A century ago, northern Thailand (or Siam as it was then known) was home to small communities of Westerners, many of them British diplomats and foresters (like Reginald Le May and Reginald Campbell) or American missionaries (like Lucy Starling and Mary Lou O’Brien). Though few in number, they left behind a considerable written legacy. The writing is invariably personal and often vivid, describing their hopes and aspirations, the challenges they faced in their work and daily lives, and their attachment to this enchanted land. This book makes a selection of that writing accessible to a wide readership, much of it for the first time. The texts are illustrated by 65 evocative photographs, many of them contemporary.
“His is a warm, charming page turner of an autobiography: from start to finish full of fascinating characters, incredible and amusing anecdotes, self-effacing humour and wry asides, beautifully detailed observations and, of course, stuffed with great nuggets of jewellery and art history.” — The Jeweller Magazine
“In this dazzling memoir revealing his encounters with royal and celebrity clients including the Queen Mother, Sir Elton John, Dame Joanna Lumley and Frank Sinatra, Antiques Roadshow presenter and jewellery expert Geoffrey Munn reflects on his stellar career, having spent more than five decades bejewelling some of the biggest names in the world.” — Hello!
“In this colourful and witty narrative, Geoffrey Munn, OBE, MVO, FSA, FLS, best known as a presenter on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow, reflects on his career in the London art world, spanning over 50 years.” — Arts & Collections magazine
“Discover delightful anecdotes from Fabergé expert Geoffrey Munn’s time at Wartski in 1970s London, featuring encounters with royalty, Hollywood icons, and the pursuit of Imperial Eggs.” — The Jewellery Editor
Born and bred in Sussex, Geoffrey Munn, Antiques Roadshow presenter and jewelry expert, came from a traditional rural background – but only weeks after leaving a country Grammar School in 1972, he was plunged into the vortex of the London art world. It was the beginning of the career of a lifetime at the famous firm of Wartski, whose showrooms scintillated with gem-set necklaces, tiaras and three of the famous Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs.
In a colourful and witty narrative, Geoffrey relates his daunting but delightful encounters with HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, HRH Princess Margaret and HRH The Duchess of Cornwall. In their wake, Geoffrey met a rich variety of luminaries, including Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Joanna Lumley, Stephen Fry, Elton John, Vivienne Westwood and Dame Edna Everage. This is certainly a rapid and amusing read but it is also unique study of a narrow and fast-changing society.
Northumberland is the ‘Land of the Far Horizon’ and England’s most northerly county. It was once a place of industrial innovation and manufacturing, literally fuelled by the coal brought up from its depths. Now Northumberland is a quieter place, loved by residents and visitors alike for its rolling hills and long, sandy beaches, as well as its charming towns and villages.
With this book in hand, meet Grace Darling, a Victorian heroine who took to storm-tossed seas to help rescue survivors of a terrible shipwreck; visit Amble, the ‘Friendliest Port’, and discover its connection to the Mauretania, once the fastest passenger ship to sail the Atlantic; and take in Turner’s View, an atmospheric stretch of coastline that was a lifelong inspiration to Britain’s greatest landscape painter.
You can also take a walk to the top of Cheviot, the county’s highest mountain and what was once a massive and very active volcano; and then top it off in the tranquil setting of St Cuthbert’s Island, where the eponymous saint went to get away from the strangely hectic whirl of monastic life.
Written by a proud northerner, this book will help you discover the more offbeat corners of Northumberland, and appreciate its many treasures.
Make the most of Norwich with this new guide to the sights and secrets of East Anglia’s premier city, from the unknown treasures of its magnificent cathedral to the legends and stories behind its historic pubs. It’s a place of numerous historical layers, with intrigue and interest lurking on every corner, from the black circus proprietor who inspired one of The Beatles’ most famous songs to remnants of England’s most notorious red-light districts. It’s eminently walkable, too, but you can also bike or even canoe your way around the center, maybe even heading out to explore the natural beauty of Broads National Park which lies just beyond.
The Book of Norman: Norman Sunshine / A Life in Art, brings together more than seven decades of the American artist Norman Sunshine’s painting, sculpture, pencil, charcoal, and digital work, all deftly interwoven into his remarkable life story. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Sunshine began as an illustrator for the entertainment industry and the New York Times, eventually moving into advertising, where he authored some of the most recognizable campaigns of the 1970s. He quickly drew acclaim as a painter of southern California’s soft geometry and quiet loneliness. After moving back to the East Coast, his practice expanded: sometimes through distinctively experimental, Cezanne-like still-lifes, sometimes capturing the austerity of the New England winter, but always developing a visual language equally attuned to the psychological and physical spaces he inhabited.
The Book of Norman is both a memoir of the social and artistic worlds of post-war America and a deep reflection on a life devoted to making art. The art critic Donald Kuspit said of Sunshine’s work that it is, “a classical example of dynamic equilibrium.” That statement is also true of the artist himself.
Berthe Morisot: Shaping Impressionism is the first major UK exhibition of the renowned Impressionist since 1950. In partnership with the Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris, it will bring together around 30 of Morisot’s most important works from international collections, many never seen before in the UK, to reveal the artist as a trailblazer of the movement as well as uncovering a previously untold connection between her work and 18th century culture, with around 20 works for comparison.
A founding member of the Impressionist group, Berthe Morisot (1841-1895) was known for her swiftly painted glimpses of contemporary life and intimate domestic scenes. She featured prominently in the Impressionist exhibitions and defied social norms to become one of the movement’s most influential figures. Berthe Morisot: Shaping Impressionism will draw on new research and previously unpublished archival material from the Musée Marmottan Monet to trace the roots of her inspiration, revealing the ways in which Morisot engaged with 18th century art and culture, while also highlighting the originality of her artistic vision, which ultimately set her apart from her predecessors.
Highlights will include Eugène Manet on the Isle of Wight (1875), painted while Morisot was on honeymoon in England, and her striking Self-Portrait (1885), which will appear alongside Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s Young Woman (c.1769) from Dulwich Picture Gallery’s collection. Apollo revealing his divinity to the shepherdess Issé, after François Boucher (1892), In the Apple Tree (1890) and Julie Manet with her Greyhound Laerte (1893), are among nine paintings on loan from the Musée Marmottan Monet, many receiving their first ever showing in the UK.
One of today’s leading conceptual artists, Los Angeles-based Walead Beshty (b. 1976, London) works across photography, sculpture and words. Self-referential, playful and imaginative, Addenda to a Sequence of Appearances documents his exhibitions with Thomas Dane Gallery across Europe and is a guide to the artist’s key bodies of work.
Uncovering processes is central to Beshty’s art. He deliberately incorporated marks made by oxidation and human touch into his FedEx copper works and Copper Surrogate works, as well as photographing the many individuals involved in his exhibitions in Industrial Portraits. The work that has gone into this substantial monograph, which features contributions from publisher Francis Atterbury, book designer Billie Temple and Thomas Dane partner Francois Chantala, is laid bare. Also presented is an insightful essay by leading professor of Juridical Sociology Carlo De Rita.
Adopting a semiotic approach to books as ‘not just a thing you hold, but something held in common’, Addenda to a Sequence of Appearances embraces the archetypal format, tropes and conventions of a traditional – if unorthodox – book, employing printing and publishing practices seldom seen in contemporary bookmaking.
Writer, novelist and cultural commentator Michael Bracewell explores the paradise behind the PARADISICAL PICTURES; the 35 artworks made by Gilbert & George in 2019. The artists’ work confounds and rejects all art historical classification or affiliation to other schools or movements in art. As affirmed by the PARADISICAL PICTURES, there is no formalist, aesthetic or conceptual precedent to the ideology and vision they convey with such intensity.
The paintings are fantastical, allegorical, narrative, representational, psychedelic, absurdist, modern yet archaic, surrealist-grotesque, inflected with both tragedy and comedy, filled with pathos, touchingly eloquent of human frailty, age and exhaustion. The art of Gilbert & George is a visionary art, above all – reports from a cosmic journey through life that begins on the streets of London.
The PARADISICAL PICTURES suggest a chapter in a story that has been unfolding before them and will continue beyond them. This ‘paradise’ is not a destination but a stage on a longer journey. It is a dream of paradise and the exploration of an archetype that is both secular and sacred.
The paradise of these PARADISICAL PICTURES proposes a more ambivalent view – a place of biomorphic mutation, exhaustion, watchfulness and possession.
Hurtwood’s Special Edition of PARADISICAL PICTURES is released to celebrate the opening of the Gilbert & George Centre and will include original artwork.
The Lake District delights its visitors with a series of superlatives: England’s largest national park, highest mountain, deepest lakes and now a new World Heritage status. One of Britain’s best-loved and most visited locations unveils its secrets. This unusual guidebook explores 111 of the area’s most interesting places, it leaves the well-trodden paths to find the unknown: marvel at a stained glass window which inspired the American flag, let others flock to Hill Top while you explore Beatrix Potter’s holiday home, walk through ancient forest to talk to fairies and swim with immortal fish. Pause to wonder at a stunning lake where a President proposed, view a constellation of stars like nowhere else, find out why exotic spices are used in local cuisine.
“The book “Rihanna and the Clothes She Wears” satisfies the cravings of fans and fashion enthusiasts alike, boasting over 100 images of Rihanna and her favorite designers who have influenced her taste.” — HOLA! Magazine
“I grew up on a really small Island, and I didn’t have a lot of access to fashion, but as far as I could remember, fashion has always been my defence mechanism. Even as a child I remember thinking, she can beat me, but she cannot beat my outfit.” – Rihanna, accepting the CFDA Fashion Icon of the Year Award in 2014.
From the author of the runaway bestseller Harry Styles and the Clothes He Wears comes a new, fresh look at style icon Rihanna.
Rihanna has learnt how to define her own terms whatever she does – whether in the worlds of fashion, music, beauty, philanthropy, business, or activism, she is both muse and creative, a collaborator and pioneer. To date she has 135 million Instagram followers and counting. In 2022 at the age of 34, largely because of her Fenty Beauty empire, she became Forbes’ youngest self-made billionaire.
But it is her personal wardrobe and the way she wears it that embodies Rihanna’s charisma, integrity, and humor most: everything she does reflects what she wears herself. She is a risk-taker, but as she said on the red-carpet in 2014 “you will never be stylish if you don’t take risks.” The gamble has paid off. Rihanna’s mix-and-match method of wearing high fashion and streetwear, young designers and vintage, hip-hop classics, and avant-garde custom-made pieces, has meant that she has equal footing in both the music and fashion industries. Chairman and CEO of the LVMH group, Sidney Toledano says she is: “a style icon for today’s generation”.
The breadth of Rihanna’s fashion knowledge and style is astounding. In Rihanna and the Clothes She Wears, Terry Newman steps into the world of this fashion icon by examining her style. From couture catwalks to her own empire Fenty, political statements to high street casual, this chic book fizzles with facts about Rihanna’s styling choices, presenting the star’s most revered looks. With quotes from key designers, this is the perfect gift for any fan.
“These are just a few highlights amongst the 43 projects featured in Architects at Home, but each is certain to reveal both the pleasures and challenges of designing a home for oneself.” — Canadian Interiors
This stunning revised and updated edition takes you on a thrilling tour through the fascinating, eclectic and stylish abodes of some of the world’s best-known architects. Not only do these pages offer a rare glimpse into each architect’s personal, private environment, but each uniquely designed project provides insight into how each architect marries trends with their own personal philosophy, and how they inject interior design flair into their own contemporary domain.
Combining rich photography and spectacular imagery with an incisive summary by a leading architecture specialist, Architects at Home provides a rich source for those keen to delve into the design aesthetics, concepts and innovations of prominent architects from around the globe.
With decades of experience and a fresh perspective, Atelier Markgraph has been crafting small- and large-scale spaces and installations that resonate with the public and their clients. Spaces are not meant to sit empty, devoid of human interaction. Markgraph knows this and crafts spatial experiences with exceptional intentionality and precision, all the while never forgetting what really matters: the encounters between people and space. The Atelier is made up of talented storytellers, who use space as a medium to craft narratives and encounters using a radically dynamic mix of digital and analog elements, elegantly integrated with one another. Using the studio’s projects as case-studies, Erika Brandl Mouton guides readers with poignant writing and perceptive insights through the philosophy of spatial encounters and stories. Coupled with François-Luc Giraldeau’s editorial expertise, this volume breaks down complex notions, creating accessible content that upholds the integrity of the Atelier’s practice. What follows is a captivating title, shining light on an accomplished, perpetually forward-looking studio. This is how we meet. Welcome.
Fully revised and updated edition, now in full color and with two new chapters: Brunoy and Parc Saint Cloud.
The spectacular medieval castle where Henry V died, Napoleon’s private château, dancing in fifties guinguette cafés, a Victorian gunpowder factory – these are just some of the unexpected delights discovered by Annabel Simms just half an hour from Paris.
Following the format of her small classic, An Hour from Paris, and written with the same delight in the little-known treasures of the Île de France, the revised edition of Half an Hour from Paris now presents twelve new destinations easy to reach from central Paris, each with a carefully planned walk, ample meanderings through the cultural, historical and social milieu, comprehensive practical information and clear, detailed maps.
Discover half-hidden chateaux and artists’ country houses; walk, boat or dance by the river; explore old towns and country footpaths; and eat in family-run restaurants with 1950s decor–and prices to match. Based on over 20 years’ experience of exploring the Paris countryside by train, each visit includes the essential historical context and practical information to help you discover places unknown to many Parisians. Written with humor and a flair for the unusual and authentic, the text is illustrated with original photos and local maps. It includes a unique guide to using the excellent local train network.
‘To know his work without his talk is “not to know him” …only when they are side by side is the common origin and aim seen and the complete man displayed.’ Thus Thomas Rooke, studio assistant to Burne-Jones, who over four years memorized and recorded much of his master’s studio and lunch-table talk. The man revealed with startling freshness and immediacy is far from the familiar painter of knightly melancholy and abstract angels. Burne-Jones emerges as a loveable and charming man, far more practical and down-to-earth, far more witty and ironic than might have been expected. He may still regret that he was not born in the Middle Ages and reminisce about the golden years with William Morris and Dante Gabriel Rossetti in the 1850’s and ’60s. But he is still hard at work on his last great collaboration with Morris, the Kelmscott Chaucer, while not hesitating to fulminate about Britain’s imperial pretensions and the hypocrisy that accompanied them. And he is unfailingly articulate when it comes to discussing the craft of painting in relation to himself, his contemporaries and the giants of the past. The conversations are edited by Mary Lago, Professor of English at the University of Missouri-Columbia.
In Venice, on the Grand Tour in 1731, the future fourth Duke of Bedford met with the great art agent, Consul Joseph Smith. The commission he placed resulted in 24 of the greatest and most typical works of Canaletto. First installed in Bedford House London, they were moved to their splendid position in the Dining Room at Woburn in 1800, where they have remained ever since. Fully illustrated with many details, this publication marks the first time these paintings have been reproduced in color. An extensive introduction by the leading Canaletto scholar Charles Beddington puts these works into perspective.
Though born in England, John Kingerlee has lived on Ireland’s Beara peninsula for much of his life, the wild landscapes finding passionate and all- encompassing expression in his paintings. This beautiful book celebrates his most recent work, with 51 paintings, drawings and collages reproduced, many for the first time. For the first time too, John Kingerlee has written about his life and the inspirations for his work. His words are complemented by a suite of specially commissioned portrait photographs by the great Irish photographer John Minihan. John Kingerlee has produced some of his very best, most expressive, most free spirited and ultimately most profound work in his later years. These paintings deal with universal problems of our existence and our planet; they address fundamental rather than ephemeral issues. The art itself has a quality of timelessness about it, not least because it is often created over many years and is often so multi-layered as to feel sculptural.
Whistler was one of the most original, if also tirelessly self-promoting artists of the later 19th century. After his disastrous run-in with John Ruskin, the greatest critic of the previous generation, Whistler poured his thoughts and feelings about art into this lecture, which made him if anything more notorious, but was also widely admired for its insights and wit. It is reproduced here exactly as he had it printed, with an essay by the leading scholar Margaret MacDonald putting it into the context of Whistler’s career and times.
The last work of Burne-Jones: a series of woodcut illustrations to the first chapters of Genesis, making a perfect epitome of his art. Reprinted from the original edition of 1902.
Ruskin is one of the most influential and exhilarating writers in English. Art critic, architectural visionary, social reformer, climate warner and incomparable teacher; Ruskin’s words not only transformed Victorian England but speak to us with increasing urgency today. This, the first general introduction to Ruskin for many years, places him in the social, economic and aesthetic world of Victorian Britain that he transformed – and shows how this transformation has much to teach us today. The extensive illustrations range from private notes and lecture diagrams to presentation drawings, including some of the most beautiful images of the 19th century and many never before published. Published in association with the Ruskin Foundation.
‘Janamsakhis’ are stories about the life of Guru Nanak (1469–1539). They have been circulating orally, in writing, and in paintings and illustrations. B40 is one such documented artistic expression held at the British Library in London. Its 57 beautiful iconotexts narrate the life of the first Sikh Guru from his first day at school to his final moments. The talented artist Alam Chand Raj illustrates Guru Nanak’s sensuous feel for the all-inclusive Divine, his interior and exterior journeys, his manifold inter-faith conversations, his environmental aesthetics, and his marvelous actions. In the language of vibrant colors Guru Nanak’s transcendent materiality and world-affirming existentiality are exquisitely written out. The stylistic infusions of Punjabi art, Chaurapanchasika style and folk-art style of the Rajasthani Malwa School bring the historical Guru close to the viewer. Along with the artwork there is the rich text by Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh explaining the stories from a 21st-century perspective. She insightfully explores the question – how are the Janamsakhis relevant to the political, societal, economic, and environmental state of the world at present.
City kids and visiting families alike know there’s no better place for children than the Big Apple, and 111 Places for Kids in New York shows you where to take a big bite. From ultra-hip hangouts for the most urbane toddlers to natural wonders hiding in the middle of the concrete jungle, the five boroughs of New York offer children the richness and diversity of the world with the beloved traditions of home. In New York, you can explore the globe, from a Sri Lankan courtyard to a gritty parkour park to a quaint New England town — all with a swipe of a Metrocard.
With this guide, you will be inspired to explore new neighborhoods, treat the kids in your life to unbelievable experiences, and make the city your own. You’ll discover places and spaces you never knew existed, and rediscover familiar ones in new ways. Read up on helpful tips by been-there-done-that parents (psst — do you know where exhausted parents can bliss out on AC while their toddlers get friendly with baboons?). And learn insider secrets for ways to make the most of your visit to the parks, museums, restaurants, and adventures that make this metropolis so special and so inviting.
Billie Eilish is a fashion phenomenon. Her goth-skate-anime wardrobe resonates loud and clear with her generation and anyone who doesn’t want to be defined. Courted by the world’s biggest fashion houses, Billie has a way of spotlighting inclusivity, body image, environmental issues and more, while always looking awesome. In the latest addition to this popular series, fashion writer Terry Newman casts her eye over a young megastar with oversized clothes and an even bigger attitude.
When Billie Eilish burst onto the music scene aged just 14, her outfits told everyone who she was before they’d downloaded a track. She was savage and brooding. Her clothes were large and matched her attitude. Her wardrobe was made up of labels that speak the language of Gen Z and everyone who doesn’t want to be defined by others. Growing up hasn’t changed a thing – though she now has the command of fashion houses the world over. As such, Billie often mixes and matches Chanel, Balenciaga, Rick Owens, Yohji Yamamoto, Raf Simons and Prada with finds from Slumpy Kev, Skoot, The Incorporated and Freak City, and the result is beyond the realms of meta-modernism. It’s a look that might very well bite the hand that feeds it, but Eilish doesn’t care. She wears what she likes when she likes. And we’re here for it.
“This is the perfect present for all the ‘Swifties’ out there. “ — Fashion Mommy
“… Like the singer herself, this book is just so damn sexy.” — The Detroit Free Press
Taylor Swift is the quintessential millennial. Free-thinking and creative, she navigates pop stardom with boundless charisma and a keen eye on her digital presence. She has become a truly global phenomenon but remains intimately connected with her fans. A born storyteller, her outfits mark the different phases of her whirlwind life every bit as clearly as her songs. From cowboy boots to cottage-core, Saint Laurent to sci-fi, onstage and on the street, her clothes are always carefully chosen to match the moment. These pages reveal those moments in gorgeous photographic detail with reliably astute analysis from the author of Harry Styles and the Clothes He Wears. The latest in a popular celebrity fashion series, this book charts the style evolution of a hyper-chic superstar at the vanguard of 21st-century culture.