Commanding the hothouse environment of Harajuku, the street fashion and culture district of Tokyo, Hiroshi Fujiwara is recognized the world over as a pioneer in streetwear, music, and art and is the ultimate arbiter of cool. Known internationally as one of the founding fathers of the 1990s Tokyo scene, Fujiwara exerts a disproportionate influence over contemporary design culture. With recent and highly successful collaborations with Louis Vuitton and Moncler, and with his mainstay work at Nike and Medicom, Fujiwara refines an aesthetic immersed in punk, hip-hop, and skate culture and translates it into pure luxury. A musician and producer originally from western Japan, Fujiwara is one of the most prolific of sneaker designers, and his kicks remain some of the most sought-after collectibles. In addition to his very visible and long-standing collaborations with major Western brands, he has long associations with Japanese disruptors like Jun Takahashi of Undercover and is head of the Tokyo-based Fragment Design. Chronicling his reign as the arbiter of hip for more than thirty years, this book presents his current preoccupations, with chapters on his highly sought-after artwork and graphics, sneakers, product design, and curated personal effects, giving readers a unique glimpse into one of the most influential tastemakers of our time.

For those of advanced tastes, the Modern Movement was a welcome corrective to the debased aesthetics of the commercial world. The products of light industry were as untutored in the 1920s and 30s as massed housing and both took scant interest in the idealist thinking that sought to harness architecture and design to social progress. Robert Best, one of Britain’s leading industrialists in this period, shared the goal of better mass education but was troubled by Modernism’s promoters, for reasons that they found hard to understand. If the few knew better than the many, and had an obligation to elevate them whether they liked it or not, where did this leave the democratic principles that our liberal society prided itself on? Best felt that the campaign to popularise Functionalist design took propaganda into territory that had uncomfortable political overtones. In this extraordinary memoir, written in the early 1950s but never previously published, Best explored his concern about the sense of noblesse oblige that lay behind such bodies as the Council of Industrial Design, set up in 1944 ostensibly to raise the saleability and quality of British manufacturing but also, in his view, to brainwash the public into denying what it liked in favour of more cultivated but untested alternatives.

Jamy Yang, an award-winning designer with major partnerships to his credit, began his career in the industrial design department of the German manufacturer Siemans. Returning to China permanently in 2004, he founded his own company, Yang Design, which is now considered the most influential product strategy and design consultancy in China. This book explores Yang's creative ideology in 15 thematic chapters, beginning with 'minimalism' and ending with 'kindness'. It expands on his theories about the purpose of design, the dislocations that exist today in Chinese culture and aesthetics, as well as the differences between Chinese and Western design. Contents: Minimalism; Archaeology; The Disconnect; DNA; Craftmanship; Virtuality; Easy to use; Visuality; Touched; The Anomalies; Semantics; Modulation; Sustainability; Fragmentation; Kindness.

A tortured genius and one of most influential designers of the twentieth century,Yves Saint Laurent was responsible for revolutionising the way women dressedand viewed themselves. During a wildly creative career stretching from 1958 to2002 Saint Laurent established a reputation for accessible, flawlessly cut clothes.He became an overnight sensation in 1958, aged 21, when he showed his 'Trapeze'collection, his first for the House of Christian Dior, following the master's death.Four years later, Saint Laurent opened his own couture house and within a fewseasons was hailed by Vogue's Diana Vreeland as 'the pied piper of fashion'.Viewed as a master colourist and admired for his choice of sultry fabrics,his great gift was creating lasting styles - described by Vogue as 'stockpiles ofessentials in times of famine' - that flattered all shapes and sizes. As well asdesigning wardrobe classics like the 'Le Smoking' tuxedo for women, the Safarijacket, the trench and the pea coat, and introducing trousers into haute couture,he also dressed international style icons such as Catherine Deneuve, MarellaAgnelli and Lauren Bacall. With his nose for the zeitgeist, Saint Laurent recognisedthe global power of street fashion and launched Rive Gauche, his ready-to-wearboutique line in 1966. Christened 'The Saint' by Vogue, every element of his fashionempire, which included exhilarating couture collections, exquisite accessories andsought-after perfumes, was captured by Vogue's writers and leading photographerslike Richard Avedon, David Bailey and Norman Parkinson.

William Morris - poet, designer, campaigner, hero of the Arts & Crafts movement - was a giant of the Victorian age, and his beautiful creations and provocative philosophies are still with us today: but his wife Jane is too often relegated to a footnote, an artist's model given no history or personality of her own. In truth, Jane and William's personal and creative partnership was the central collaboration of both their lives. The homes they made together - the Red House, Kelmscott Manor and their houses in London - were works of art in themselves, and the great labour of their lives was life itself: through their houses and the objects they filled them with, they explored how we all might live a life more focused on beauty and fulfilment. In How We Might Live, Suzanne Fagence Cooper explores the lives and legacies of Jane and William Morris, finally giving Jane's work the attention it deserves and taking us inside two lives of unparalleled creative artistry.

Collecting some of the most brilliant and memorable art over the span of Brian Bolland's career! You won't want to miss this collection of your favourite characters!

Architectural solutions & designs to optimize the spaces in your home without spending a fortune. Architect Laura Jane Clark, from the BBC and Netflix smash-hit series Your Home Made Perfect, has spent over 15 years designing, remodelling, and building homes with budgets that range from modest to enormous. THE HANDBOOK OF HOME DESIGN distils Laura's wealth of experience and enthusiasm giving you an accessible yet detailed guide to design, empowering you with the tools and knowledge to shape your home how you want. Throughout your home design journey, whether large or small, Laura takes you each step of the way from understanding your home, reading a plan and writing a brief, right through to sketching your own design and having the confidence to get what you want on the building site. Packed full of tips and tricks, inspiration and technical know-how, THE HANDBOOK OF HOME DESIGN is like having Laura by your side, showing you how to design practical yet beautiful spaces, get more storage into your life and create the home of your dreams. Laura Jane Clark wants to democratize the whole concept of residential architectural design and empower you to redesign your spaces by giving you the language and ability to confidently communicate your vision, get the most out of your design and ultimately love your finished home. Whether you are a long-term homeowner, first-time buyer or simply visualising your dream space, no matter what your budget is, this unique insight into Laura's process allows you to achieve both the design you want and the home you need. www.lamparchitects.co.uk Instagram: @laurajaneclark_

John McConnell's list of collaborators includes many household names - Boots, Faber & Faber, Halfords, Clarks, John Lewis. The man behind the Biba logo (for which he won the D&AD Silver in 1969), the logo of the National Grid and the covers of a Penguin student textbook series from the early '70s has exerted a quiet influence over British design since the sixties. His awards alone speak to his prowess: the Prince Philip Designers' Prize (2002) and the title of RDI (Royal Designer of Industry, 1987) among them. Part biography, part showcase for some of McConnell's most celebrated designs, this book gathers McConnell's exclusive redesign for Faber & Faber - a revolutionary new approach to book covers from the early 1980s.

An overview of the work of 20th-century graphic design icon Tom Eckersley – packed with hundreds of his instantly recognisable designs. From iconic posters for the Post Office and London Transport to designs for brands such as Guinness, this richly illustrated book explores the work of influential British poster artist and design teacher Tom Eckersley (1914–1997). Part of the 'outsider' generation that transformed graphic design in Britain in the mid-century era, Eckersley’s instantly recognisable posters have become true icons of 20th-century style. Here, design writer and former Eckersley archivist Paul Rennie gives a fascinating exploration of Eckersley’s life and work, from his Northern upbringing and early career, through pioneering work during the Second World War, to his central role in mid-century graphic design in the decades that followed. Over 200 designs from throughout Eckersley’s career are featured. Made in his signature style combining bold, bright colours and flat graphic shapes, there are designs for clients such as the BBC, British Rail, Keep Britain Tidy, Gillette, BP and Shell. The book also examines Eckersley’s position at the forefront of the explosion of print culture in the 20th century, how he helped to transform design education in Britain, and the lasting legacy he left behind. A celebration of a true mid-century modern master, this is the first book on Tom Eckersley of its kind and will appeal to anyone interested in graphic design and visual communication.

The most comprehensive monograph available on the internationally renowned Belgian floral artist and designer Daniel Ost. Daniel Ost's work in floral design gores far beyond table arrangements to bridge the gap between floral design and art. Using elements from the natural world - flowers, branches, and plants of all varieties, Ost crates large-scale, site-specific constructions that at times enter the realms of sculpture and set design. Ost has created exquisite installations for royal residences, embassies, temples, international art exhibitions, and the fashion industry. Daniel Ost presents 80 of his most important projects while accompanying essays explore their significance and the inspiration behind them. Lavish photography illustrates each project in this visually inspiring sourcebook for all creative and design professionals. Texts by Dutch author Cees Nooteboom and Japanese architect Kengo Kuma reflect on the impact of Ost's career.

Bentu is an award-winning, cutting-edge Chinese design company founded in 2011. It is known for innovative and engaged product and lighting design and manufacturing, with an emphasis on day-to-day functionality and attention to raw materials. The design teams have experimented extensively with the detritus of industry, including concrete, ceramic, metal and plastic pipes, and terrazzo. In this beautifully photographed book, the evolution of a product is shown, more than told. A stunning series of photos of raw materials and work sites follows the process from beginning to end, creating a visual storyline of environmental impact, innovative design, sustainability, reusability, local sourcing, and usage.

In celebration of Swarovski's 120th anniversary, this is the much-awaited and first significant book on the premier maker of luxury crystals. Swarovski crystals have had a multifaceted significance in the world of culture--from elaborate embroideries for Christian Dior, to the ruby slippers in The Wizard of Oz, and one-of-a-kind commissions for crystal chandeliers by top contemporary designers--yet there has never been a visual celebration of this heritage until now. Organized in four sections, this book looks at the history of the world-renowned crystal house: "Fashion" examines Swarovski's role in couture, from Coco Chanel and the fashion of the 1930s and '40s to Alexander McQueen; "Film" showcases fashion and jewelry created for the cinema, from costumes for Greta Garbo to set pieces in James Bond films; "Jewelry" celebrates elegant pieces from the house of Dior to the innovative designs by Zaha Hadid and Philip Treacy; and "Design" examines lighting and art installations, from Tord Boontje's crystal "Blossom" light to the Swarovski Crystal Palace installations at Design Miami. Swarovski's storied heritage and the brand's cutting-edge presence today, including its collaborations and kaleidoscopic influence, will be fascinating to lovers of fashion, design, and film alike.

How do I teach design? Why is listening so important? What can we learn from other disciplines and cultures and from each other? Answers to these and other questions are offered by Sven Ingmar Thies and his 24 interviewees, who are all united by a single wish: that their students should experiment, experience, and grow as designers. This book allows teachers of graphic design, design theory, game development, industrial design, and behavioral research from China, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Austria, and the USA to each have their say. The in-depth conversations are complemented by a comprehensive reflection and sample assignments. This is a book for teachers and students alike that offers insights into the experiences of others, as well as inspiration for teaching, learning, and professional practice.

The name Valentino has been synonymous with high fashion for almost fifty years. Based in Rome, Valentino is only one of two couture houses recognized by the French government outside of Paris. His exquisite designs are coveted and worn by young Hollywood and high society the world over. On the occasion of his last couture collection, presented in Paris in the spring of 2008, this landmark book celebrates forty-five years of Valentino's remarkable career. Published in association with a prestigious exhibition at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs's famed costume department in Paris, this volume focuses on Valentino's haute couture creations, highlighting the most important and iconic creations of his half-century in fashion through recurring themes in Valentino's work--variations on the ideas of volume, line, and texture as well as motifs such as geometry, pleats, and flowers--through new photography, sketches, fabric samples, and commentary on the dresses by Valentino himself. In addition, unprecedented photography by Francois Halard of Valentino's last fittings and backstage of his runway show reveals Valentino's private world for the first time. "Valentino On Valentino," a chapter of first-person accounts of the designs of these iconic dresses, along with Valentino's commentary on his fashion, will make this publication unique in the study of Valentino as a cultural and artistic icon.

A vibrant look at the celebrated artist and designer KAWS. This comprehensive monograph explores KAWS's art career in depth, from his early street art interventions to his recent send-ups of familiar cultural icons. With wit, irreverence, and even affection, KAWS takes infamous entertainment characters such as the Simpsons and the Smurfs and traps them in plastic blister packages while reinterpreting their appearance. The packaged "Kimpsons" and "Kurfs" are new types of hybrid artworks that both serve and criticize contemporary consumer culture. Also featured is KAWS's astute and prolific body of commercial work, including apparel from his Japanese store OriginalFake, a partnership with Medicom Toy, as well as product design, limited-edition toys, graphic designs; collaborations with architect Masamichi Katayama and artists Hajime Sorayama, Todd James, and Mark Dean Veca; collaborations with companies including Comme des Garcons, Levis, Lucas Films, The Simpsons, Nike, Supreme, and Marc Jacobs; and Japanese companies such as A Bathing Ape, Undercover, and Visvim.

A design monograph series on the most remarkable architects, designers, brands and design movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, each book contains a historical-critical essay discussing the life and work of the subject, followed by an illustrated appreciation of groundbreaking work. The 'Dante of architecture', Antoni Gaudí crafted extraordinary constructions out of minute and mesmerizing details, transforming fantastical visions into realities on the city streets of Barcelona. His work merged the influences of Orientalism, natural forms, new materials and religious faith into a unique aesthetic. From the furnishings of the Güell Palace to his masterpiece, the still-incomplete Sagrada Família, his imaginative creations are celebrated in this curated selection of images, accompanied by an essay of his life and work.

From the legendary Tank Girl to live-action animations with Gorillaz, a Chinese contemporary opera to an exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery, artist Jamie Hewlett is one of the most energetic figures of contemporary pop culture. With influences ranging from hip hop to zombie slasher movies, Hewlett emerged in the mid-1990s as co-creator of the zeitgeist-defining Tank Girl comic. With then-roommate Damon Albarn, he went on to create the groundbreaking cartoon band Gorillaz. The award-winning virtual pop group of animated characters is a truly global phenomenon. Gorillaz have topped charts around the world, toured the globe from San Diego to Syria, and picked up hundreds of millions of streams and record sales along the way. Since then, Hewlett has continued to collaborate with Albarn on projects including an elaborate staging of the Chinese novel Monkey: Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en, complete with circus acrobats, Shaolin monks, and Chinese singers. In 2006, he was named Designer of the Year by the Design Museum in London, and in 2009, Hewlett and Albarn won a BAFTA for their animated Monkey sequence for the Beijing Olympic Games. In 2015 The Suggestionists, an exhibition of prints at the Saatchi Gallery in London, demonstrated an exciting new direction in Hewlett's practice. This special edition celebrating TASCHEN's 40th anniversary updates Hewlett's first major monograph with around 30 brand new pieces. The book illustrates his thrilling creative journey with more than 400 artworks from the Tank Girl era through Gorillaz and up to the present day. Through stories, characters, strips, and sketches, we trace Hewlett's exceptional capacity for invention and celebrate a polymath artist who refuses to rest on his laurels, or to be pigeonholed into a particular practice. About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program-now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.

Italian-born American artist Harry Bertoia (1915-1978) was one of the most prolific, innovative artists of the post-war period. Trained at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, where he met future colleagues and collaborators Charles and Ray Eames, Florence Knoll, and Eero Saarinen, he went on to make one-of-a kind jewellery, design iconic chairs, create thousands of unique sculptures including large-scale commissions for significant buildings, and advance the use of sound as sculptural material. His work speaks to the confluence of numerous fields of endeavour, but is united throughout by a sculptural approach to making and an experimental embrace of metal. Harry Bertoia: Sculpting Mid-Century Modern Life accompanies the first U.S. museum retrospective of the artist's career to examine the full scope of his broad, interdisciplinary practice, and feature important examples of his furniture, jewellery, monotypes, and diverse sculptural output. Lavishly illustrated, the book offers new scholarly essays as well as a catalogue of the artists numerous large-scale commissions. It questions how and why we distinguish between a chair, a necklace, a screen, and a freestanding sculpture and what Bertoia's sculptural things, when taken together, say about the fluidity of visual language across culture, both at mid-century and now.

Contemporary African Design offers a refreshing challenge to rigid perceptions of what African design looks like. Focusing primarily on interior decoration, the book presents fifty designers, artisans, and cooperatives based on the continent or part of the diaspora who are creating sophisticated and innovative products and interiors. An introductory section surveys the history, vitality, and diversity in African design, followed by profiles of contemporary designers grouped by craft, from textiles, ceramics, and basketry to furniture, lighting, and beyond. Some of these designers reinterpret traditional methods and styles in beautiful and highly individual ways, such as the award-winning South African organization Zenzulu, which replicates techniques of Zulu master bead makers. Sustainability and recycling are another important focus for many: Cheick Diallo, the founder of the African Designers Association, creates stunning furniture made from discarded materials. Others, like Nigerian textile designer Banke Kuku, fuse African and Western styles in colorful, visually dynamic ways. Complete with references for sourcing African products, as well as a glossary and bibliography, Contemporary African Design reveals the rich possibilities being explored by a new generation of African creators.

The Christian Lacroix Atout Coeur Round Lacquer Tray features a black, white and silver foil embellished geometric game board design adorned with a poker-faced diamond in the center. This elegant 12-inch diameter round tray has a sleek shiny black lacquer exterior with cut out handles on two sides.

Designed by Axel Enthoven. Day after day he proves that elegance still exists today. He demonstrates that statements, sloganesque formulations, cutting corners, taking an obtuse attitude to people are not his thing. That kindness is not synonymous with weakness. That taking the time to think things through properly should not be exceptional. Taking responsibility regarding the impact of actions and words is not a rare occurrence. Striving after timelessness and sustainability are given a lasting interpretation. For him, combining aesthetics and functionality is a matter of course. Thanks to Axel Enthoven we are reminded that things can be different. And how important design is.

In 1975 Abram Games, one of Britain's greatest graphic designers, was commissioned to make a fund-raising poster for the Royal Shakespeare Company. His brilliant solution was to become iconic: the face of Shakespeare built up from the titles of all the plays as they appear in the First Folio. The poster has been seen all over the world; but Abram Games intended much more. After his death, his daughter Naomi discovered a mock up he had made of a flick book. As the reader flicked the pages, Games planned to make Shakespeare's face gradually emerge. Now at last Games' original project is coming to life. All 37 plays are included, in the order they are printed in the First Folio of 1623, ending with Pericles, Prince of Tyre, added to the collection in the Third Folio of 1664. At the end, the playwright makes a graceful exit, marked by the poems and the lost or doubtful plays. The book is completed with some favourite quotations, and the date of each work. Naomi Games has written a brief introduction about the history of Games' image. Pallas Athene is excited to be producing this little monument in the history of design.