Mailing Idea Books
If you are having trouble viewing this message, see it in your browser.
New Titles in Design & Contemporary Culture 19 February 2024
The Tale of Genji – Colors of the Fifty-four Chapters

Isbn 9784879406552
Publisher Seigensha
Idea code 24083
€ 21.90

Written in the early 11th century, ‘The Tale of Genji’ by Murasaki Shikibu centres on the life of prince Hikaru Genji. While recounting his love affairs and court successes, it also offers a glimpse into the life of the nobility at the height of Heian dynastic culture. Each of the 54 chapters has scenes featuring colours. It describes in detail how courtiers dressed in garments of various shades and combinations to reflect the transition of the seasons. Yoshioka Sachio (1946–2019), the original author of this book, spent more than ten years researching this aspect of ‘The Tale of Genji’. He then faithfully reproduced the colours using the materials and techniques used at the time.

272 p, ills colour, 13 x 18 cm, pb, Japanese/English

look inside


Cartamodello / Pattern - From the two-dimensional to the three-dimensional

Isbn 9788822906427
Publisher Quodlibet
Idea code 24089
€ 29.05

From the series NABA Insights comes ‘Cartamodello’ (Pattern) a handbook that starts from the basic element for making clothes, the sewing pattern, to describe how different people, places, and times periods have used it. A useful tool with which to understand how clothes are made, the pattern can also be applied when trying to create garments yourself. The relationship between the body, which is three-dimensional, and the fabric, which is two-dimensional, is a constant challenge, an exchange that helps us to think creatively in order to find solutions which, in practical terms, effectively translate the idea of function and beauty.

240 p, ills colour & bw, 15 x 20 cm, pb, Italian/English

look inside


Utsuwa Katachi The Beauty Within

Isbn 9784903348698
Publisher Adp
Idea code 24055
€ 26.45

Japanese bowls, plates, pots, and ‘katakuchi’ (traditional sake bowls) each possess distinct shapes and names, varying according to their use. The phrase “beauty of use” was coined to describe the simplicity and elegance of ‘utsuwa’ (ceramic vessels) made to be held. However, certain aspects are often overlooked when focusing only on its intended use, an elegance unseen if only colour and shape are considered. This book was produced over more than three years and documents the work of more than seventeen ceramists. The clay, the glaze, the condition of the potter’s wheel, and even the weather on the day the object was made all combine to capture a moment in time.

162 p, ills colour, 22 x 27 cm, pb, Japanese/English

look inside


Purple 41: The Essence of Fashion

Isbn 17668832
Publisher Purple Institute
Idea code 24071
€ 41.60

The 41st issue of ‘Purple’ magazine presents a dizzying tribute to the essence of fashion. Its sprawling, multifaceted coverage features interviews with such names as Dilara Fındıkoğlu, Marc Jacobs, Dion Lee, Virginie Viard, Mel Ottenberg, Elena Velez, Susan Cianciolo, and Björk, plus visual essays by Rineke Dijkstra, Jessica Eaton, Mike Kelly, Walker Evans, Anna Weyant, Torbjørn Rødland, Thomas Struth, Lee Friedlander, and more. The issue also spotlights the creative effort behind each of its 21 different covers, on which appear both established and up-and-coming personas like Chloë Sevigny, King Owusu, Sota Nakagawa, Anja Rubik, and Saskia de Brauw.

514 p, ills colour & bw, 24 x 33 cm, hb, English

look inside


Out of the Grid – Italian Zine 1978-2006

Isbn 9782378964818
Publisher Les Presses Du Reel
Idea code 24067
€ 50.55

Out of the Grid presents a critical selection of 100 Italian zines from 1978 to 2006 that display a broad spectrum of social, political, aesthetic, and technological changes in the use of language and communication strategies across the territory of self publishing.Widely mapping Italian society, particularly youth culture—over an extended period that can be symbolically defined as the "post-movement" and "pre-internet3.0"—, this outpouring of creativity gave visibility to small, imaginative and technical shifts on paper that made mimeographs, photocopiers and offset machines tremble, and often erupted into the need to communicate through other mediums. The titles selected originated from different scenes—musical, social, artistic, literary—within which the distances between authors and readers is eliminated. To help navigate this multitude of subcultures, each zine is introduced by a profile that provides further analysis and information. No specific structure has been imposed, leaving room for the specific characteristics of each project to emerge. 100 titles ∞ paths.

456 p, ills colour & bw, 24 x 33 cm, pb, English

look inside


Haibara Art and Design: Washi Paper and Japanese Aesthetic

Isbn 9784861529405
Publisher Seigensha
Idea code 24084
€ 21.90

Haibara opened its doors in the Nihonbashi district of Edo (now Tokyo) in 1806. From its heyday as a purveyor of fine washi paper in the nineteenth century through the turbulent years of Japan’s modernization and beyond, it has continued to add grace to everyday life through originally designed paper products tailored to the needs and tastes of each age. This richly illustrated book tells the 200-year story of Haibara and the renowned artists who contributed designs for its merchandise, among them Takehisa Yumeji, Shibata Zeshin, Kawase Hasui, and Kawanabe Kyosai.

208 p, ills colour, 15 x 20 cm, pb, Japanese/English

look inside


Modern Times in Paris 1925: Art and Design in the Machine Age

Isbn 9784861529429
Publisher Seigensha
Idea code 24082
€ 24.55

The 1920s saw the dawn of the “Machine Age” as Paris and other European cities rebuilt and industrialised following World War I. The year 1925 was a watershed: the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris marked the zenith of the Art Deco style with its geometric forms and harmonious integration with industrial objects. The turning point for Japan arrived a little earlier, in 1923, when the destruction of the Great Kanto Earthquake led to the rapid remaking of Tokyo and other cities into modern metropolises. This book explores the human-machine relationship during this period in Paris, as well as more widely in Europe, North America, and Japan.

224 p, ills colour & bw, 18 x 24 cm, pb, Japanese/English

look inside


The City Is Ours #5: Manhole Covers

Isbn 9789526528618
Publisher Other Editions
Idea code 24090
€ 20.00

The 5th issue of ‘The City Is Ours' focusses on manhole covers, each uniquely designed, revealing stories about civic identity, history, and utility. This edition showcases their evolution from mere functional objects to forms of artistic expression, featuring everything from ornate covers in Japan to the historical designs of early urban planners. It delves into how these everyday fixtures have inspired artists, engaged historians, and captivated the curious. Have you ever wondered about the secrets and stories these everyday artefacts might hold?

80 p, ills colour & bw, 15 x 22 cm, pb, English

look inside


Visions by #4

Isbn 9789083362168
Publisher Onomatopee
Idea code 24077
€ 20.00

We explore weapons, lots of them, through different forms, relationships, networks and infrastructures. We try to understand how media works and what people we are following. How is the narrative built? What do you stand for? Are we part of a community? We take a closer look at stones, the symbiotic encounters of minerals and life, objects (possession), things (property) and how they (and we) become everyday viruses. We also try to understand the cloud and its complexity. VISIONS BY Issue No. 4 features an evolution from its previous format and structure, just as Issue No. 4 and upcoming and future issues will. They are meant to mutate, seeking the best way to explore their self-contained content. Again, there is no specific theme per issue, no specific profile, no specific reader. Our contributors are selected in order to help us understand the cultural implications of materials and their infinite meanings. VISIONS BY people, about Material Cultures.

80 p, ills colour & bw, 21 x 29 cm, pb, English

look inside


SADAK - Hand painted street signs in India

Isbn 9791280336125
Publisher Humboldt Books
Idea code 24094
€ 30.10

Since the 1990s, hand-painted signs in India – one of the defining elements of the country’s urban landscape – have been largely replaced by more technologically advanced media. Today, they survive in a vernacular culture quite distinct from largescale digital productions. The work of the sign-painters represents a visual itinerary through the historical-economic changes of Indian society over the years; paintings that emerge in vivid shapes and colours and humanise the sharp aesthetics of the subjects and objects of globalised capitalism. The book showcases a part of artist Aradhana Seth’s photographic archive: a multitude of designs on shop shutters, doors, signs and the walls of various places of interest and businesses. Produced over the past few decades, the images are split into three thematic sections: commerce and services, culture, and nature and landscape. Complementing the publication are biographies of Raza Abbas, Praveen Chauan, Prashant Janardhan Dalvi and Shakeel, just some of the artists who created the paintings photographed; a critical text by visual culture lecturer Kajri Jain, outlining the theoretical framework within which to interpret these visual forms, as well as an autobiographical text by artist Francesco Clemente.

184 p, ills colour & bw, 16 x 23 cm, pb, English

look inside


Further Reading Zine Series: The Southeast Asian Types No.1

Isbn
Publisher Further Reading
Idea code 24075
€ 25.15

While Southeast Asia is often neglected in discussions related to type design, the region possesses diverse and complex writing systems shaped by the interconnected yet unique histories of its nations. At present, the region’s own distinct circumstances give way to the emergence of vernacular typographic practices that are informed by tradition as much as the future. ‘Southeast Asian Types No.1’ presents a method to bridge connections within this creative ecosystem, aiming to highlight typography practices within the region so they can flourish in a broader cultural and global sphere.

120 p, ills colour & bw, 18 x 24 cm, pb, English

look inside


Serving Suggestion issue #02

Isbn
Publisher Further Reading
Idea code 24074
€ 21.95

‘Serving Suggestion’ reads into culture through food, serving up stories and other titbits on our connection with what we consume through multifarious perspectives. In a way, this second issue is a continuation of where the first left off, while also being a contrast of sorts. Reyza Ramadhan and Faza Chu’s respective explorations into alternative carbohydrate sources and Sudanese cuisine, for instance, both return in second parts. Further, restaurateur and art collector Teddy Lazuardi talks about his journey in the food business, there is an examination of how recipes serve as a means for fostering social cohesion and resilience, plus politics in Bali, loving Middle Eastern food, and more.

88 p, ills colour & bw, 16 x 22 cm, pb, English

look inside


Design Against Design: Cause and Consequence of a Dissident Graphic Practice

Isbn 9789083318806
Publisher Set Margins'
Idea code 24046
€ 25.00

Design Against Design argues for the urgent necessity of critical engagement and political resistance through graphic practice. It draws on insights from the practice of LOKI, a small graphic design studio committed to working with social movements towards radical political change. With con­versational interviews, personal and critical essays, and a wide-ranging selection of graphic works, this book unravels the real-world relationships, motivations and contradictions involved in a socially engaged design practice. Both a passionate indictment of the discipline of graphic design, and a utopian love letter to its radical potential, Kevin Yuen Kit Lo’s collection of almost confessional, candid essays challenge the status quo of design writing. Design Against Design demands that we think more intimately about the politics of visual culture under contemporary capitalism and, importantly, how we can act against it.

280 p, ills bw, 16 x 22 cm, pb, English

look inside


Riccardo Dalisi - The Chickpea Chair

Isbn 9791254930588
Publisher Corraini Edizioni
Idea code 23828
€ 20.20

Architect, designer and artist, in the early 1970s Riccardo Dalisi encouraged street children in the Rione Traiano, Naples, to design small furniture and architectural elements, using simple and 'design ultrapoverissimo’ materials such as wood, string and metal wires. "La sedia del cece" (The Chickpea Chair) is a work by a very small girl, Rosa, on whose interpretation various artists and intellectuals, including Andy Warhol, Alessandro Mendini, Ettore Sottsass and Enzo Mari, drew. This volume - produced on the occasion of the exhibition "Riccardo Dalisi. Radicalmente”, curated by Gabriele Neri at the MAXXi in Rome - collects many of the drawings made by the artists prompted by Dalisi, and together with texts by architects and critics such as Stefano Boeri, Domitilla Dardi, Paolo Deganello, Fulvio Irace, Ugo La Pietra, Franco Purini and Angela Tecce, it becomes a manifesto of his "modus operandi".

144 p, ills colour & bw, 17 x 24 cm, pb, Italian/English

look inside


Hato Zines 42 Visible Vehicle Repairs by Daniel Eatock

Isbn
Publisher Hato Press
Idea code 24041
€ 11.25

For many years, Daniel Eatock has travelled through his day-to-day life documenting vehicles which proudly bear evidence of the repairs they have been subject to. Damaged parts are switched for replacements from donor vehicles; their difference in colour an homage to the fix itself. This new iteration in the series, entitled Visible Vehicle Repairs, presents a collection of cars, vans and other automobiles featuring donor parts. Daniel Eatock is a London-based artist whose rigorous, idea-led practice is rooted in an ongoing exploration of the world around him. He approaches the everyday with wit and wonder, answering questions he asks himself through drawing, painting, sculpture, installation and many other media.

16 p, ills colour & bw, 14 x 21 cm, pb, English


Hato Zines 43 Studies for a Painted Home by Marie Jacotey

Isbn
Publisher Hato Press
Idea code 24042
€ 11.25

Marie Jacotey ‘collects’ patterns. The warp and weft of a textile, the tiling on a shopfront or a heavily decorated pot all feed her fascination, leading her from ornamental objects to friezes, façades and indoor frescoes. In Studies for a Painted Home, the artist pays close attention to these serendipitous occurrences of colour and form, inviting us to lose ourselves in intricate details that might otherwise be overlooked. In this zine, No. 43 in the series, she moves deftly between the macro and the micro of everyday life – switching from figurative drawings to a very, very close examination of a pleasing surface. Marie Jacotey is an artist occupied with emotion, intimacy, colour, pattern and form. She makes works on paper, films, books and other assorted objects, paying close attention to the human experience in all its beauty and anguish. Her current projects include a book of fragmented narratives and an animated film. Not to mention, a new thread – one of hand-painted frescoes and other home furnishings. She lives and works in Marseille, France.

16 p, ills colour & bw, 14 x 21 cm, pb, English


Hato Zines 44, Emoticons Don't Have Wrinkles, by Roel Wouters and Luna Maurer

Isbn
Publisher Hato Press
Idea code 24043
€ 11.25

Digital technology has long pursued the goal of eliminating friction, striving for seamlessness while trying to predict our behaviour. Instead of using our whole hand to interact, we now often use our fingertips to swipe screens or interact with air. Unpredictability, human messiness, and unforeseen actions are all to be eliminated. We no longer buy the promise of a frictionless world. In this zine, Luna Maurer and Roel Wouters state: 'Friction is what makes us human! Friction is all we have!' Luna Maurer and Roel Wouters are an Amsterdam based artist duo working across the worlds of design and digital culture. They co-founded Moniker, a studio for interactive design, in 2012 – it ran until 2023, when they closed its doors to pursue projects individually, and collaboratively.

16 p, ills colour & bw, 14 x 21 cm, pb, English


Cycles, the Sacred and the Doomed Inquiries in Female Health Technologies

Isbn 9789083350189
Publisher Set Margins'
Idea code 24045
€ 22.00

In a world propelled by swift technological progress and perpetual obsolescence, women frequently find themselves adapting and altering their daily experiences in order to remain functional. In the 21st century, as technology purports to comprehensively assess and address women’s conditions and physical discomfort, Cycles, the Sacred and the Doomed delves deeply into the realm of female health technologies, revealing a space where science, holistic methods, and mythology converge. This book challenges the idea of combining ancient wisdom with modern innovation and takes readers on a multidisciplinary journey to explore the intricacies of female’s health.

136 p, ills bw, 13 x 22 cm, pb, English

look inside


Zona Festival

Isbn 9786069505526
Publisher Punch
Idea code 24068
€ 26.90

This book traces the legacy of Zona, Eastern Europe performance art festival that took place in Timișoara, Romania, between 1993 and 2002, years which were marked by a transition from communism to a new society built on different principles. Bringing together artists from the former "Eastern Bloc," Zona became a space of encounters, a platform for theoretical discussions and postmodern art experiments, which displayed a remarkable diversity of artistic languages. In the early 1990s, adopting subversive strategies helped artists overcome critical moments in totalitarian societies, which had been consolidated for decades in Eastern Europe. They combined techniques of expression such as pastiche, quotes, historical images, popular culture, or subcultures with personal mythologies. What resulted was often a critical mixture with an explosive effect. The concerns and intentions of the festival's protagonists were built around political, social, and artistic topics that were debated between the East and the West.

416 p, ills colour & bw, 17 x 22 cm, pb, Romanian/English

look inside


Research For People Who (Think They) Would Rather Create

Isbn 9789493148437
Publisher Onomatopee
Idea code 21721
€ 15.00

What is artistic research? What is a research document? How do these relate to the making process, invention, and creativity? What exactly is expected of me? If you have ever asked yourself any of these questions, then this book is for you. Research For People Who (Think They) Would Rather Create addresses all relevant aspects that need to be considered during a research and documentation process, such as: finding the right topic and approach; formulating your research question; working out your methods; choosing one or more suitable writing styles; and considering the possible roles of visual, virtual, auditory, embodied, and spatial materials.

136 p, ills ills bw, 13 x 20 cm, pb, English

look inside


IDEA BOOKS
Nieuwe Hemweg 14E
1013 BG Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Tel +31 20 6226154
Fax +31 20 6209299
www.ideabooks.nl
  • Prices are in Euro and subject to change without notice.
  • For more titles in Graphic Design & Typography and other areas please visit www.ideabooks.nl.
  • This message was sent to because you are currently registered for our title information mailing.
  • unsubscribe: If this email has arrived at the wrong address or you do not wish to receive any information updates please click here.