Blog — Page 212 of 281

Men without Women

Haruki Murakami

Penguin Books Australia

Men Without Women is a 2014 collection of short stories by Japanese author Haruki Murakami, which was recently translated in English in a fluent and colloquial manner by Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen. 

In essence the stories are about men who have lost their women, usually to other men or death.

While this might like a depressing topic, the stories are actually                                                    enjoyable and philosophical as they display Marukami’s astute understanding of both youth and age, infused with the unique mélange of melancholy and humour – at times tragicomedy - that has become somewhat of a trademark for his writing and his characters’ curiosity being the motor behind the respective narrative angles.

Murakami revives the genre of short stories, which is riddled with many mediocre offerings, with each of the stories being able to stand for themselves but the total of them being more than the sum of the individual parts, with clear an defined prose subtly covering nuances, a claviature of tones and not lacking impact despite their seemingly quiet nature on the surface.

The fact that that impact is achieved by sometimes a single arresting sentence conveying unexpected eventuality shows Murakami’s mastery, which usually unfolds in long form.

In the seven, decidedly uneven yet beautifully rendered stories, Murakami manages to write about very complex matters of profound alienation with beguiling simplicity, poignancy and wit.

Despite characteristic traits and key motifs that have pervaded Murakami’s literary emissions ever since and have becomes integral to his writing, i.e. jazz, cats, whiskey, a deep appreciation of The Beatles and Franz Kafka, he still manages to surprise and invigorate what seems to be common tropes.

Die Gestalten Verlag is a publisher and creative agency mostly known for their 600 books on art, architecture, design, photography and typography. The company has 30 staff members through offices in Berlin, London, New York and Tokyo.

What makes a good publisher?

Let’s see…

A passion for books is a good start.

Vision, imagination, and an ability to work with both creative and commercial acumen.

The mélange of all these aspects is the fundamental challenge of publishing.

Die Gestalten Verlag.

Publishing house.

Agency dedicated to creativity.

Six hundred art books on design, photography, architecture, et cetera.

Firmly rooted in graphic design, founders Markus Hollmann-Loges, Andreas Peyerl and Robert Klanten, eventually branched out and became a phenomenon leaving a dent in a myriad of related and unrelated realms, e.g. curation and creation of art projects of all kinds.

A triumph of a brand identity

Gestalten has fine-tuned an approach to design that has successfully translated around the world.

Die Gestalten Verlag’s literary emissions look good.

They feel good.

They nurture.

They are innovative.

Edited and designed by designers for designers and those interested in it.

With their extensive range of titles, Gestalten not only seek too enhance and to enrich our reader's lives, but to continually engage with the surrounding creative landscape through the anticipation of new trends and keeping tabs on the rhythmic rollercoaster ride of the pulse of all things related to art.

A collaboration that got me excited from the get go was Gestalten joining forces with Monocle. 

Based in London and acclaimed the world over, MONOCLE has delivered a unique briefing on global affairs, business, culture, and design since it was founded by Tyler Brûlé in 2007. Alongside the magazine, Monocle has created a 24-hour radio station, a film-rich website, retail ventures around the globe, and cafes in Tokyo and London.

Three examples of Monocle’s themed books with Gestalten shall be highlighted here: After showing readers how to build a better life, guiding them to good business, one of the more recent books is focused on how to build a nation.

How to Make a Nation: A Monocle Guide is a thought-provoking tome.

We are not talking about the usual ingredients, i.e. might, muscle, or nationalism—although you need a good pinch of each of them every now and then.

We are talking about “country” as in cohesive community, with values, getting its way with  power of the soft variation and compelling offerings of its culture..

At its centre, this country celebrates good education, well-made institutions, and its own people and their skills.

Monocle’s “Guide to Cozy Homes” is not only a book for the well heeled home owner but a comprehensive source giving ideas on how to transform your humble abode into a home. Both a practical guide and a source of inspiration, The Monocle Guide to Cosy Homes tackles the process of creating a place where you feel comfortable spending most of your time in.

The objective is not the depiction of pichturesque prefabricated soulless warehouse style perfection but of homes that are lived in and the people that created them, all the while being holistic in its approach and covering known and unknown corners of this earthround.

The Monocle Guide to Cosy Homes illustrates people that are not picture perfect but have signed of serving what good homes should do, i.e. provide a place to live, which comes with wear and tear that is caused by the inhabitants. These homes are not married to specific geographic locations but are dotted around his earthround and more often than not found in places where you would least expect them.

Gestalten / Monocle’s Travel Guides have covered all major destinations.

One of the more recent ones, covers the city of Lisbon – an intrigueing one to say the very least.

Monocle’s approach is guided by the credo that the reader should not only be informed on the must-see sights but also spots that are not necessarily on the radar of the general public:

Restaurants, museums, hole in the wall eateries, architecture to be found off the beaten path as well as hotel recommendations , artisan workshops and shops – Monocle’s guides shed light on it all that often helps me discover new places despite having visited some cities they have covered multiple times.

British Artists – Francis Bacon

by Andrew Brighton

Tate Publishing

Comprehensive and holistic in nature, The British Artist Series books employ the insights of art luminaries to illuminate the most renowned artists in the history of Britannica. This time the focus is on one of my eternal favourites:

Francis Bacon.

The exhibition of his eponymous “Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion” in 1945 catapulted him into the echelons of not only the most talented and ambitious painters of the modern age but also into the pole position in terms of controversy. His works is said to not only be intriguing to the eye but its intensity is fabled to have a tangible impact on your sensorium.

With a solid track record of having covered other artists, e.g. David Hockney, Ana Pacheco and Picasso’s oeuvre, curator and author Andrew Brighton sheds light on the genesis of the artist known as Francis Bacon and his standing in the queer world of the bohemia. Andrew Brighton’s approach is informed by an astute perception of what made Bacon’s work and the  external factors that influenced it – be it mundane or more profound ones.

Bacon is widely known for his giant canvasses spilling out nightmarish visions and contorted bodies in their raw and fleshy glory.

Arranged in chronological order, the book glues together the most important paintings from the Bacon's turbulent life, including his portraits of Pope Innocent X and his other inspiring triptychs, which became a source of inspiration for nightmares with depictions of the reduction of the human body to raw flesh..

A book that expounds the values and meanings that can be ascribed to Bacon's work, discusses criticisms of Bacon by distinguished critics and philosophers and serves both as a great introduction and companion for connoisseurs into the monumental legacy of what has rightly become an icon of British culture and the underlying manifold reasons for his fame and timeless relevance.

High Adventure in the Great Outdorrs – Topo Designs

One does not have to be a hardcore outdoorsman to have an appreciation for reliable quality outdoor gear that despite enabling you to brave the elements and unwelcoming terrain still looks fly.

Depending on your climatic context, the change of seasons and resulting cooler weather demands a versatile wardrobe. If the region of your wardrobe that caters to the cold season looks a bit bare, this section contains recommendations featuring some of my favorite gear to keep you warm and prepare for whatever the outdoors might throw your way.

Topo Designs’, the HQ of which is situated in Colorado,  gear is durable yet cozy, built tough & rugged yet stylish, overbuilt yet flattering to your silhouette, well-designed yet functional, not unnecessarily complicated or overshadowed by unnecessary trends in technology and once your gear has broken in, it becomes soft and supple: Their versatile emissions are great to wear as insulation layer and they fit well while not loosing shape.

Inspired by the elements and made to conquer them, their creations have become staple items I can rely on, providing durability and structure yet coming into shape and getting softer as you wear them, plus the fact that they look funky means they can be seamlessly integrated into your own personal style and wardrobe.

Topo Designs’ values and products are deeply influenced by the outdoors and mountain cultures of their home base. With a team who grew up fishing, hiking, climbing and skiing, they often look back to the gear of our youth in awe. The simple yet functional gear of their childhood has been reimagined from the classic designs into capable modern-day products that transition from town to trail and are made in the USA.

Let’s see what they got to offer in detail, shall we?

Topo Designs’ Mountain Jacket is a styler. an absolute essential for the Fall season. It strikes the right balance between blocking the cold and being light enough to not promote intense sweating as things start to warm up.

Heavy on design details, the Mountain Jacket will definitely be with me for years to come. You can compress it to a small ball and thus fit it into the smallest bag – perfect to be taken along for when you are not 100% about the weather forecast.

Topo Designs’ bag works great as a daily carry to and from work but I have also been using it for short travel.

The Commuter Briefcase is a great everyday bag during the week, and with the stowable backpack straps, it’s versatile enough for a bike commute - it can act as the perfect quick overnighter on the weekends.

The Rover Pack, which comes in a range of colour-blocked shades is small enough so you don’t feel like a pack-mule biking to work, but still manages to easily fit a laptop, lunch, clothes and shoes for a lunchtime run.

The way I first became aware of Topo Designs is via their collaboration with Monocle Magazine, one of a myriad of their collaborations, most of which are sold out.

Monocle teamed up with Topo Designs to offer a range of useful carry-ons and accessories, e.g. a reworking of the US brand’s classic Klettersack design. With their 1000D Cordura exteriors and coated pack-cloth lining, the bags are durable and neatly designed to accommodate the needs of both urban explorers and serious outdoor adventurers.

The Monocle medium pouch is handmade in Colorado, these colourful zip-up pouches are ideal for stashing items away. Perfect for cables, small electronic items and other travel essentials as well as a smaller but perfectly proportioned, zip-up pouch, which is a colourful solution for stashing away your travel must-haves.

The micro pouch variants are pint-sized pouches that are ideal for tucking away small items. Perfect for loose cash and tickets,

The Four Winds Field Jacket is Topo Designs collaboration with Colorado-based label WH Ranch. The foundation came from the basic framework of one of the more accessible and iconic pieces in a man's wardrobe, the trucker jacket. They wanted to bridge the gap between form and function, and tried to ensure every design detail not only looked the part but had a purpose. Features include single-needle stitched riser seams, a popular construction technique on turn of the century work wear; more tedious to be sure, but the clean lines and added seam durability are worth the effort. The signature Topo Camo Cordura Nylon stays true to the spirit of functionality - recoil pads can actually be placed into the jacket shoulder pouches on either side. Add in heavy-weight 14oz waxed cotton duck cloth, reinforced elbow patches, hand-set pure copper rivets, YKK pure copper buttons, and you end up with all of the elements of a field jacket that is built to last.

The Howler Bros Field Bag is suitable for a range of activities from fishing to photographing, the Field Bag is a carry all for essentials you need at your hip. It comes equipped with a breathable padded back and shoulder strap, removable waist strap, and a fully padded and lined interior.

The Howler Bros Gaucho Snap Shirt is constructed of lightweight, quick drying poly-cotton blend and featuring a cooling mesh lined vented back yoke, this one is ready for everything from the dusty trails of Wyoming to the salt spray of Ambergris. Add in pearl snaps and pleated chest pockets and you’ll be the envy of any campfire. Hee-haw.

Another collaboration saw Topo Designs teaming up with Denver-based artist John Fellows to create a water bottle and t-shirt with his linoleum carving artwork.

Fellows’ signature “contemporary folk” style weaves together layers of found paper, graphic block prints and handwritten text to create an old time, hands-on feel. The artist collects a variety of found paper, maps and books dating from the 1880s to the present to create unique linoleum carving collages that while at the very base reflect his personal experiences, are more like a brief glimpse into another person’s story.

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Photos from company website

John Heartfield – Laughter Is A Devastating Weapon

Tate Publishing

John Heartfield (born Helmut Herzfeld; 19 June 1891 – 26 April 1968) was an artist and a pioneer in the use of art as a political weapon.  He is held in high esteemed as a pioneer in the world of photomontage with his intricate approach to manipulating photographs and the impact it had on the political landscape of his time. Some of his photomontages were anti-Nazi and anti-fascist statements. Heartfield also created book jackets for authors such as Upton Sinclair as well as stage sets for such playwrights as Bertold Brecht and Erwin Picator. 

If you ever wondered what inspired Sakevi of G.I.S.M.’s collages and artwork, you will find the answer in this book, which  provides a comprehensive, opulent overview about his works along with informative essays that contextualize his emissions, one hundred and fifty of which are depicted in their original and the printed versions and were put together and derived from the collection of  David King (known from The Commissar Vanishes, Red Star over Russia and Russian Revolutionary Posters).

Needless to say that roughly seventy years after Heartfield’s heyday, his oeuvre still exudes the same intensity and is as relevant as it ever was.

With the original Marquette being displayed on one side and the corresponding AIZ cover on the other, it allows to reader to view the many artistic nuances of Heartfield's work that are lost in the mass reproductions.

An absolute must-read for anyone with an interest in collage art works in general and John Heartfield and his work specifically.