Thames&Hudson

The company Salvatore Ferragamo Italia S.p.A., founded in 1927 by designer Salvatore Ferragamo, is a luxury brand with more than 450 stores in over 55 countries. It sells footwear, handbags and small leather goods, scarves and ties, men's and women's ready-to-wear, bijoux, watches, fragrances and eyewear. Salvatore Ferragamo made the name famous in California, first in Santa Barbara and then in Hollywood, creating footwear for the most beautiful women in the world — the «divas» of emerging American cinema. This book is also the catalogue of an exhibition that took place at the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art (29 March-7 May 2008) to celebrate the eighty-year anniversary of the company. Photographs, sketches, and drawings explore design processes and showcase shoes, handbags, and accessories — a magnificent selection of fashion works embodying social and cultural changes over time.

This excellent introduction to the major developments in art and architecture that emerged from seventeenth-century Western Europe bridges the gap between the specialized study and a more general survey. «Seventeenth-Century Art and Architecture» encompasses the socio-political and cultural background of the period. In the process it examines the careers of the most significant painters, sculptors, and architects, and those of less well-known artists. Major artists covered include Bernini, Borromini, Caravaggio, Carracci, Claude, Girardon, Guercino, Hals, Jones, Le Brun, Le Vau, Murillo, Poussin, Rembrandt, Reni, Ribera, Rubens, Ruisdael, Steen, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Vermeer, Wren, and Zurbaran. The seventeenth century also witnessed the emergence of successful women painters such as Artemisia Gentileschi and Clara Peeters, who receive due attention here.

This is the new, fully revised London edition of the world’s number-one stylish travel series, bringing you up to date with what’s happening in your favourite city. Strikingly photographed, superbly designed and produced, and yet ingeniously practical with easy-to-read maps and pacy, informed texts, each StyleCity volume presents a selective, particular and stylish portrait of a great world city. From off-beat cafés and cutting-edge restaurants to specialized boutiques, the choicest hotels and buzziest neighbourhoods, StyleCity presents all the special places you’ll find only in that city, where both savvy locals and discerning travellers will find a vibrant and idiosyncratic experience.

Paris in the early 1920s saw the growth of a new art form called surrealism. Both a formal movement and a spiritual orientation, surrealism embraced ethics and politics as well as the arts. Surrealists sought to create a medium that liberated the subconcious mind, and many artists and photographers captured this revolution through photographic images. This new survey includes works by Max Ernst, Dora Maar, Lee Miller, René Magritte, Meret Oppenheim and more.

»Textiles Now» celebrates international contemporary textile design. Focusing on fabric and fiber designs from the past five years that have been created for use in decorative art, fashion and interior design. Lavishly illustrated with photographs showing the textiles and, where appropriate, their end use in context. Clear captions provide information on the contributing artists, their techniques and inspirations, enabling a deeper critical understanding and appreciation of the medium.Organized into three sections embracing constructed textiles, dyed, painted and printed textiles, and stitched and mixed-media textiles, the images are arranged to make an impressive visual statement. The book includes over 400 images from around 100 textile and fiber artists ranging from new graduates to experienced practitioners, making it an indispensable reference for anyone with a passion for textiles — whether student, professional or hobbyist. It will also appeal to those with an interest in color and pattern, including wartists and graphic designers.

Wood demands to be touched. It embodies not only a feeling of well-being and stability, but also a natural charm that is comforting and life-affirming. This economical, multifunctional and renewable resource has been in use as a building material for centuries; yet in the current age of energy consciousness and ecological awareness it is gaining fresh attention. Today's architects are testing bold new interpretations of this traditional building material, resulting in some very special buildings.

The demand for 21st century townhouses in today's renaissance of urban centralization is on the rise. The modern buildings achieve the same functions on the scant inner city plot as their historic archetypes, but distinguish themselves using a contemporary architectural language. Some of the most spectacular projects reach considerable heights and extend the traditional concept of the thownhouse to new dimensions. With the help of vast pictorial material this volume presents a selection of 70 international projects, whose planners have set it as a goal to architecturally unite living and working in a city setting.

This catalogue is published to accompany the National Gallery of Australia's major exhibition, which presents a new look at landscape painting in the 19th century as it transformed from the depiction of known places to explorations of mood and time passing. From the orderly beauty of the artist's garden and portraits of estates, painters portrayed newly explored terrain and then ventured further into the wilderness. They sought out the extremes of nature, elemental and untamable: stormy coasts and mysterious mountains, volcanic eruptions and raging fires. The book reproduces works in this vein by the finest artists of the time — Turner, Constable, Friedrich, Corot, Courbet, Glover, Von Guerard, Church, Streeton, Roberts, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Monet — gathered from public and private collections in Australia and round the world.

This visually thrilling book showcases the telling use of colour, not only in interior design but also in natural and urban environments in a host of places and cultures. In monochromes, white, black and neutral shades of grey are used for their own qualities or as backgrounds for splashes of colour. In the blues, colours are used to create a particular ‘feel’, and, combined with white, express a whole culture – that of the Mediterranean. Reds and pinks appear as the colours of luxury and fine living. Yellows and greens bring light into the interior. The feast is completed by a section on colours derived from natural materials.

The Japanese artist Yasumasa Morimura is a controversial figure in the world of contemporary art. His photographs present an original re-elaboration of themes central to visual culture by showing the artist himself in the role of artistic subjects and historical figures. Morimura reinterprets in particular the works of famous painters, from Velazquez to Goya, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt van Rijn and Frida Kahlo. Ideas central to his photography, such as the difference between «to see» and «to be seen», and the ambiguity of gender in contemporary society — stressed by the artist's preference for the female body, — stimulate thought on political and religious issues. Popular culture is another of Morimura's interests, as shown in his interpretation of Western movie stars like Marilyn Monroe and Brigitte Bardot. Morimura aims to highlight the changing perceptions of his own self, and, at the same time, his ability as an artist to experiment with universal characters. This is the challenge that he presents at his next exhibition in Venice opening during the Biennale. Requiem for the Twentieth Century shows historical twentieth-century figures, from Che Guevara to Mao Tsedong, from Chaplin's Hitler to Vladimir Lenin, caught in moments of fatigue and distress. Among them we find Yukio Mishima — Morimura's own alter ego — who, at the suicidal cry of «Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! Long Live Art!» expressed the artist's ultimate sacrifice to art.

Christian Lacroix is one of the most inventive and admired fashion designers in the world. He is also incredibly well-versed in fashion history, and he brings that expertise to bear in this delightful imaginary museum of historic and contemporary fashion. Each featured piece – whether from the museum’s collection or the House of Lacroix – is distinguished by its cut, its detail, its colour and its texture; and the pieces are juxtaposed and photographed in a way that emphasizes their relationships across the centuries. Fashion is a fascinating story that never ends, and Christian Lacroix is the most seductive of storytellers.

Today classic English style and tailoring enjoy worldwide adulation. And when it comes to top-drawer tailoring, there is nobody quite like Jeremy Hackett. Hackett takes us on a Grand Tour of an appealing world of Bentleys and polo, bicycles and picnics, bow ties and Sussex Spaniels, top hats and bespoke luggage. Along the way, he muses on sartorial codes: why plus twos beat plus fours, the ideal length of sock, the pros and cons of cufflinks and the art of monogramming. Brimming with anecdotes and observations as sharp as his suits – as well as more than a glancing nostalgia for an age when a chap knew how to dress for an occasion – this is a book for those who appreciate the finer things in life.

In recent years, postcards have become so much more than a tacky holiday greeting. Graphic designers, illustrators, and advertisers are seizing the postcard and re purposing it with quirky new designs that give a new twist to a classic format. «Postcard» is a showcase of the most exciting postcard designs and postcard-related projects, including handmade artworks, limited edition sets and books, commercial promo cards, high-tech postcards and interactive online projects that successfully link the virtual with the physical world. Designed and compiled by international design studio FL@33, the book features more than 100 artists, illustrators, photographers, designers and studios/collectives from around the world, with emerging talents sitting alongside established artists. The book contains a collector's set of 20 specially commissioned postcards from some of the biggest names in the business.

China boasts a recorded history that dates back more than 3,500 years, and the Chinese have endowed the rest of the world with an enduring legacy. China examines the turbulent history of this immense nation, including the inventiveness of the Bronze Age society, the Barbarian invasions, the conquest by Genghis Khan, the rise and fall of the dynasties, and the Opium Wars. It takes in the architecture of the emperors; the magnificent buildings of the Forbidden City; the imperial tombs, and the mysterious entombed warriors. It also surveys Chinese culture and social history, including the rise of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, and the cult of ancestor worship.

The definitive book on 1940s fashion in America, Europe, Australasia, and Japan. From French style under the Occupation and the make do and mend approach to wartime clothing shortages through issues of dress, patriotism, and propaganda to the rise of American fashion houses in the postwar period: here is a comprehensive look at the fashions and styles that emerged around the world during the 1940s. During the Second World War, between air raids and ration lines, fashion managed to express ideals of beauty, femininity, and luxury even though patriotic and practical considerations came first. The vivid text by renowned fashion specialist Jonathan Walford details how fashion was considered not a frivolity but an aesthetic expression of circumstances in the 1940s. While Fascist states tried to create national styles before the war began, by 1940 the pursuit of beauty was promoted on both sides of the conflict as a patriotic duty. From prewar to postwar, international attitudes emerge from period advertisements, images of real clothes, and firsthand accounts in contemporary publications. The result is a glorious celebration of everything from practical and smart-looking attire for air raids (hooded capes with large pockets and zippered jumpsuits) to street fashion and the creation of Christian Dior's New Look collection in 1947. 250 illustrations, 220 in color.

At Twelve is Sally Mann's revealing, collective portrait of twelve-year-old girls on the verge of adulthood. To be young and female in America is a time of tremendous excitement and social possibilities; it is a trying time as well, caught between childhood and adulthood, when the difference is not entirely understood. As Ann Beattie writes in her perceptive introduction, These girls still exist in an innocent world in which a pose is only a pose — what adults make of that pose may be the issue. The consequences of this misunderstanding can be real: destitution, abuse, unwanted pregnancy. Mann does not deny this reality, but records it, both in the faces of her subjects and in written stories that accompany thirteen of the portraits, adding another dimension to our understanding of childhood. The young women in Mann's unflinching, large-format photographs, however, are not victims. They return the viewer's gaze with a disturbing equanimity. Poet Jonathan Williams writes, Sally Mann's girls are the ones who do the hard looking in At Twelve — be up to it! Partly this is a result of the remarkable rapport that Mann is able to establish with her subjects. Herself the mother of three, Mann has lived most of her life in Lexington, Virginia, where all of these pictures were taken. In fact, many of the families of the young women were cared for by her father, who was the town doctor for over forty years. So while At Twelve is an intensely personal vision of what it means, now, to be twelve and female, each of Mann's subjects is allowed the opportunity to frankly return our wondering, reminiscent gaze and to have a history of her own, rooted in a specific place at aparticular moment — at twelve.

A practical foundation course in fashion photography that offers key advice on the principles, practice and techniques of the subject. Dealing with the technical aspects of photography, it helps readers to evolve an artistic style of their own. It is suitable for various photography students and those interested in magazine or promotional design.

On the streets of the vibrant and anarchic city of Mumbai, the film poster is a familiar splash of color. It is an invitation to the pleasures of Bollywood, the world's largest film industry. This most democratic of art forms meets one of the worlds most exciting cinema industries and the result is an explosion of color, form and typography. Bollywood's film posters have had a long and glorious history that is only now being recognized and noted, and is brilliantly celebrated here in this lavish volume. Bollywood Posters is a must-have for film buffs, graphic designers and art-lovers.

The first book devoted to this influential twentieth-century French couturier. Lucien Lelong was a central figure in French fashion from the 1920s to the 1950s, and his designs were in many ways precursors of contemporary fashion shapes and developments. Noted for his skill, exquisite workmanship, and beautiful fabrics, Lelong and his house promoted a fluid, minimalist, elegant look. Lelong blended modern design with a strong business sense and was influential for both his fashions and his entrepreneurship. He was one of the earliest designers to diversify into lingerie, accessories, and perfumes, and in 1934 he introduced a luxury ready-to-wear line. During the Occupation in World War II, he was instrumental in persuading the Germans to allow French couture houses to remain in Paris rather than moving to Berlin. This wonderfully illustrated history of Lelong and his house chronicles the period and its leading personalities, artists, and designers. Lelong's clients included Colette, Greta Garbo, Gloria Swanson, and Rose Kennedy; Balmain, Dior, and Givenchy apprenticed with him; and Horst, Beaton, Hoyningen Huene, Man Ray, and Lee Miller photographed his models. 134 illustrations, 48 in color.

When he arrived in Paris, Koudelka had already produced two outstanding works of reportage. One documented the Prague Spring, while the other, on gypsies, could almost have been an ethnological study had its images not been charged with so much emotion. Unknown in 1970, he rose to become one of the most powerful photographers of his day. This book shows that in the lands of exile through which he travels with his amazing urge to see, Koudelkas own particular talent has been affirmed and expanded.

Linda Nochlin is one of the most influential art historians of our time. For more than four decades, she has been at the forefront of the feminist critique of art history, playing a pivotal role in shaping the course of the discipline. Since completing a doctorate on Gustave Courbet in the early 1960s, she has devoted herself to a lifelong study of the artist, arguably the most radical of all nineteenth-century painters and one of the fathers of modern art. Now, in this extraordinary volume, Nochlin presents her complete writings on Courbet’s work. Every aspect of his œuvre – from his vast realist depictions of provincial French life, allegorical works and paint-encrusted landscapes to his dark, brooding portraits, sensual nudes and earthy still lifes – comes under her scrutiny. In a specially written introduction, Nochlin considers Courbet’s lasting impact not only on later painting but also on the practice of art history itself. With essays spanning forty years, Courbet is much more than a monograph on a single artist. It is also the story of the intellectual development of one of our leading writers on the visual arts. Linda Nochlin is the Lila Acheson Wallace Professor of Modern Art at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University.

His images of the Sahel famine and his colossal project Workers would be enough to make his reputation and justify all the awards he has received. But there is more. A native of Brazil, trained as an economist, Sebastião Salgado has shown a constant faith in mankind, a solidarity that never waivers or flinches in the face of pain, an ability to analyse extreme situations, a fierce drive to affirm what he truly is, a humanist photographer. 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.

From pictures of London streets during the blackout and people sleeping in the Underground during the Blitz, from images of high society in pre-war Britain to moody, pared-down landscapes and elegant abstracted nudes, Bill Brandt’s photographs are imbued with strangeness and mystery, with a Surrealist touch, with rich connotations. This rich presentation is the perfect overview of his most memorable images. 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.

Don McCullin is one of the greatest photographers of conflict in our time. His career has encompassed the last fifty years – a relentlessly photographed era steeped in conflict. His photographs reveal the bleak underbelly of northern England, wars in Cyprus, Biafra, Vietnam, Cambodia and Beirut, riots in Derry, and famine and disease in Bangladesh. All are photographed with unswerving compassion. With all the beauty of classical tragedies, collectively McCullin’s photographs constitute one of the great documents of human conflict and its attendant grief, expressed with a visual lyricism that allows us to glimpse the unbearable. 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.