A fascinating insight into the stimulating universe of Belgium's cult fashion designer duo A.F. Vandevorst. A universe of fetishes, fur, leather, sensual folds and tight straitjackets... That is what Belgian fashion designers A.F. Vandevorst stand for. This publication celebrates their twentieth anniversary. An Vandevorst and Filip Arickx met in 1987, on their first day of school at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. Ten years later, they set up their company Blixa and presented their first collection as A.F. Vandevorst in Paris. They have collaborated with such people as the flamboyant and world-famous hat designer Stephen Jones and have grown to become one of Belgium's most edgy cult designers, closely connected to the Antwerp Six (Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester, Walter Van Beirendonck ). With fashion shows and flagship stores in Paris, New York and London, they are much respected internationally and hugely admired in Japan. A.F. Vandevorst's aesthetics are the result of their strong love for the visual arts, music and literature and of their great interest in cultural archetypes. This book focuses on their diverse inspirations, including Joseph Beuys, the military and the medical scene, and is a collaboration with artists to whom An and Filip feel strongly connected. Among them is Blixa Bargeld (Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds/Einsturzende Neubauten), who was the source of their first company's name and has been a big inspiration ever since. Following an intuitive order, this book gives an intimate, very exciting and stimulating insight into the fascinating world of A.F. Vandevorst. Be inspired by twenty years of limitless passion for fashion.

Artists II is the second volume of Jason Schmidt's ongoing photographic documentation of today's most significant artists. From young to old, emerging to career peaking, world famous or as-of-yet-known, the creative forces that the New York-based photographer has managed to capture over a period of 12 years has come to serve as perhaps the most incisive look into the art world as it stands today. Artists II captures 166 artists, including John Baldessari, Ai Weiwei, Glenn Ligon and Cindy Sherman, in their studios or work environments and the resultant images reveal the context in which the art was made or conceived and the artists in their most intimate moment--in the process of creation. A text by each artist in their own words accompanies each photograph: some are literal descriptions of the encounter, others are poetic or enigmatic; each is a window into their artistic methods and perspectives. The strength of this artists series lies not solely in its individual compositions but in its value as a comprehensive archive of contemporary artistic practice. Situated between portraiture and landscape, Schmidt's photographs show art and artist in a constant moment of transformation.

The much-anticipated first book by photographer Kevin Amato, a leading influencer in fashion today Kevin Amato, a fashion insider whose influence is felt around the world, defines who and what is beautiful and fashionable today. Through his photography - evocative of the work of the generation of photographers before him, including Nan Goldin, Larry Clark, and Ryan McGinley - Amato celebrates the faces of the Bronx, where he discovers the majority of his subjects. He takes their pictures. He casts them in fashion shows and advertising campaigns. He calls them 'The Importants', the young people thriving against all odds and who together exemplify diversity and inclusivity. Amato documents a new world order that is as provocative as it is tender, and as disturbing as it is joyful.

In recent years, as fashion shows have become a part of our collective imagination and an important part of contemporary culture, blockbuster productions have redefined the runway show as a form of entertainment and creativity on par with the clothes themselves. This book focuses on designers for whom fashion and the mode of presenting it have held equal significance: Alexander McQueen, Martin Margiela, Hussein Chalayan, Viktor and Rolf, Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel, Raf Simons, Thom Browne, and Imitation of Christ, among them. From the performance art spectacles of the first Alexander McQueen collections in the mid-1990s and the high-art concept shows of Hussein Chalayan in the late 1990s to the lavish beauty of Chanel haute couture in 2012, author Alix Browne explores the highest pinnacles of fashion today. Runway gives the reader full access to the theatrical and creative aspects of the production, in both intimate, little-seen runway shows from the pre-Internet era many of the photo- graphs here have never been published before as well as major productions with elaborate sets and full- blown narrative. A thrilling, immersive, and inspiring look into the wide-ranging creativity of contemporary fashion, Runway is the most thorough book available on the subject. Featuring the most innovative fashion designers of the last twenty years, this book is a must for lovers of fashion and culture.