Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art by James Hall, Kenneth Clark (intro.)

$14.00 NZD

Category: History & Theory | Reading Level: good

This dictionary relates in a succinct, readable way the themes, sacred and secular, on which the repertoire of European art is based. Cross-references enable the reader to identify the subject of a picture simply from some characteristic object or figure in it. Here in a single volume are combined relig ious and historical themes. The "Dictionary" also explores the "lost language" of symbol and attribute, thus opening up the whole field of allegory. ...Show more

The Dreamer: An Autobiography by Cliff Richard

$16.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

Published to coincide with his 80th birthday, a tour and another new album, national treasure Sir Cliff Richard has emerged stronger than ever after devastating false accusations threatened to ruin his life. As he celebrates 60 years in music, he tells his incredible story in his first, full autobiograp hy. A living history of pop.'Before Cliff Richard and The Shadows there was nothing worth listening to in British music.' John LennonCelebrating sixty years in music, with a hit in every decade since the 1950s, Sir Cliff Richard surely has a story to tell: coming of age in 1950s London, playing at the 2is Cafe where it all began, and now approaching is 80th birthday with record sales of 250m and counting.Cliff Richard was a pioneer - an original, with a new sound style, exploding out of London's post-war skiffle scene. His debut single 'Move It' is widely credited as the record that kick started British rock 'n' roll. Pre-Beatles, Cliff was the teen idol. His story takes us in front of screaming fans across the UK and beyond, onto TV's first pop show Oh Boy!, then through 40 years of Top of the Pops, first with the Kinks and latterly the likes of McFly. He's seen era-defining pop groups and iconic TV shows come and go. He's still making new music, and this summer he's playing to sell-out arenas.His recent struggles have only intensified the devotion of his fans, and spurred him on to a new phase of creativity. He feels the time is right to tell his own story and cement his legacy in the history of pop culture. ...Show more

(Un)fashion by Tibor + Maira Kalman

$20.00 NZD

Category: Fashion | Reading Level: very good

A fascinating collection of photographs illustrating dress and fashion around the world, including sections on optics, masks, work, play, footwear and headgear.

Smiling in Slow Motion - Journals, 1991-1994 by Derek Jarman

$16.00 NZD

Category: Film | Reading Level: good

Derek Jarman'sSmiling in Slow Motionconcludes the journey started inModern Nature; these previously unpublished journals stretch from May 1991 until two weeks before his death in February 1994. Part diary, part observation, part memoir, Jarman writes with his familiar honesty, wry humour and acuity. Fri ends, collaborators and enemies are catalogued as he races through his last year painting, film-making, gardening, and annoying his targets through his involvement in radical politics. ...Show more

Ephemerus vis-a-vis Stabilitas by Bao Qian

$15.00 NZD

Category: Art | Reading Level: good-very good

Louvre Abu Dhabi - Masterpieces of the Collection by Jean-François Charnier

$15.00 NZD

Category: Art | Reading Level: very good

This album of the Louvre Abu Dhabi collection of works allows readers to fully enjoy what the museum offers its visitors: an encounter with the universal across epochs, cultures and civilisations. The discovery - or rediscovery - of the works exhibited in the Louvre Abu Dhabi is a unique experience: on one hand because they are seen in a new light, that of Abu Dhabi filtered through the dome designed by Jean Nouvel, and on the other because their dialogue with works with which they are not usually presented increases their polysemy. This album provides a key to understanding the characteristics common to all humanity and the elements that constitute and form our distinct identity filtered through the prism of time, culture and history. The collection of the Louvre Abu Dhabi is universal in its scope: from prehistory to the latest contemporary commissions. Artists Giuseppe Penone and Jenny Holzer have created new works in direct response to the museum's unique architecture and spirit. The very first purchase was made in 2009: a seminal painting by abstract pioneer Piet Mondrian. Since then, the collection has expanded to over 600 pieces. The diversity of masterpieces is astonishing. Highlights include an incredibly rare Bactrian princess from the 3rd millennium BCE; a 3000-year-old Middle-Eastern gold bracelet; and a magnificent monumental bronze lion from Andalusia from the 11-12th century. Alongside these are works by some of the great European masters of the 19th and 20th centuries: Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, Paul Klee and Ren#65533; Magritte. A series of nine canvases by Cy Twombly produced in Italy just three years before the artist's death in 2011 is also on show. Together, such works, and many more, represent the human desire for artistic expression in its entirety. ...Show more

Symbols, Signs and Signets - A Pictorial treasury with over 1350 Illustrations by Ernst Lehner

$14.00 NZD

Category: Graphic Design | Series: Dover Pictorial Archive Ser. | Reading Level: good

Reproducing in historical sequence 1355 signs, seals, and symbols from the simplest drawings of heavenly bodies, through the intricate heraldic devices of the Middle Ages, to modern cattle brands and hobo sign language, this book will be of immense value to the commercial artist and designer. The develo pment of man as an artist and designer is here recorded pictorially by one of the world's foremost experts in the field of graphic art, Ernst Lehner. This book is divided into 13 sections, each with a separate brief introduction: Symbolic Gods and Deities (Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek, Germanic, Incan, Aztec, Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, etc.); Astronomy and Astrology; Alchemy, Magic, and Mystic (Nordic runes, magic circles, etc.); Church and Religion; Heraldry (coats of arms, badges, etc.); Monsters and Imaginary Figures; Japanese Crests; Marks and Signets (engravers, goldsmiths, armorers, stonemasons, etc.); Watermarks (fourteenth-eighteenth centuries); Printer's Marks (fifteenth-seventeenth centuries); Cattle Brands; and Hobo Signs. All the signs, symbols, and signets are pictured in black and white on strikingly laid out pages, with full explanatory notes for both lay readers and specialists. Anyone interested in means of communication other than language will find this book fascinating and authoritative. The student and teacher in the graphic arts will find it a practical visual guide through the transformation of simple marks and signs into the complicated emblems of our time. ...Show more

Case Study Houses by Elizabeth A.T. Smith

$12.00 NZD

Category: Architecture | Series: Taschen Basic Art Series | Reading Level: very good

The Case Study House program (1945-1966) was an exceptional, innovative event in the history of American architecture and remains to this day unique. The program, which concentrated on the Los Angeles area and oversaw the design of 36 prototype homes, sought to make available plans for modern residences that could be easily and cheaply constructed during the postwar building boom. Highly experimental, the program generated houses that were designed to redefine the modern home, and thus had a pronounced influence on architecture - American and international - both during the program's existence and even to this day. This compact guide includes all projects featured in our XL version, with over 150 photos and plans and a map of where all houses are (or were) located. ...Show more

Michelangelo - Louvre Drawing Gallery by Oaul Joannides

$12.00 NZD

Category: Artists | Reading Level: very good

Variety - Pusutang Visual Art House by Xu Liaoyuan (ed.)

$25.00 NZD

Category: Design | Reading Level: very good

Touched by the Sun - My Friendship with Jackie by Carly Simon

$15.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

A New York Times Bestselling AuthorA chance encounter at Martha's Vineyard party blossomed into an enduring friendship. Carly Simon and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis made an unlikely pair -- Carly, a free and artistic spirit; and Jackie, one of the most celebrated and unknowable women in American history. Nonetheless, over the next decade they forged a connection deeper than either could have foreseen. Their shared time brought a welcome lightness and comfort to their days, but their conversations often veered into more profound territory as they helped each other navigate the shifting waters of a life lived, publicly, in the wake of great love and great loss. ...Show more

The Butterfly Effect - How Kendrick Lamar Ignited the Soul of Black America by Marcus J Moore

$16.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

'Kendrick Lamar understands and employs blues, jazz, and soul in his music, which makes it startling. His work is more than merely brilliant; it is magic' Toni Morrison 'Lamar is a man living on a real and metaphorical peak, with one eye trained on the heavens, the other searching for stories in the va lley below' Guardian __________ Kendrick Lamar is at the top of his game. He has been described as the poet Laurette of hip-hop, perceptive, philosophical, unapologetic, fearless, and an innovative storyteller whose body of work has been compared to James Joyce and James Baldwin. He is a visionary who will go down as history as one of the most important artists of all time. But what's so striking about Kendrick Lamar, aside from his impressive accolades, is how he's effectively established himself as a formidable opponent of oppression, a force for change. Through his confessional poetics, his politically charged anthems, and his radical performances, Lamar has become a beacon of light for many people in America. Written by veteran journalist and music critic Marcus J. Moore, this is the first biography of Kendrick Lamar. It's the definitive account of his coming-of-age as an artist, his resurrection of jazz, his profound impact on a racially fraught America, and his emergence as the bona fide King of Rap. The book traces not only Lamar's powerful impact on music but also on our current society, especially under the weight of police brutality, divisive politics, and social injustice. With exclusive interviews with his family, friends, and record producers, this book is the must-read for any fan. The Butterfly Effect is the extraordinary, triumphant story of a modern lyrical prophet and an American icon who has given hope to those buckling under the weight of systemic oppression, reminding everyone that through it all, "we gon' be alright". __________ 'By the end of listening to his first full album, I felt like I knew everything about him. He brings you into his world with his lyrics in a way that really paints a clear picture' Eminem 'I love everything about his music. I can literally listen to his music and become a kid growing up with all the struggles in the inner city, but at the same time [learn] all the lessons it taught that we use as men today.' Lebron James 'For a gentle dude, he throws a righteous punch; I wouldn't get in the way of it. No single artist will ever be the antidote to a generation's malaise, but just identifying some of the problems really helps' Bono 'Kendrick Lamar is a master of storytelling' New Yorker ...Show more