book highlights the importance of sketching and the sketchbook throughout the history of art. Although not a practical guide to sketching techniques, it will nevertheless inspire the reader and appeal to anyone interested in the process of making art, and to those for whom sketching is a critical part of their own artistic practice.

The fiery new title in the best-selling If I Had a... series imagines life with a dragon as a pet. Imagine what it would be like to have a dragon as a pet! Join our funny female protagonist on her latest flight of fancy, but watch out for that burning bad breath! Dragons are mighty mythical beasts . . . and perfect pets. Getting to school is a breeze when you can fly, and you would never have to worry about lighting the barbecue! But what exactly do dragons eat? Perhaps a trip to the museum will help, just beware of knights in shining armor! The latest in the fantastical If I Had a . . . series is full of fantasy fun, wrapping up an exciting day of dragon adventures with a warm and cozy nighttime scene, making it the perfect book for bedtime. Illustrated in color throughout

Explore the dynamic world of 1960s Pop Art through Lucy Lippard's insightful analysis in this new addition to the Pocket Perspectives series. Pop Art epitomized the free spirit of the 1960s, blending carnival-like qualities with bold colours and monumental scale, but based on a tough, no-nonsense, no-refinement standard appropriate to its time. Renowned art critic and curator Lucy Lippard's classic, contemporaneous study enriches our understanding of this groundbreaking art movement. Across three chapters, the author first outlines the phenomenon of Pop Art, its antecedents and related styles ranging from folk art, Surrealism and Dada as well as the work of key artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns. She then focuses on Pop Art in New York, discussing key iconic figures including Claes Oldenburg, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, James Rosenquist, Andy Warhol and Tom Wesselmann, who appropriated advertising, comics, and the conventions of commercial art and its specific techniques. Finally, Lippard provides an extensive overview of Pop Art's impact and evolution across Europe, particularly in France, Germany and Italy; and Canada, and so touches upon the work of Christo, Mimmo Rotella and many others, including Niki de Saint Phalle and Joyce Weiland, whose work are now experiencing a resurgence of interest.

An epic visual history of the places, people, mythologies and realities of America across eight decades from the renowned photography collective, Magnum Photos. What is 'America?' What does it look like? Where can it be found? What does 'America' mean and for whom? This ambitious publication does not attempt to present a comprehensive photographic history of the United States but uses the stories and photographs in the Magnum Archive to offer potential answers to those questions. In doing so, it presents a compelling visual portrait of the USA, past and present, as it stands once again at the crossroads of history. Magnum America is arranged into decade-by-decade chapters from the 1940s to the present day. Each chapter will include individual Moments, capturing that decade; deeper views through Collective portfolios where multiple Magnum photographers documented a major historic event; and long-form, story-led individual portfolios that examine issues, peoples and events as portrayed by individual Magnum photographers. Commentaries and texts appear throughout, highlighting the multiple voices and perspectives that define both Magnum and the United States. The book looks beyond the fifty states to invite us to consider the concept of 'America as Empire', with military and political adventures and misadventures abroad, including Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, featured, as well as soft power and ‘America’ as a cultural export. Breathtaking in scope and abundant with the photographic riches and intelligent, insightful authorship for which Magnum’s photographers are renowned, as well as texts by Professor Laura Wexler alongside other contributing writers, Magnum America is a vital contribution to the documentation of contemporary American history, and a future classic.

A boldly illustrated bedtime story that imagines what it would be like to have a strong and snuggly polar bear for a pet. What would life be like with a polar bear as a pet? Polar bears might look soft and cuddly, but they are also super-strong, so getting to school would be a breeze even on a snowy day. They'd show off their ice-skating skills, then help to hunt a fish-and-chip dinner. And since polar bears can swim for days at a time, with endurance like that, if Santa ever needed help delivering presents guess who he would call? Join our funny female protagonist in this newest wintery title in the If I had a... series, just in time for Christmas!

Snuggle up and ease your child off to sleep reading Joseph Coelho’s lullaby-like poems. Lyrical, calming and beautifully illustrated, these peaceful poems are a magical way to end the day. Written by award-winning performance poet Joseph Coelho, Goodnight, Starry Night is a collection of 14 poems that takes readers on a gentle journey into dreamland. Each poem is inspired by a calming work of art, reproduced in the book alongside the heart-warming illustrations of Allison Colpoys. The book takes its title from Van Gogh’s painting The Starry Night, which inspired Coelho’s evocative poem River Sky: I gaze upon the starry night It twists into a river-sky my every breath, a swirling light I gaze upon the starry night. It features poems inspired by David Hockney’s Sleeping Dogs, Vivian Maier’s Woman with Baby and Faith Ringgold’s quilted artwork of Cassie Lightfoot flying against a night sky. Joseph Coelho’s lyrical poems calm the mind, relax the body and are soothing to the soul, and are guaranteed to inspire the sweetest of dreams.

A refreshed edition of the plain-speaking yet inspirational architecture primer that encourages the reader to take a broader look at the world around us and how we might shape it. Architecture is a discipline that requires constant collaboration with the wider world, but too often architectural teaching and indeed building designs don't reflect this important fact. The Architecture Concept Book encourages the reader to look and think again, to draw inspiration widely and to consider the context in which the building will sit before putting pen to paper, or cursor to screen. Building on the success of the first edition, James Tait has updated his original text with introductions to each section that inspire further creative thinking and understanding. With 18 new pages and 5,000 extra words of text, this revised edition is the perfect way in to the ideas and fundamentals that govern an often impenetrable industry for anyone interested in our built environment.

The remarkable stories of beloved pets – from the famous and unusual to the everyday – memorialized at burial sites around the world, accompanied by a rich selection of archival photos and the author’s evocative images of their final resting places. When a little dog named Cherry died in 1881, his owners arranged for a grave in a nearby gatekeeper’s garden in London. At this time, the idea that a pet, even one that had lived as a family member, might be given a dignified burial was considered comical. But when other pet owners, likewise determined to memorialize their companion animals, followed suit, the world’s first urban pet cemetery was born. More soon followed across Europe, the United States, and then the rest of the world, resulting in a revolution in the way we consider animals. Faithful Unto Death tells the stories of people who gave their hearts to a disparate variety of species, yet were all united in one common belief: that the reward at death for a faithful animal companion should reflect the love it offered during life. Losing a pet has always been a unique kind of pain. No set rituals exist to help provide closure when pets die, there are no readily shared passages from spiritual texts, no community of compassion to surround the mourner and help alleviate grief. And there is a sense of taboo, that it is somehow socially incorrect to mourn an animal as one would a person and feel the pain so intensely. Faithful Unto Death confronts this taboo by telling the stories of people who have memorialized their beloved animals. The book addresses the moral and spiritual prejudices that have historically surrounded animals, and reveals how, in the face of these prejudices, a movement started in the nineteenth century to treat pets with dignity even in death. It is a fight that is still far from over, but the triumphs that are revealed as the book unfolds, found in burial grounds small to grand and on monuments humble to huge, possess the power to touch everyone who has ever cared for an animal companion. In tracing the historical evolution of pet cemeteries through the stories of the people and pets that have been integral to their development, this book reveals both similarities in the way we mourn animal companions and a stunning cultural diversity. From humble Cherry in London to pets of the rich and powerful, this is a history filled with inspiration, wild eccentricity and eternal love.

Told in revelatory detail, this is the definitive exploration of the writing, recording and release of John Lennon’s celebrated fourth solo album Mind Games. Described by Yoko Ono as ‘ahead of its time’, Mind Games is a breakthrough album from John Lennon in which he employs a Plastic Ono Band comprising the cream of the crop of New York session musicians – a fan favourite that remains a cult classic ever since its first release on 29 October 1973. This insightful and beautiful book presents handwritten lyrics, letters and artworks by Lennon and Ono, and previously unseen photography alongside their firsthand commentary about the lyrics, songs and album artwork, as well as contributions from the musicians, friends, engineers and key figures involved in the making of this landmark album. Mind Games was the product of an exceptionally turbulent time for the Lennons. While Nixon and Hoover were attempting to have Lennon deported, John and Yoko endured endless litigations, and as the popular press turned on them once again, they bravely rose above it all, continuing their campaigns for non-violent peaceful protest to end the war in Vietnam and for equal rights for women. It was also an exciting time, when they both re-embraced mysticism and magical thinking. In this sumptuous volume, text and images from the key players are woven together to reveal not only the details behind the creation, recording and release of this groundbreaking commercial and skilfully crafted recording, but also to shed new light on a period of transformation and experimentation for Lennon and Ono. Publication of this volume will coincide with extensive publicity surrounding the release of an exceptional, completely remixed and reissued 6 x CD / 2 x BluRay digital edition of Mind Games, together with two deluxe Mind Games boxsets, bringing the album to a new generation of listeners.

Mini Architects harnesses the enduring fascination young children have with building to introduce them to architecture and structures from around the world. Designed to engage young children with architecture through creative art projects, Mini Architects takes inspiration from some of the most famous architectural wonders of the past and present, including the ancient Pyramids of Giza, Stonehenge and Le Corbusier’s Cité Radieuse. Mini architects can choose from a variety of easy-to-make projects using simple materials and featuring a range of interesting techniques, ideal for teaching new motor skills. Step-by-step photographs and clear instructions are easy to follow for both children and adults, and each project requires minimal set up and clean up, to ensure the maximum amount of time is spent creating together. Each project is accompanied by photographic reproductions of the famous buildings that inspired them, along with fun facts and questions about the structures and their architects, designed to familiarize young children with the creative world of architecture and encourage discussion.

Drawing on decades of conversations with practising artists, Martin Gayford offers intimate insight into the practice, meaning and potential of painting. Painting is an almost inconceivably ancient activity that remains vigorously alive in the twenty-first century. Every successful painting creates a new world, which we inhabit for as long as we care to look at it. Paintings can incorporate profound ideas and paradoxes that can be grasped without words. For those who dedicate themselves to it, the art of painting can become an all-consuming, lifelong obsession. It is a subject on which painters themselves are often the most incisive commentators. Martin Gayford’s riveting and richly illustrated book deftly brings together numerous artists’ voices, past and present. It draws on a trove of conversations conducted over more than three decades with artists including Frank Auerbach, Gillian Ayres, Frank Bowling, Cecily Brown, Peter Doig, Lucian Freud, Katharina Fritsch, David Hockney, Claudette Johnson, Lee Ufan, Paula Rego, Gerhard Richter, Bridget Riley, Jenny Saville, Frank Stella, Luc Tuymans, Zeng Fanzhi and many more. Here too is Vincent van Gogh on Rembrandt, John Constable on Titian, Francis Bacon on Velazquez, R. B. Kitaj on Cézanne and Jean-Michel Basquiat on Picasso. We hear the personal reflections of these artists on their chosen medium; how and why they paint; how they came to the practice; the influence of fellow painters; and how they find creative sustenance and inspiration in their art. How Painting Happens crosses the centuries to give us a wealth of insights into the endlessly compelling phenomenon of painters and painting.

Grovier’s book reframes [Banksy’s] works in a new light. Inextricably linked to Da Vinci, Monet and Van Gogh, Banksy not only makes art but reinvigorates it - Daily Mail A new take on the history of art – from da Vinci to Warhol – as reinterpreted and ultimately reinforced by the international phenomenon that is Banksy Few would dispute that Banksy is the most famous urban artist in the world today. That he is also one of the most perceptive art historians of our age might come as a surprise to many. But the myriad memorable works he has created over the past thirty years constitute an audacious commentary on the history of image-making – a captivating critique waiting to be pieced together. Armed with little more than stencils, spray paint and an anonymizing cloak of after-hours darkness, Banksy has forged an alluring identity for himself as an incorrigible prankster who doesn’t embrace tradition but shreds it. What actually illuminates Banksy’s audacious murals, impromptu urban sculptures and vandalized paintings, however, is a profound understanding of the story of art. Banksy recasts masterpieces as powerful comments on contemporary issues: climate change, consumerism and the struggle for peace, and reveals these works to be surprisingly elastic, resilient and relevant. In this fully illustrated and entertaining exploration, bestselling author Kelly Grovier traces art history through Banksy’s lens, presenting many of his most recognizable works: from his droll lampooning of the Lascaux cave paintings to his reinvention of Monet’s enchanting water-lily pond, a reboot of Géricault’s tragic gut-wrenching vision to Vermeer’s girl now instilled with street cred, everyone’s genius is grist for his unmerciful mill. Far from being diminished in their significance, however, the works that Banksy ruthlessly parodies are ultimately refurbished by the ordeal. Banksy’s iconoclastic works force us to rethink our affection for, and appreciation of, great works of art that define cultural history.