The Compasso d’Oro is Italy’s premier industrial design award. Bruno Munari, Achille Castiglioni and Philippe Starck are among the prominent past winners. This is the catalogue of the 22nd edition of the awards, featuring the work of 19 prominent industrial designers, including Enzo Mari and Giancarlo Iliprandi, who won career awards. Edizioni Corraini. ISBN 9788875703080. Paperback. $65.
Andreas Gehrke’s photographic exploration of Robinia, a wasteland colonised by nature in the heart of Berlin. The land housed the headquarters of the Gestapo from 1933 to 1945; after World War II the area was abandoned. In 1987 it was landscaped and returned to the public, with an exhibition, The Topography of Terror, exploring its dark history. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405300. Hardback. $120.
ART + COM
Design studio Art+Com has worked at the intersection of art, media, design and technology for 20 years. This catalogue documents their work for clients such as BMW, Esprit and Deutsche Bank. Also features detailed documentation of projects and text offering insights into the work of this leading group. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553850. Hardback. $95.
West Australian photographer Joel Wynn Rees travelled from Alice Springs to Tennant Creek, Kununurra, Halls Creek, his home town of Broome and back south to Port Hedland. The resulting photos – here presented as 16 double-sided posters – provide an account of the experience and probe stereotypes of Australian identity. Big City Press. ISBN 9780980787825. Posters in sealed bag. $25.
A unique overview of the most important bags in the collection of Amsterdam’s Museum of Bags and Purses. The book covers the history of the bag and its uses over the last 600 years, encompassing pouches, wallets, chatelaines, reticules, travel bags, minaudières, vanity cases, evening bags and well-known designer bags and It-bags. Read about Madonna’s bag, the cupcake bag featured in Sex and the City, and learn why the Kelly bag will continue to be a classic. Pepin Press. ISBN 9789054961437. Paperback. $50.
Explores the aesthetic characteristics and historical background of a number of classic 20th-century typefaces such as Gill Sans, Futura and Bauhaus. In Japanese only. BNN. ISBN 9784861006890. Paperback. $35.
R. Klanten, M. Hubner eds.
This follow-up to the successful Boxed and Labelled explores state-of-the-art packaging design, documenting trends such as retro packaging with an “Ah! Just like Grandma used to make” aesthetic and the trend for down-to-earth packaging, including simple solutions made of recycled paper that play up a product’s connection to nature. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553789. Hardback. $105.
Meike Behm, ed
Frankfurt, 1967: Charlotte Posenenske (1930–1985) had her corrugated-cardboard square tubing arranged in perpetually changing structures. In memory of the conceptual artist, a similar performance was staged at Kunsthalle Lingen in 2010. Such variable works were an invention of the 1960s, created by artists opposing the authoritarian closure and rigor of The Work. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405447. Hardback. $47.50.
Follow-up to our recent successful Color Me Graffiti. A colouring book using the freshest graffiti styles from all corners of Germany, for colouring-in kids of all ages … with artist statements and colouring tidbits. From Here to Fame. ISBN 9783937946306. Paperback. $15.
A series of photographs taken by Benjamin Acree, Jackson Eaton and Robert S. Johnson as they travelled through the United States in 2009. What is striking is the absence of the dominant images of Malibu Beach: there are no glimmering building facades, no sun-baked, oil-glistening skin, no lines of palm trees in crepuscular light. Big City Press. ISBN 9780980787832. Paperback. $25.
Although established as a practice in the West, public art is only just emerging in Hong Kong. Here, more than 30 artists, architects, curators, residents, venue owners, sponsors, policy-makers, urban planners and others explore the possibilities of public art in the city. In English and Chinese. MCCM Creations. ISBN 9789881858412. Paperback. $35.50.
Highlights the evolution of royal crowns and jewellery, their origins and the precious materials used to make them. Royal events and ceremonies such as weddings, coronations and funerals are abundantly illustrated with extraordinary photos. The spiritual and religious ceremonies of ordinary life are also highlighted in this heavily illustrated publication. Pepin Press. ISBN 9789054960904. Paperback. $100.
Ryoji Ikeda and Carsten Nicolai
Ryoji Ikeda and Carsten Nicolai work at the forefront of contemporary electronic music and sound art. Their project cyclo is devoted to the visualisation of sound. The project’s first publication is cyclo.id, a book and CD-ROM that offer a multimedia documentation of the material that Nicolai and Ikeda have collected and created since they began working together. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553833. Hardback + CD-ROM. $95.
R. Klanten, K. Bolhofer, A. Mollard, S. Ehmann eds.
The book documents a wide range of people and places in the world of creative food and drink, from small brewers, coffee roasters and chocolate-makers to artists, event managers and creators of food and drink zines. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553697. Flexicover. $90.
Lo Yin Shan and Anthony McHugh
Lantau is an island remote from everyday Hong Kong, home to indigenous people as well as an assortment of wanderers from around the world, including a Trappist monk born in 1897, a guitar maker, an old farmer who leads an eco-friendly lifestyle and a Chinese doctor who collects herbs from the mountains, documented here in interviews, texts and photos. MCCM Creations. ISBN 9789881858443. Paperback with DVDs. $57.
R. Klanten, F. Schulze eds.
Erratic is a collection of contemporary work by designers, photographers and artists exploring the tension between stability and instability, symmetry and asymmetry, and pressure and counter-pressure. The many projects shown here reveal the range of narrative qualities inherent in single images. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553703. Paperback. $70.
Alexander Brash, Jamie Hand and Kate Orff
Gateway National Recreation Area spreads along the coastline of Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and New Jersey. It includes wildlife estuaries, bird-nesting areas, salt marshes, historic military forts, an airport and beaches. Gateway documents efforts to investigate and document the diverse ecology of the park and re-envision a more sustainable future for it. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568989556. Hardback. $90.
Bund Deutscher Landschaftsarchitekten bdla ed.
Examines questions of urban landscape design and its effect on our quality of life, exploring exemplary projects for green public spaces. The essays and projects in the book reveal the strategies architects are using to meet the new challenges of green urban design. Birkhäuser Verlag. ISBN 9783034607551. Hardback. $100.
Stelio Faitakis
Faitakis depicts modern subjects with the graphic techniques of traditional Greek icon painting, creating stunning and unsettling images and installations that make heavy use of the gold leaf and iconic halos that have become his trademark. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553840. Hardback gatefold. $95.
Caitlin Lempres Brostrom and Richard C. Peters
William Wilson Wurster (1895–1973) designed hundreds of residences up and down the West Coast of the United States. He described these homes as “frames for living”: spaces that could be transformed by the occupants to meet their needs and desires. The book documents his career, and includes new and archival images of 33 of his best-known houses. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781616890285. Hardback. $75.
R. Klanten, H. Hellige eds.
Presents the work of leading illustrators from around the world. With a profile of each illustrator and hundreds of examples of cutting-edge illustration, the book is an invaluable overview of contemporary illustration. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553710. Hardback. $105.
The European Architecture Photography Prize is awarded every two years. The 2011 prize’s theme, “in between”, hints that the work here is less about things themselves than the cement that holds them together and – ideally – creates a surprising new whole. Features the work of architecture photographers from Austria, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Japan. AVedition. ISBN 9783899861594. Hardback. $54.50.
Sylvia Martin
The French-Moroccan artist Latifa Echakhch uses commonplace materials such as tea glasses, pebbles, sneakers and carbon paper. Her art raises questions of nationality, the state, society, religion, history and cultural heritage. With more than 40 colour images of the artist’s work. In English and German. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405461. Hardback. $70.
Mikinobu Komatsu
The Japanese photographer Mikinobu Komatsu has travelled extensively in New Zealand, and here he presents his beautiful, lyrical images of that country accompanied by his own haiku poetry. MikiNobu Komatsu. ISBN 9780975785911. Hardback. $74.99.
The first monograph on Romanian painter Marieta Chirulescu on the occasion of her solo exhibition at Kunsthalle Basel. Features black-and-white reproductions of photocopies the artist uses as a preliminary stage to her abstract works on paper and canvas, details of the prints and paintings from the show in original size, and all the works with image credits. In the texts and images, the book plays with proximity and distance and mirrors Chirulescu’s work process. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 978392405416. Paperback. $47.50.
Leading fashion art directors from around the world talk about their work. Includes hundreds of fashion and art shoot examples. Victionary. ISBN 9789881943866. $63.
Melbourne artist (and Dirty Three guitarist) Mick Turner’s figurative, whimsical and gently fantastic paintings adorn a set of playing card – a different image for each. Fifty-two paintings reproduced and presented in a tin box. For art lovers and card players everywhere … No ISBN. Playing cards in aluminium tin. $20.
Polish artist Natalia Stachon has developed a vocabulary of lyrical-minimalist forms in objects, sculptures and installations. This monograph offers a survey of her work, with essays by Gregory Volk and Dorothea Strauss as well as a conversation between the artist and Hans-Jörg Clement. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405393. Hardback. $70.
Covering a never-before-seen array of techniques, materials and forms, this title focuses on the ever-changing nature of graphic design for promotion. From invitations to brochures, portfolios and catalogues, Not For Sale•For Promo Only captures the innovation necessary to stand out in a competitive world market and demand notice from prospective clients. Victionary. ISBN 9789881732828. Paperback. $60.
R. Klanten, K. Bolhofer eds.
From temporary pop-up shops to flagship stores and all manner of novel concepts in between, this book is a collection of cutting-edge brand presentations and retail spaces. Out of the Box! presents a compelling range of innovative ways for brands to present themselves and sell their products, offering their discerning, internet-minded customers unforgettable experiences on an emotional level. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553741. Hardback. $120.
Steven Holl
The Pamphlet Architecture series was founded in 1978 by architects Steven Holl and William Stout as a venue for publishing the works, thoughts, and theory of a new generation of architects. This is a follow-up to the 1998 hardcover edition of the first 10 of Pamphlet Architecture, presenting volumes 11-20 of this essential series. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781616890162. Hardback. $67.50.
Paula Scher
Collected here for the first time are 39 of Paula Scher’s obsessively detailed, highly personal maps. With a powerful command of image and type, Scher (Make it Bigger, 2002) transforms the surface area of our world. Paintings as tall as 4 metres depict continents, countries and cities swirling in torrents of information and undulating with colourful layers of hand-painted boundary lines, place-names and provocative cultural commentary. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781616890339. Hardback. $75.
A collection documenting all of Piero Polato’s projects, from his first set designs for RAI TV to his television programmes, product designs, graphic art and book designs. Between 1974 and 1992 Polato wrote and presented educational programmes on TV. In 1973 he designed “portarobe” and in 1980 the first fully electronic Italian telephone. Edizioni Corraini. ISBN 9788890239717. Paperback. $80.
Monograph on artist Praneet Soi, whose work features in the Indian pavillion at the 2011 Venice Biennale. Soi’s work spans painting, drawing, collage, text, audio-visual assemblages and mixes the languages of visual culture, literature, cinema and architecture. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405423. Paperback. $70.
A collection of recent work by young designers from around the world complemented by insightful texts. Although stylistically diverse, the work documented in Precursor is all created with a multidisciplinary approach that is enriching and expanding established categories of design. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553451. Hardback. $105.
Sarah Illenberger
Illenberger creates vivid, often humorous images that make stories come to life. Meticulously created at the intersection of photography, art, and graphic design with analog handicraft and using everyday items, her richly detailed work opens up new perspectives on the seemingly familiar. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553857. Hardback. $48.
La Kunsthalle Mulhouse, Bettina Steinbrugge ed.
The first monograph about the Italian-British artist Seb Patane. Patane works work across a range of media including video, sculpture, performance and collage. His work shifts back and forth between abstraction and figuration, between the suggestion of narrative and its un-doing as fragmented form. Distanz Verlag. ISBN 9783942405355. Hardback. $95.
Latest Sedicesimo, this one by Italian illustrator Gianpaolo Pagni. Edizioni Corraini. ISBN ISSN 19722842. Paperback. $10.
Studio on Fire
Minneapolis-based Studio On Fire create sensuous graphic work using labour-intensive techniques including letterpress, screen printing, hot foil stamping and blind embossing. This is a collection of their own work as well as projects commissioned by designers, artists, agencies and private clients. The designs are done in a wide range of formats such as placards, posters, books, flyers, folders, business cards and wallpaper. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553819. Hardback. $47.50.
Style Needs No Color works on the premise that excessive colours and flashy techniques should not be used to repair a weak foundation. It upholds the philosophy that artwork should be able to stand alone without unnecessary distractions, and therefore SNNC artists restrict their palette to black and white. A range of artists contribute black and white illustrations, vector graphics, street art and graffiti styles to this impressive publication. From Here to Fame. ISBN 9783937946061. Hardback. $43.50.
R Klanten, K. Bolhofer, B. Meyer eds.
Sublime is a comprehensive collection of current Japanese architecture, interiors and products that showcases and explores the country’s uniquely elegant design aesthetic. It features work by established names such as Naoto Fukasawa, Tokujin Yoshioka, Kengo Kuma and Nendo, and introduces talent from a new generation that has found its own style somewhere between a traditional Japanese approach and post-modern influences. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553727. Hardback. $120.
Targa Giovani is a prize for industrial design students. It rewards design projects, research and products made independently, promoting talent and creativity well before the complexities of manufacture and the market come into play. The book features 59 designs selected by Milan’s Osservatorio Permanente from among the best degree theses, workshops, competition results and work produced in the design schools. Edizioni Corraini. ISBN 9788875703097. Paperback. $43.50.
Thomas Thwaites
Englishman Thomas Thwaites’ project to build a toaster from scratch – documented here – took him on a 9-month journey from an electrical store to remote mines in the UK and his mother’s backyard, where he built a foundry. Along the way he learned how to smelt metal at home using a 15th-century treatise and found that it is almost impossible to make plastic yourself. The toaster he built is a strange and haunting object – and it cost 250 times one bought in a shop. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568989976. Paperback. $29.95.
TwoPoints.Net, Jan Middendrop eds.
A useful handbook of current fonts, foundries and type designers that provides an overview of international sources of quality fonts. It features inspirational visual examples of fonts in use and a free digital collection of 100 typefaces from 20 choice foundries. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553772. Hardback + CD-ROM. $120.
Peter Cookson Smith
This collection of sketches, illustrations and writing reflects the evolving character and personality of Hong Kong – an informality in the way its older streets, urban places and spaces are used that exude Hong Kong's high density urban values. MCCM Creations. ISBN 9789889865375. Paperback. $61.50.
Vhils
Vhils creates masterful, contemporary portraits by not only adding paint or other materials to surfaces, but also carving, drilling, scratching, ripping or blasting his images out of walls. This monograph on Vhils is the most extensive collection of his personal and commissioned work to date, much of which is published here for the first time. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553826. Hardback. $95.
R. Klanten, S. Ehmann, F. Schulze eds.
Visual storytelling uses graphic design, infographics, illustration and photography to convey information in the most elegant, entertaining and informative way. This is the first book to focus solely on contemporary and experimental manifestations of visual forms, with a rich selection of examples and interviews with designers and journalists working in the field. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553758. Hardback. $105.
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