A unique tribute from David Bowie’s official photographer and creative partner, Mick Rock, compiled in 2015, with Bowie’s blessing.In 1972, David Bowie released his groundbreaking album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. With it landed Bowie’s Stardust alter ego: a glitter-clad, mascara-eyed, sexually ambiguous persona who kicked down the boundaries between male and female, straight and gay, fact and fiction into one shifting and sparkling phenomenon of ’70s self-expression. Together, Ziggy the album and Ziggy the stage spectacular propelled the softly spoken Londoner into one of the world’s biggest stars.A key passenger on this glam trip into the stratosphere was fellow Londoner and photographer Mick Rock. Rock bonded with Bowie artistically and personally, immersed himself in the singer’s inner circle, and, between 1972 and 1973, worked as the singer’s photographer and videographer.This collection brings together spectacular stage shots, iconic photo shoots, as well as intimate backstage portraits. With a lenticular cover of different headshots, it celebrates Bowie’s fearless experimentation and reinvention, while offering privileged access to the many facets of his personality and fame. Through the aloof and approachable, the playful and serious, the candid and the contrived, the result is a passionate tribute to a brilliant and inspirational artist whose creative vision will never be forgotten.

This electrifying vinyl edition creates a new and edgy definition for “album art.� Produced in collaboration with Colors magazine, it brings together more than 500 remarkable records from the collection of Alessandro Benedetti and Peter Bastine.This book forms a junction between photography, music, and design, celebrating vinyl for the integrity of sound recording and its artistic potential as a material form. With featured artists including Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Prince, Michael Jackson, Bon Jovi, and beyond, it offers compelling insight into the most intricate details of a performer’s visual identity, from a vivid color to a futuristic mirror effect.The discs are arranged thematically to span monochrome vinyl; unusual vinyl (including silver, gold, or mirror vinyl as well as extremely rare glow-in-the-dark vinyl); multicolored vinyl; etched vinyl (where music is pressed onto only one side); shaped vinyl (cut into forms that are different from the classic round disc); and picture discs (where a photograph or design is stamped onto the surface of the record).In addition, there is a rare view into the records known today as “ribs� or “bone music.� Produced in the USSR, where western music and culture were forbidden, these were made by engraving discarded x-rays with special machines and creating bootleg disks of hit singles of artists such as David Bowie and Pink Floyd.Page after page, this kaleidoscopic encyclopedia of innovative and ingenious vinyl is a colorful journey through era-defining records and artists.

Sebastiao Salgado's haunting black-and-white photographs from the GENESIS project record landscapes and people unchanged in the devastating onslaught of modern society and development. Salgado calls GENESIS "my love letter to the planet."

Celebrating the magick of the natural realm, Volume IV of The Library of Esoterica, delves into the symbolism, ceremony, and our ritual relationships with the botanical world. A visual journey through our interdependent evolution with nature, Plant Magick celebrates botanicals as creative muse - from ancient Greek sculptures to Renaissance paintings to visionary art inspired by psychoactive plants, cacti, and mushrooms. Our myths, beliefs, and shared stories are continually reflected in nature; purity represented by the white lily or spiritual awakening by the bloom of the lotus. Our joys and laments are mirrored in the cycle of the seasons, in the seed birthing sprout, or in the dead leaf falling softly from winter branches. Plants, trees, and flowers as signifiers of transition are also deeply embedded within rites of passage rituals across global cultures. Rose petals strewn along the wedding aisle mark the evolution into womanhood and marriage. A wreath of lilies stands sentinel over an open grave. A lover's bouquet awaits on the doorstep. The wooden May Day pole is circled by girls wearing crowns of woven daisies, celebrating the coming of spring. Birth, unions, and burials - cycles of joyful celebration and deep grieving, all are marked symbolically with herbs, flowers or branches of a tree - the integration of nature into ceremony our method of signifying catharsis. Since time immemorial, plants have also served as potent symbols within the religions of the world; Buddha attaining enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree, Eve plucking the Apple of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. From root to vibrant blossom, Plant Magick explores the fertile, interconnected history between plants and people, the multitude of ways in which we embrace plants in spiritual ceremony, as healing medicine, as creative muse and as gateways into deeper explorations of consciousness. About the series The Library of Esoterica explores how centuries of artists have given form to mysticism, translating the arcane and the obscure into enduring, visionary works of art. Each subject is showcased through both modern and archival imagery culled from private collectors, libraries, and museums around the globe. The result forms an inclusive visual history, a study of our primal pull to dream and nightmare, and the creative ways we strive to connect to the divine.

The TASCHEN bookstand brings your collection out from the confines of your bookshelves, and back to its rightful place on center-stage.The three sizes of medium, large, and extra-large allow for the secure and stylish display of almost our entire spectrum of titles, except for our gargantuan SUMOs. Also reflecting the variety within our editions, three eye-catching colors – radiant pink, crystal green, and urban grey – provide a fitting foundation to display TASCHEN’s big, bright, and bold back catalog.

Celebrate the energy, beauty, and grit of New York with this evocative city portrait, featuring pictures from the mid-19th century to the present day alongside an appendix showcasing books, movies, and records inspired by the city that never sleeps. Featured photographers include Weegee, Margaret Bourke-White, William Claxton, and Steve Schapiro.

Escape to our world's most remote destinations with photographer David De Vleeschauwer and travel journalist Debbie Pappyn. Immerse yourself in 12 journeys that unfold through fascinating firsthand texts and enthralling photographs. With personal accounts revealing useful travel tips, discover an extraordinary tour of our globe from north to south.

Greece's ancient art and culture form the cradle of Western civilization-numerous monuments and museums tell to this day of the country's rich history. Greece is unique also by virtue of its breathtaking landscapes, the hospitality of its inhabitants, and its fabulous hotels, making it the dream destination of many travelers. The fresh and healthy cuisine, the crystal clear sea, and the canvas-worthy sunsets do the rest-a trip to Greece is pure delight. Angelika Taschen travels from the mountains of Macedonia in the north to the Peloponnese with its mythical places like Corinth, Sparta, and Olympia, and to the larger and smaller groups of islands in the south. She opens the doors to some of the country's most extraordinary hotels, including Imaret in Kavala, located in a former Ottoman complex; Tainaron Blue Retreat in a secluded former defense tower in the Mani; and The Windmill, a converted windmill on the island of Kimolos in the Cyclades. She invites readers to discover legendary luxury hotels, like Eagles Palace in Halkidiki or Poseidonion Grand Hotel on Spetses, and takes them to enchanting B&Bs like Guesthouse Mazaraki in Mystras or Melisses on Andros, run by food blogger Allegra Pomilio. Along her itinerary, she visits hotels on well-known picturesque islands-such as the Mystique on Santorini and the Soho Roc House on Mykonos-but also accommodations in remote places like the Mediterraneo on the island of Kastelorizo, which lies in the very southeast of Greece off the Turkish coast. In addition she shows interesting architectural and design concepts, such as The Rou Estate hotel village, a historic, carefully restored hamlet on Corfu; the minimalist Olea All Suite Hotel on Zakynthos; and Ammos on Crete, where no two pieces of furniture are alike and new eccentric pieces are added every year.

From the mighty halls of ancient Alexandria to the coffered ceilings of the Morgan Library in New York, human beings have had a long, enraptured relationship with libraries. Like no other concept and like no other space, the collection of knowledge, learning, and imagination offers a sense of infinite possibility. It’s the unrivaled realm of discovery, where every faded manuscript or mighty clothbound tome might reveal a provocative new idea, a far-flung fantasy, an ancient belief, a religious conviction, or a whole new way of being in the world. In this new photographic journey, Massimo Listri travels to some of the oldest and finest libraries to reveal their architectural, historical, and imaginative wonder. Through great wooden doors, up spiraling staircases, and along exquisite, shelf-lined corridors, he leads us through outstanding private, public, educational, and monastic libraries, dating as far back as 766. Between them, these medieval, classical, baroque, rococo, and 19th-century institutions hold some of the most precious records of human thought and deed, inscribed and printed in manuscripts, volumes, papyrus scrolls, and incunabula. In each, Listri’s poised images capture the library’s unique atmosphere, as much as their most prized holdings and design details. Featured libraries include the papal collections of the Vatican Apostolic Library and the Trinity College Library, home to the Book of Kells and Book of Durrow. With meticulous descriptions accompanying each featured library, we learn not only of the libraries’ astonishing holdings—from which highlights are illustrated—but also of their often lively, turbulent, or controversial pasts. Like the Franciscan monastery in Lima, Peru, with its horde of archival Inquisition documents. At once a bibliophile beauty pageant, an ode to knowledge, and an evocation of the particular magic of print, Massimo Listri. The World’s Most Beautiful Libraries is above all a cultural-historical pilgrimage to the heart of our halls of learning, to the stories they tell, as much as those they gather in printed matter along polished shelves. 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.

Whether it's diamond-encrusted grills, oversized "truck" style chains, bust-down Rolex and Patek Philippe watches or a Tiffany necklace, jewelry is a cornerstone of hip-hop culture. Glittering, blinged-out jewels are the shining statement of a collective identity: unapologetic, charismatic, and street savvy. Spanning the history of hip-hop jewelry, from the 1980s to today, Ice Cold: A Hip-Hop Jewelry History is a stunning compilation of storytelling and visuals. Hundreds of extraordinary images of every major hip-hop artist on record celebrate how "Ice" has become a proclamation of identity and self-expression. Starting with Run-DMC's gold Adidas pendants and Eric B. & Rakim's ostentatious dookie rope chains and Mercedes medallions, the jewelry then transforms from street style into a booming design culture. The hip-hop tradition of "show up and show out" reaches new heights with artists like Pharrell Williams, Jay-Z, Gucci Mane, and Cardi B, whose over-the-top pieces integrate unique pop culture references, unconventional materials, and enduring collaborations with artists like Takashi Murakami. Author Vikki Tobak reveals - in great detail - the work of pioneering jewelers such as Tito Caicedo of Manny's, Eddie Plein, and Jacob the Jeweler as well as newer artisans such as Avianne & Co., Ben Baller/IF & Co., Greg Yuna, Johnny Dang, Eliantte, and many more. Ice Cold is a treasure trove of dazzling, inspirational style, featuring the work of leading photographers, including Wolfgang Tillmans, Janette Beckman, Jamel Shabazz, Timothy White, Gillian Laub, David LaChapelle, Danny Clinch, Chris Buck, Mike Miller, Phil Knott, Raven B. Varona, Al Pereira, Albert Watson and many more. A foreword by hip-hop superstar Slick Rick and essays by A$AP Ferg, LL COOL J, Kevin "Coach K' Lee and Pierre "P" Thomas of Quality Control Music take us on personal journeys into their jewelry universe. Ice Cold goes beyond the ostentatious bling to reveal a transformative story that is loud and proud.

London is immersed in history yet tirelessly innovative, a city of exciting contrast. This book collates photographs retrieved from all manner of archives to present a visual map of the city--both past and present. Images of the diverse inhabitants, streets, and sites are woven throughout the book with key cultural references and informative essays.

Sebastiao Salgado traveled the Brazilian Amazon and photographed the unparalleled beauty of this extraordinary region for six years: the forest, the rivers, the mountains, the people who live there-an irreplaceable treasure of humanity. The boxed postcard set features 25 individual images showcasing the breadth and beauty of Salgado's project.

Making stops in North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, this edition rounds up some of today's most exceptional and inspiring interiors across six continents. From rustic minimalism to urbane eclecticism, the selection celebrates a global spectrum of styles, united by authenticity, a love of detail, and a zest for individual expression that will never go out of fashion. Includes interiors in Argentina, Brazil, China, Cuba, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the UK, the USA, and many more countries. With pictures by leading interior photographers including Xavier Bejot, Pieter Estersohn, Marina Faust, Reto Guntli, Francois Halard, HieplerBrunier, Ditte Isager, Nikolas Koenig, Ricardo Labougle, Eric Laignel, Ake Lindman, Thomas Loof, Jason Schmidt, Mark Seelen, Rene Stoeltie, Tim Street-Porter, Vincent Thibert, Simon Upton, Paul Warchol. About the series Bibliotheca Universalis - Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe!

Under the burning Tuscan sun roll marvelous hills, vineyards, and olive groves—all postcard-perfect landscapes nestling centuries-old towns, rural villas, and contadino farmhouses. We’ve tracked down the best examples of such havens to paint a warm-hued picture of the look and feel of Tuscan living. Follow in Michelangelo’s footsteps to the Eremo Santa Maria Maddalena, a medieval hermitage nestled in the steep Arezzo hillside. Take a dip in the California-style pool of Roberto Budini Gattai, the architect who turned a modest winegrower’s house into a dazzling homage to David Hockney. Cool down in the tiled bedrooms of the Villa Villoresi, where, legend has it, Dante’s wife took refuge during the poet’s exile in the early 14th century. This collection gathers the region’s most remarkable homes and interiors, complete with insightful captions and enthralling double spreads. Across contemporary architecture and traditional craftsmanship, minimal earthenware and decadent furniture, we discover all the natural tones and sun-kissed textures of Tuscany.

For six years Sebastiao Salgado traveled the Brazilian Amazon and photographed the unparalleled beauty of this extraordinary region: the rainforest, the rivers, the mountains, the people who live there-this irreplaceable treasure of humanity in which the immense power of nature is felt like nowhere else on earth.

This volume is a comprehensive visual history of surfing, marking a major cultural event as much as a publication. Following three and a half years of meticulous research, it brings together hundreds of images to chart the evolution of surfing as a sport, a lifestyle, and a philosophy.The book is arranged into five chronological chapters, tracing surfing culture from the first recorded European contact in 1778 by Captain James Cook to the global and multi-platform phenomenon of today. Utilizing institutions, collections, and photographic archives from around the world, and with accompanying essays by the world’s top surf journalists, it celebrates the sport on and off the water, as a community of 20 million practitioners and countless more devotees, and as a leading influence on fashion, film, art, and music.An unrivaled tribute to the breadth, complexity, and richness of surfing, this book is a must-have for any serious player on the surfing scene and anybody who aspires to the surfing lifestyle. As one surfing scribe has declared, “There has never been a book like this, and there will never be another one again.�

Three hundred years ago, intellectuals of the European Enlightenment constructed a mythology of technology. Influenced by a confluence of humanism, colonialism, and racism, this mythology ignored local wisdom and indigenous innovation, deeming it primitive. Today, we have slowly come to realize that the legacy of this mythology is haunting us. Designers understand the urgency of reducing humanity's negative environmental impact, yet perpetuate the same mythology of technology that relies on exploiting nature. Responding to climate change by building hard infrastructures and favoring high-tech homogenous design, we are ignoring millennia-old knowledge of how to live in symbiosis with nature. Without implementing soft systems that use biodiversity as a building block, designs remain inherently unsustainable. Lo-TEK, derived from Traditional Ecological Knowledge, is a cumulative body of multigenerational knowledge, practices, and beliefs, countering the idea that indigenous innovation is primitive and exists isolated from technology. It is sophisticated and designed to sustainably work with complex ecosystems. With a foreword by anthropologist Wade Davis and four chapters spanning Mountains, Forests, Deserts, and Wetlands, this book explores thousands of years of human wisdom and ingenuity from 18 countries including Peru, the Philippines, Tanzania, Kenya, Iran, Iraq, India, and Indonesia. We rediscover an ancient mythology in a contemporary context, radicalizing the spirit of human nature. The tactile reading experience of Lo-TEK reflects the ingenuity of carefully selected projects with sophisticated design details: copper highlights the value of ancient knowledge, a cardboard hardcover echoes rawness, and the Swiss binding showcases an open spine and reveals the construction of the book, just as the book discloses hidden technological knowledge.

Few devotees of the form can approach Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn’s radical contributions to self-portraiture. Challenging the conventions enshrined by his predecessors, Rembrandt transformed the art into a fully realized medium capable of communicating emotional depth rather than favorably immortalizing one’s likeness in the finest trappings of luxury. With more than 80 works spanning paintings, etchings, and drawings, the Dutchman’s lifelong practice of self-portraiture functions as a means of concretizing that which is fleeting. Across four decades, one constant is particularly striking across media and styles—Rembrandt’s dedication to presenting himself from multiple perspectives, celebrating the multiplicity of the individual and championing the unfiltered portrayal of emotional expression.Apart from the thematic concerns present within Rembrandt’s suite of self-portraits, the works themselves are rich with technical innovation and experimentation. There is an unmistakable humanity present across the entirety of this oeuvre, each expressive brushstroke and obfuscated feature amounting to an unflinchingly honest characterization of himself, in all his foibles, contrasting states of feeling, and stages of life.This monograph renders all of Rembrandt’s self-portraits – from his first experimentations at age twenty-two to his final self-portrait painted a year before his death – and stands testament to a life committed to revolutionizing painterly practice both in content and form.

In today’s world of instant snapshots, 24-hour news, and round-the-clock connectivity, an illustrated press where the images are as important as the text has become an increasingly rare art form. This far-reaching compendium celebrates the golden age of graphic journalism as a distinct and unique genre and a laboratory for developing avant-garde aesthetics. Spanning from 1819 to 1921, the collection covers a broad range of news graphics and political and satirical cartoons. Alongside the works of renowned artists such as Jean Cocteau, Juan Gris, and Käthe Kollwitz, the most famous illustrators of the time are also well represented. Thomas Nast, Honoré Daumier, Gustave Doré, and the numerous relatively unknown press graphic artists, the so-called “special artists,� whose work is rediscovered here. Their rich and varied press work is considered not only in connection to the genre and the historical painting of the 19th century but also in its capacity as a pioneering influence on modern art. With striking examples of proto-cinematic narrative thinking, disruptions of the single image space, and daring forays into abstraction, this material is shown to have laid the groundwork for much of the avant-garde artistic expression that followed. The book also explores Vincent Van Gogh's careful attention to the illustrated press of his time. He was inspired not only by the artistic aspect of it but also by the spirit of social reform that it represented. An avid collector, he owned a large number of press graphics and went so far as to consider it a "Bible for Artists".

The Alps are Europe's biggest and greatest mountain range. Formed millions of years ago, they became a popular destination for travelers in the late eighteenth century - first for adventurers and explorers, then for artists and writers, and finally for everyone who wanted to spend summer in the fresh air of this wonderful scenery or take part in winter sports. Angelika Taschen has followed in their footsteps and collected the finest hotels in the Alpine nations of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, and Italy. They include the Kranzbach near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, built for a British aristocrat, Gasthof Hirschen in the Bregenzerwald, where art-loving visitors have been welcomed since 1755, and the Seehof near Salzburg with its emphasis on contemporary art and fine cuisine. The journey goes to Waldhaus Sils in Sils Maria, where many creative guests have found inspiration, to the Schatzalp in Davos, which Thomas Mann immortalized in literature in "The Magic Mountain", and to picturesque bed & breakfasts with a personal touch such as Brucke49 in Vals and Maison Bergdorf in Interlaken. High above Chamonix, mountaineers have stayed overnight for more than 140 years at Refuge du Montenvers with its view of the Mer de Glace, the largest glacier in France. In the exclusive Megeve, too, which Baroness Noemie de Rothschild put on the tourist map, travelers experience the Alps a la francaise in the chalet hotel L'Alpaga; and a bit of Italian dolce vita is provided by stunning addresses in the South Tyrol such as the Ottmangut in Merano, Villa Arnica in Lana with its nostalgic atmosphere, and Pension Briol near Barbiano, constructed in 1928 in the Bauhaus style and extended in 2021 with the addition of two extremely modern buildings. This opulent book of photographs presents the Alpine range and accommodation in large-format images, short texts, and useful details on prices and how to get there. Walkers, skiers, gourmets, and lovers of good living will find valuable tips and very special accommodation: former monasteries where guests still find peace and seclusion, a mountain hut at the heart of the Dolomites, and a youth hostel occupying what was once a sanatorium, a rare example of modern architecture in Switzerland that was declared a heritage monument in 2002.

Discover the completely unique aesthetic of Tadao Ando, the only architect ever to have won the discipline’s four most prestigious prizes: the Pritzker, Carlsberg, Praemium Imperiale, and Kyoto Prize.Philippe Starck defines him as a “mystic in a country which is no longer mystic.� Philip Drew calls his buildings “land art� as they “struggle to emerge from the earth.� His designs have been described as haiku crafted from concrete, water, light, and space. But to Ando, true architecture is not expressed in metaphysics or beauty, but rather through space that embodies physical wisdom.This thoroughly updated edition spans the breadth of his entire career, including such stunning new projects as the Bourse de Commerce in Paris and the Nakanoshima Children’s Book Forest in Osaka. Each project is profiled through photographs and architectural drawings to explore Ando’s unprecedented use of concrete, wood, water, light, space, and natural forms.Featuring designs from award-winning private homes, churches, museums, and apartment complexes to cultural spaces throughout Japan, South Korea, France, Italy, Germany, Mexico, and the USA, this XXL-edition brings you up close and personal with a Modernist master.Also available in an Art Edition limited to 100 copies, with an original sketch signed by Tadao Ando and a Natural Oak box designed by Ando.

For Sebastiao Salgado, Genesis is a "love letter to the planet." TASCHEN's postcard set allows you to send on that wonder with 25 individual images from the complete Genesis portfolio, now the world's most-visited photography show of all time. The boxed set spans the breadth of Salgado's project across five focal territories: Planet South, Sanctuaries, Africa, Northern Spaces, and Amazonia and Pantanal. In exquisite black and white textures, each image celebrates the pristine splendor of nature, animals, and indigenous peoples that have, so far, escaped the imprint of modern society, from a Nomadic Nenet girl in Siberia to sunlit Buffalo herds in Botswana's Okavango Delta. "Genesis is a quest for the world as it was, as it was formed, as it evolved, as it existed for millennia before modern life accelerated and began distancing us from the very essence of our being" - Lelia Wanick Salgado

At first glance, Walton Ford’s large-scale, highly detailed watercolors of animals recall the prints of 19th-century illustrators John James Audubon and Edward Lear. A closer look reveals a complex and disturbingly anthropomorphic universe, full of symbols, sly jokes, and allusions to the ‘operatic’ quality of traditional natural history.In this stunning but sinister visual universe, beasts and birds are not mere aesthetic objects but dynamic actors in allegorical struggles: a wild turkey crushes a small parrot in its claw; a troupe of monkeys wreaks havoc on a formal dinner table; an American buffalo is surrounded by bloodied white wolves. In dazzling watercolor, the images impress as much for their impeccable realism as they do for their complex narratives.First available as a signed and limited volume, this updated edition of Pancha Tantra is the most comprehensive survey of Ford’s oeuvre to date, with more than 20 new works. It features dazzling details, an in-depth exploration of his visual universe, a complete biography, and excerpts from his textual inspirations: from Indian folktales and the letters of Benjamin Franklin to the Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini and Audubon’s Ornithological Biography.

The revered tradition of botanical illustration dates back to the Renaissance. It emerged from the desire to catalog nature in its unpredictable splendor, and the process demanded the most precise and talented of artists.With a remarkable skill that captured the most intricate subjects in nature, Pierre-Joseph Redouté is widely considered the best painter and engraver of botanical illustration. Working from live plants rather than from the herbarium specimens gave his watercolors unusual subtlety and freshness. He was also an innovator in printing techniques, introducing "stipple-engraving" to France, always striving for greater exactitude in his art. Redouté fortuitously acquired some of the most influential patrons of the time, including Marie Antoinette and Empress Josephine Bonaparte, thus ensuring that his work was well-funded and displayed.His impressive collection comprises over 2,000 paintings of plants rendered with great accuracy and strict adherence to nature. In this exquisite edition of Les Roses, Redouté turns his attention to the most romantic, desirable, and evocative flower. Originally published in three volumes between 1817 and 1824, it remains his most famous and celebrated work.

The Kisokaid� route through Japan was ordained in the early 1600s by the country’s then-ruler Tokugawa Ieyasu, who decreed that staging posts be installed along the length of the arduous passage between Edo (present-day Tokyo) and Kyoto. Inns, shops, and restaurants were established to provide sustenance and lodging to weary travelers. In 1835, renowned woodblock print artist Keisai Eisen was commissioned to create a series of works to chart the Kisokaid� journey. After producing 24 prints, Eisen was replaced by Utagawa Hiroshige, who completed the series of 70 prints in 1838.Both Eisen and Hiroshige were master print practitioners. In The Sixty-Nine Stations along the Kisokaid�, we find the artists’ distinct styles as much as their shared expertise. From the busy starting post of Nihonbashi to the castle town of Iwamurata, Eisen opts for a more muted palette but excels in figuration, particularly of glamorous women, and relishes snapshots of activity along the route, from shoeing a horse to winnowing rice. Hiroshige demonstrates his mastery of landscape with grandiose and evocative scenes, whether it’s the peaceful banks of the Ota River, the forbidding Wada Pass, or a moonlit ascent between Yawata and Mochizuki.Taken as a whole, The Sixty-Nine Stations collection represents not only a masterpiece of woodblock practice, including bold compositions and an experimental use of color, but also a charming tapestry of 19th-century Japan, long before the specter of industrialization. This TASCHEN volume is sourced from one of the finest surviving first editions and revives the series in our compact anniversary edition.