“Most sessions are shockingly harmless. What the people whose stories are shown in my pictures have in common is a meaningful quest for elementary human needs, such as freedom, warmth and comfort, maybe even happiness,” Florian Müller recounts. He photographs fetishists; people who dress up as dogs or let themselves be bound and hung from the ceiling. It is their way of relaxing and achieving fulfilment. At first sight what you see is masquerade, Kafkaesque scenes, danses macabres, transformations into animals, into slaves, into a shrink-wrapped maggot. Behind the masquerade lurks stories of people and their needs. Of desires, wounds and dreams and the pictures tell us these stories. Florian Müller worked on fetishism in Germany for several years. Sometimes it took weeks before the people trusted him and let him in on their sessions. He did not abuse their trust. His pictures are not revolting, but close, almost tender. Contents: “It’s the most intimate embrace that you can imagine”; “What is Jesus to think of you sick people?”; “I do not inflict pain for the sake of it. But to spank someone who really likes it, that’s amazingly liberating.”; “Someone lies in a hammock and imagines he is on Hawaii. One of my guests sits in an iron cage and imagines he is a pig. That happens to be his dream, his film. Like Hawaii, just different, you see?”; “From head to toe in rubber, what can be finer?”; “Lisa is how I have always imagined my dream woman. Long, black hair, large breasts. At some point I realized that I would never get this woman. Then I constructed her myself.”; “I tried not to think of latex. It was torture.”; “I love dressing up as a dog. And Max loves me.”; “As a horse I take a vacation from my own personality.” Text in English and German.

Half a century ago, ‘playing out’ was expected of British kids who came together, in all weathers, to run, jump, skip, swing, kick, fight and climb – usually unsupervised. With growing fears over children’s vulnerability in modern society much of this has been lost. Paradise Street brings together the work of many photographers including Shirley Baker, Martin O’Neill and Paul Kaye, most of whom lived and worked among the people they photographed. Spanning the early ’30s to the late 1970s, these images are a celebration of community, trust and friendships, showing how attitudes towards children’s safety have shifted over the 20th century. Featured photographers include: Roger Mayne, Shirley Baker, Paul Kaye, Robin Dale, John Gaye, Henry Grant and David Lewis Hodgon. All images are from the archives of Mary Evans Picture Library.

In today’s economic climate, where trust between business and IT in most companies has never been more fragile, we have to find the possibilities to completely rethink IT, and transform it into a strategic asset for our companies. But this won’t be an incremental change; this will be a fundamental paradigm shift – and this book can be your guidebook. This book provides an answer to the following questions: · What is business/IT Fusion and what is the difference with business/IT Alignment? · How will the new Fusion of business and IT function, particularly in its relationship with the business customers and with its suppliers? · What will the new IT organization look like from a Fusion perspective? · What are the tools and mechanisms to make Fusion work? How can we implement ‘intelligent governance’ and move from budget thinking to portfolio thinking? · How can I use the concept of architecture and turn this into a business instrument? · How will we staff these new IT organizations? What type of skills do we need, and how will we attract them? · How can I rebuild the image of IT, and market technology innovation to the business? · What will the new breed of CIO look like, who can transform IT into a Fusion concept? · How to build a ‘new deal’ between Business and IT, and how to maintain it? This is a book for IT professionals (IT and Business people), to assist them in dreaming up the next wave of information technology and information technology departments. This is a book to help them think about what’s next for their organisation, for their department, and for themselves. This is a book that deals with the capabilities; mindsets and strategies that will help shape the next generation of information technology.

Here, for the first time, American architect Roger Vogler examines this great Hindu temple carved downward from the top of a hillside in Maharashtra from the perspective of his fellow architect: the unknown sthapati who actually designed it thirteen centuries ago.

The Kailas’s magnificent sculptures and carved architectural details have all been extensively documented by many eminent scholars. The great volume of space that envelops them (which as every architect knows is designed with fully as much care and purpose as its solid stone) is, however, almost totally absent from their writings, as are the moral and religious messages that lie beneath these stones, hidden in metaphor. Not the least of these are the towering raw cliffs enclosing the temple’s precincts: themselves metaphors for the presence of God.

These absences have led to dozens of misunderstandings and erroneous conclusions regarding the monument itself and the intentions of its designer. Focusing not merely on its stones but on the meanings that lie beneath them as well, this book corrects these misunderstandings and rebuts these errors in the course of an entertaining and revelatory walking tour of the entire temple.

Published in association with Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH).

Mission to Kabul presents an authentic picture of the rich cultural world of aristocratic Muslim life in British-ruled India, and it sensitively portrays men and women who are caught up in political and romantic intrigues. ‘This novel reveals striking insights from a long-time observer of South Asia, and it’s a crackling good story as well.’ – Carl Ernst, Director of the Carolina Center for the Study of the Middle East and Muslim Civilizations, University of North Carolina. Mission to Kabul is a story of passion, trust, betrayal, love, political intrigue, and espionage, set against an authentic historical canvas accurately depicting life in 19th-century South Asia. Muslim custom dictated that the eldest son inherited the father’s responsibility for the family. In this story, Mahmoud, the elder brother, steps into the younger one’s love affair to protect him. As a consequence, Mahmoud is jailed and later forced to undertake a secret mission to Afghanistan, whose mountains are the pivot of Great Power intrigue. On his trek through the mountains to return to India, he is attacked by the Waziri tribe, with surprising results. The story of Hamid, the younger brother, weaves in and out of Mahmoud’s. It includes accounts of the life of women in purdah and various family and religious customs.

Art, literature, music and other intellectual expressions of a particular society are together regarded as the culture of that society. Ideas, customs, and social behavior of a particular people or society are also its ‘culture’. Contrary to what we think, it is not easy to describe ‘culture’, nor is it easy to write the cultural history. Writing the history of Bengali culture is even more difficult because Bengali society is truly plural in its nature, made even more so by its political division. The two main religious communities that share this culture are often more aware of the differences between them than the similarities. Nonetheless, the people remain bound by history and a shared language and literature.

Ghulam Murshid’s Bengali Culture Over a Thousand Years is the first non-partisan and holistic discussion of Bengali culture. Written for the general reader, the language is simple and the style lucid. It shows how the individual ingredients of Bengali culture have evolved and found expression, in the context of political developments, and how certain individuals have molded culture. Above all, the book presents the identity and special qualities of Bengali culture. The book was originally published in Bengali in Dhaka in 2006. This is the first English translation.

“If a picture can speak 1,000 words, then author and photographer Thom Gilbert s Soul: Memphis Original Sound is comparable to an encyclopedia.” Jay Z ‘s Life +Times
“Gilbert’s lens captured the songwriters, engineers, musicians, producers and others who had a hand in creating and shaping the Memphis sound of music.” Memphis Daily News
The book’s mission is to document the legends of the Memphis soul music business. Photographer Thom Gilbert set up a photo studio at Royal Studios in Memphis, home of the famed Hi Records that launched the careers of Al Green, Ann Peebles, and dozens of others. The studio’s “green room” was filled with soul music royalty: Bobby “Blue” Bland in his signature nautical cap, several of the Hodges brothers who make up the incomparable Hi Rhythm Section were on hand, Stax Records musicians Bobby Manuel, Lester Snell were there actually working on a recording, but pausing to have their portraits taken. Gilbert has captured images of what seems like every living person related to Memphis soul music. From Rev. Jesse Jackson, who recorded spoken word albums on Stax’s Respect Records label, to Sam Moore of the indelible soul duo Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Steve Cropper, B.B. King, Bobby Rush, and many others, including the lesser known but equally vital session players, writers, engineers, publicists who contributed to what is now world renowned as The Memphis Sound.

Conceived by a misguided government seeking to quiet the fears of an anxious public, the concept of the “Family Fallout Shelter” was Cold War paranoia at its finest, a massive bit of “propaganda by architecture” that has no more truth behind it than the absurd notion of “duck and cover.” Inundated with government-sponsored films, posters, booklets, traveling caravans and exhibitions, the American family bought into the idea, investing millions of dollars in home shelters of every conceivable material and design. Bomboozled: How the U.S. Government Misled Itself and Its People Into Believing They Could Survive a Nuclear Attack lays bare the buried truths of America’s family fallout shelter obsession. Author Susan Roy charts the panic-fueled evolution of the shelter from a well-stocked basement pantry to a full-fledged (and often completely decorated) home addition, revealing through extensive archival photography, nuclear-era memorabilia, and previously unpublished media, a government and people in the grip of self-delusion. Fastidiously researched and sharply written, “Bomboozled” captures the absurdity and uncertainty of a culture that knew no better than to trust its government’s message.

Delhi: Red Fort to Raisina traces the journey of Shahjahan’s new capital of the Mughal Empire, Shahjahanabad built on the banks of river Yamuna in 1638 to New Delhi the new capital of British-ruled India in 1911. From Red Fort to Jama Masjid and from Jahanara Bagh to Hayat Bakhsh Bagh, every palace, mosque, bazaar, and bagh in the Mughal city was planned to perfection. The new city too, designed in the early twentieth century, was a blend of Mughal architecture and modern aesthetics. This book celebrates the centenary with four essays on different aspects of Delhi’s history by JP Losty, Salman Khurshid, Ratish Nanda, and Malvika Singh. A lively portrait of the city and its culture and people, the book documents the transition of the old-world charm of Shahjahanabad to a modern city with a new seat of power built on the Raisina Hill. Contents: Introduction – JP Losty; Delineating Delhi: Images of the Mughal Capital – JP Losty; Life in Shahjahanabad – Salman Khurshid; Architecture of Shahjahanabad – Ratish Nanda; Map of Shahjahanabad, 1846-47; Making of New Delhi – Malvika Singh; Bibliography; Notes; Index. Pramod Kapoor is a collector of historical records and photographs, and a publisher by profession. The photographs for this book were lovingly collected by him over a long period of time from all over the world. Often, the best photographs were found in old trunks lying forgotten in dusty attics or damp basements of the palaces. A keen photographer, he has also compiled and researched photographs for pioneering books like India: Then and Now, Witness to Life and Freedom: Margaret-Bourke White in India, New Delhi: Making of a Capital, and the most recent Delhi: Red Fort to Raisina.

“This is a book on making living fun. On having your friends to the house and on how to give them a good time. And incidentally, on how to give yourself a good time as well” writes Dorothy Draper in her best selling book, Entertaining is Fun!: How To Be A Popular Hostess.
With her wit and can-do flair, Draper guides aspiring hosts and hostesses on how to excel at dinner parties, holiday meals, weekend guests, weddings, and more. And indeed, Draper’s secret is simple: If a hostess has fun, her guests will too! Also available: Decorating is Fun!: How to be Your Own Decorator ISBN 9780985225629

This is a richly illustrated monograph revealing William T. Baker’s masterful detailing and superior craftsmanship of magnificent family residences. Showcasing 14 classically inspired homes of grace and beauty, each property reflects an astute comprehension of life as it is lived in the 21st century, with deliberate nods to historical aesthetics that coexist harmoniously with the architectural language of natural light, passive design themes, voluminous space, and fabulous comfort. Inspired by the bounty of classical architecture found in the grand homes of the southern United States, particularly the state of Georgia, the hallmarks of William T. Baker’s architecture are extraordinary attention to details of craftsmanship and construction, and a keen eye for scale and proportion. His work clearly reflects the aspirations of the American Dream. This beautifully photographed monograph of William T. Baker’s work is the third volume in IMAGES’ successful Classicist series, and showcases the exquisitely designed homes of the modern family, who entrusted Baker with their dreams and visions, and whose trust has been rewarded with classically inspired homes of grace and beauty. His work contributes greatly to some of the most aesthetically pleasing residences being built in the United States today.

After the worldwide success of The World Book of Happiness and The World Book of Love, author Leo Bormans has spent two years studying the scientific research on hope and meeting the most prominent experts in the field. Hope is not a luxury of the privileged few. It represents a universal psychological resource that can be found in all corners of the world. Hope is all of this: a tool for envisioning definable goals, a coping resource, an expression of trust and openness as well as a spiritual gift earned by faith or ritual. In the course of a lifetime every individual is apt to experience these different shades of hope. The World Book of Hope is an inspiring quest to the breadth and depth of hope. It offers a universal framework for understanding and using the most powerful tool of mankind: hope. Without hope there is no life. In this book, 100 professional researchers from all over the world share what we know about hope. Not spiritual philosophy but evidence based knowledge of recent experiments and life-long research, set in a language everybody understands. This book unveils the secret power of hope in love and relationships, study and work, health and illness, education and care, freedom and prison, management and leadership, therapy and economy, youth and old age. It even shows how we can make pessimism work and how we can benefit from post-traumatic growth: one door closes, another one opens. Also available: The World Book of Love ISBN 9789401422741

Diamonds tell stories that are captivating and timeless. On the one hand, they are just stones, pieces of pure carbon with optical properties that make them glitter and sparkle like stars.  On the other, they are mystical entities hypnotically drawing the viewer into a time machine as it were, wherein a cinematic montage of their journey unfolds. Diamonds Across Time presents a sweeping overview of diamonds across time and space, featuring ten essays by world-renowned scholars in love the stone. Here, these authors present new discoveries; explore extraordinary collections; investigate histories, science, and trade; the nature of diamonds; legendary gems, jewelry collections, and great designers. Above all, they tell the human stories that underpin the adoration of diamonds.

Diamonds Across Time is a richly illustrated publication with high-quality images of gems and jewels, archival documents, rare drawings, and fabulous photographs. The volume places diamonds in the context of the time in which they were discovered, and on the political, social, and cultural stage on which their histories were etched. In a rapidly changing world, diamonds are eternal. They were created by nature and grew in the womb of the earth. They tell stories, and they record history. With this book, diamonds will finally have their own storytellers.