A glorious insight into the remarkable work of spiders, featuring eight pages of foil stamping. Despite their familiarity, spider webs are drastically under-appreciated, and yet without them, the world as we know it would be overrun by insects (spiders catch and consume 800 million tonnes of insects every year - roughly the same weight as all the humans in the world). Because spider webs are so successfully hidden, very little is known about these beautiful but deadly traps. From classic orb webs, to spectacular tent webs, hidden trapdoor webs and water webs that attach to the surface of a flowing river, The Secret World of Spider Webs reveals the incredibly diverse ways spiders catch their prey. Featuring foil-stamped illustrations that accentuate the intricacy of spiders' web designs, The Secret World of Spider Webs is a remarkable, beautiful and spine-tingling tribute to spiders. The Secret World of Spider Webs is the first in a new series of children's non-fiction books that reveal under-appreciated and hidden natural wonders that are essential to Earth's biodiversity, including phytoplankton (supply half of the oxygen on Earth), bird nests (birds are vital to reforestation, pollination and pest control) and mycelia (underground network of fungi that are the connectors in forests).
A voyage of discovery to our world's most remarkable islands by award-winning and bestselling author Yuval Zommer. On this island-hopping adventure, readers will come face-to-face with incredible creatures - from the giant tortoises of the Galápagos islands to the leaping lemurs of Madagascar. They'll visit wonders of the world - both natural and manmade - including the towering Moai statues of Easter Island, swirling Northern Lights in the skies above Svalbard, and ice caves on Mount Erebus. From the bubbling volcanoes of Hawaii to the frozen seas of the Antarctic, Our Islands reveals how life can survive in even the most extreme conditions and why these isolated lands are often home to animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth. Combined with visits to old pirate hide-outs, colourful carnivals, windswept cliffs and untouched rainforests, this breathtaking tour of our planet's most remarkable islands is the perfect read for young explorers and budding environmentalists alike. Our Islands is the first book in Our Wonders, a new non-fiction series from best-selling author Yuval Zommer. Each book will take young readers on a journey to some of the world's most unique natural habitats to discover how they formed, why they're special, and to meet the remarkable animals and plants that have made these places their home. Including islands, forests, mountains, rivers and deserts, the Our Wonders series nurtures next-generation environmentalists by immersing them in the most fascinating examples of each habitat.
Come on a well-heeled tour around the globe to meet the designers, dressmakers and style icons who influence how we dress. Aimed at children 7-11 years old, A History of Fashion for Children is an introduction to fashion past and present, and includes reproductions of historic, modern and contemporary clothes and accessories throughout. Blending a history of costume with contemporary fashion, the book spans different time periods and cultures to explore why we care about what we wear; how fashion reflects changes in society; who makes our clothes and how; as well as the influence that fabrics, accessories, fashion magazines and celebrities all have on how we choose to dress ourselves. Featuring a chronological walk through fashion styles of the 20th century, it explores the work of iconic designers including Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo, among others. This lively book celebrates fashion for all genders and body types, showcasing fashion's capacity to express identity, communicate ideas and reflect the changes in our world.
Weaving artists' reflections and anecdotes with their invaluable words of advice to aspiring creatives, this inspiring book explores the practical realities of the art world and demystifies the route to professional success. Offering a glimpse into the unique careers of established artists from the 20th and 21st centuries, such as El Anatsui, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Tracey Emin, Yayoi Kusama and Ai Weiwei, this book features direct quotes and counsel on how to enter and thrive in this highly competitive creative profession. By mapping the origin stories of well-known practitioners, Lydia Figes highlights the practical realities of the art world and demystifies the route to professional success. Thematic chapters offer essential guidance for emerging artists on how to negotiate the complexities of the art sphere, with discussions relating to self-discipline, mental wellbeing, education, representation and other relevant topics. These chapters are followed by approximately 100 artist summaries, which not only profile each individual but also offer key elements of advice, often in the artist's own words. In a climate where younger generations feel less empowered than ever, this book provides a hopeful message about perseverance and perspective. It advocates for resisting narrow measures of success, and encourages readers to pursue more autonomy in their creative endeavours. It also challenges the limitations faced by up-and-coming artists today, and questions whether the advice given by notable artistic practitioners contains universal truths that can still be applied. Advice to Young Artists illuminates the career paths of internationally acclaimed artists, and is key reading for anyone working to establish themselves in the art world.
An elegant reference guide to the meaning of plants in art and life. From early Egyptian reverence for the acacia and the lotus, to the Victorian language of flowers and the works of Vincent Van Gogh and Georgia O'Keeffe, we have long sought meaning in nature. Significance has often been ascribed to particular plants, referencing their uses as food or medicine, their associations with saints and heroes, or more abstract or aesthetic qualities like fortitude, beauty and strength. Weaving together botany, mythology, folklore, religious texts, and centuries of art and literature, this richly illustrated, elegant reference guide engages the cultural significance and underlying meanings of over fifty plants. Each entry is accompanied by a work of art or botanical illustration, bringing together the world of art and plants in an elegant and seamless fashion and deepening our understanding of how plants have been used by artists in the past and what they mean to us today. This is the ideal reference volume for the artistically inspired botanist as well as a pleasure to read and leaf through.
Ape fans gather round! Join expert field guide Huw Lewis Jones and fellow primate admirer Sam Caldwell on an expedition to rainforests around the world to learn more about these amazing animals. Can you imagine what it's like to be an orangutan? What do chimpanzees have for breakfast? And most importantly... are gorillas really like my grandma? Head high into mountain forests, and through hot steamy jungles, to discover all the different types of ape and learn how we can best help them. From orangutans to chimpanzees, bonobos to YOU... this book is packed with facts, fun, and everything there is to know about our great ape family! Discover what gorillas eat, where chimpanzees sleep and what we have in common with orangutans. Meet some of the first primates and come face-to-face with a giant orangutan that stomped the earth 350,000 years ago! Stories and movies haven't always been kind to apes but this book shows us how incredible they really are and highlights the remarkable ways that they communicate with and care for one another.
Take control of needle and thread with this stylish little introduction to the practical skills of sewing Do you need to sew a button back on? Or let out your pant legs? Or cut fabric from a pattern? Sewing is a highly satisfying and useful skill, but it can look forbidding from the outside. This handy guide breaks everything down for you so you can pick up the fundamental skills one by one, leaving you confident to take on repairs, alterations, and even make simple patterns from scratch. Youll learn how to how to fix a button, hem, sew a buttonhole, add a pocket to a garment, and how to sew a pleat. There are hand and machine stitches, and youll pick up the basics of dressmaking too: how to measure, check fit, and adjust a garment or pattern.
Stylish and super-practical, this introduction to the key skills of crochet has exactly the skills you need to master this perennially popular craftCrochet: Just What You Need packs a remarkable amount of useful content into a pocket-size practical package. With it, you'll be able to enjoy the calm of crocheting beautiful things in no time at all. You'll master seven basic stitches and techniques, thanks to detailed step-by-step instructions. When you're comfortable with them, move on to fourteen patterns for flat circles, squares and patches that can be stitched together into blankets, or try some more advanced stitchesfifteen more are detailed. Finally, you'll learn how to add decorations, make floral buttonholes, and join pieces so you can make the most of your squares and patches. For absolute clarity, everything is illustrated with appealing two-color line art, and the book is so stylishly packaged that you'll want to gift it to everyone!
A compact survey of photographer Paolo Roversi's romantic, intense and ethereal fashion images and portraits. Born in Ravenna, Italy, in 1947, Paolo Roversi discovered photography at the age of seventeen on a family holiday. A chance meeting with photographer Peter Knapp led him to move to Paris in the early 1970s, where he first encountered the world of fashion. His career truly began when he became an assistant to Laurence Sackman, who taught him the photographer's craft. Now based in Paris for more than thirty years, Roversi is famed for his use of large-format Polaroid film to capture images of ethereal beauty, vulnerability and romanticism. Working in evocative monochrome or carefully articulated colour, he collaborates regularly with the world's top supermodels and designers, and has shot for many leading fashion magazines and international ad campaigns.
A beautifully illustrated ode to the wonders of travel, from the illustrator of Morris and the Magic of Stories. When an alley cat named Pip finds a ticket for a round-the-world trip that nobody wants, the scene is set for a globetrotting adventure. Follow Pip from Paris to Tokyo and from India to Brazil and beyond, and meet a wonderful world of international cats. Enchanting illustrations are packed with delightful details that will keep young readers coming back again and again!
Discover the wonderful world of insects in this beautiful 3D search-and-find book.
Published in association with the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, this vivid and visually engaging large-format book offers a detailed journey through Hockney's remarkable life and career. Playful, keen eyed, ever curious, David Hockney is one of our greatest living artists. Published in association with the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, and tied to its major 2025 exhibition, David Hockney charts an extraordinarily creative life through images and text in one large-format landscape book. The artworks chosen reflect Hockney's key themes and preoccupations over the decades, from his early life in Bradford and London through the California era and his later years in Bridlington, Yorkshire, and Normandy, France. Several of the chapters are arranged thematically, ranging from still life and portraits to his much-loved landscapes and stunning designs for opera. A final chapter explores Hockney's engagement with digital art, particularly on the iPad. Throughout, we see the endless inventiveness, curiosity and creativity that have characterized Hockney's work over eight decades. To give context to Hockney's art, this definitive survey features a selection of archival photographs and eye-catching artworks allied to expertly written text by pre-eminent curatorial experts, art historians and critics, including Sir Norman Rosenthal and Sir Simon Schama. Compiled with the full involvement of David Hockney and his studio, and with a large-scale landscape format with a selection of gatefolds that enables the reader to revel in the art, this is the most important book on Hockney's entire career to date and will appeal to the many fans of the artist's work across the globe.
Sega Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works is the ultimate retrospective of the console, featuring development and concept illustrations for Sega's best-loved game franchises, original developer interviews and previously unseen hardware production plans. Much of the visual material - drawn from the Sega of Japan archives - has never been released before. Alongside the illustrated history is 'Arcade Perfect', a written history of the console and its legacy by Guardian Games Editor Keith Stuart, which features the voices of Sega executives and industry luminaries - including the company's founder David Rosen, its president Hayao Nakayama, Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske and many more. The book opens with a foreword by legendary developer David Perry, on the console that catalysed his career. Concluding the book are 28 specially-conducted interviews with original Sega developers and team members, including Naoto Ohshima (Sonic The Hedgehog), Yu Suzuki (Space Harrier), Greg Johnson & Mark Voorsanger (ToeJam & Earl), Makoto Uchida (Golden Axe) and Yuji Naka (Sonic The Hedgehog). New to this expanded edition are a raft of newly discovered box art paintings, including Alien Soldier, Kid Chameleon, The Super Shinobi II, Sonic The Hedgehog, Phantasy Star: The End of the Millennium and many more. Also new to the book are the original design documents for iconic brawler Streets of Rage 2/Bare Knuckle II and Treasure's unique platformer Dynamite Headdy, both translated from the original Japanese.
Turn forty humble vegetables into majestic mealtime heroes. From everyday staples like carrots, broccoli and onions to seasonal stars like asparagus, sweetcorn and runner beans, Vegetable Genius will elevate your produce to a starring role, either as a main meal or tasty side dish. Each vegetable has five fuss-free recipes that require minimal ingredients - yet taste so delicious you'll want to make them time and again. Discover mouth-watering dals, dips, slaw, stews, cakes, stacks, fritters, puddings and more! With 200 recipes, this will become an everyday go-to reference for the modern home cook.
A manifesto for the future of architectural practice and the necessity of good design to modern life, by renowned British architect Richard Rogers. Written in what architect Richard Rogers regarded as a moment of crisis in modern architecture, this essay considers how the way we build - and live - might change for the better. Poor design, monotony and inhuman scale are, Roger argues, not the results of a lack of talent nor the failures of the Modern Movement, but of a surrender to exploitative economic systems and inconsiderate business interests. Best known for his work on the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg and the Lloyd's building and Millennium Dome in London, Rogers was perhaps the most original and inventive architect of his time, and was a frequent commentator on the contemporary scene. As a practitioner, he was in the best position possible to appreciate how economic forces can create - or frustrate - good design. A succinct summary of his design philosophies, Richard Rogers on Modern Architecture continues to be a powerful manifesto.
A highly acclaimed novelist on the way in which the landscape has both influenced and been represented in British Romantic literature.
A children's non-fiction book about ocean habitats that places the reader in the diving mask of an ocean explorer. Young adventurers are taken on an intrepid journey around the world to discover five incredible oceans. Starting in the Arctic, they will explore Røst Reef, the world's largest cold water coral reef before moving gradually into warmer waters in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, and finally the icy Southern Ocean. Using clever die-cuts and gatefold pages, the book explains how oceans form, the difference between a sea and an ocean, water zones, tides and currents, and reveals some truly astonishing species, from sea squirts and killer whales to the telescope octopus. Written by children's non-fiction author Rachel Elliot, this book features fascinating facts and immersive descriptions in combination with novelty pull-outs, expedition logs and infographics to bring oceans to life.
A vibrant contemporary art anthology that explores the complex ties between race, climate crisis, and colonialism by over 150 leading artists of African diasporic, Latin American, and Native American identity.
A large format, highly illustrated book published in collaboration with Vacheron Constantin to mark the house's 270th anniversary. Founded in 1755, Vacheron Constantin is the world's oldest watchmaker in continuous operation. Its extraordinary creations embody the highest watchmaking values while demonstrating an understated elegance that combines tradition with a spirit of innovation. Published to celebrate the house's 270th anniversary, Vacheron Constantin: Inspiration showcases not only the highest standards of fine craftsmanship and finishing in the world of watchmaking, but also the union of high-precision technical expertise with the artistic crafts of past centuries. Featuring specially commissioned photography and illustrations, the book explores seventy of Vacheron Constantin's most distinctive, groundbreaking and exquisite timepieces, ranging in date from the late eighteenth century to the present day. Four thematic chapters provide an unrivalled exploration of the craftsmanship, innovation and artistry behind more than a quarter of a century of watchmaking, revealing how each watch bears its own unique technical and aesthetic signature. As anyone interested in classic and high-end watches will find when opening this beautifully produced book, the discovery of a Vacheron Constantin watch is a moment to be savoured.
A collection of extraordinary nineteenth-century portraits that radically shift our understanding of the presence and identities of the Black subject in Victorian Britain.
An art book about art that has a purpose, focusing on work by Quentin Blake that has been commissioned for a particular place or for a particular use. Illustration is the most accessible visual artform and one that is used in all aspects of life; as Quentin Blake says, 'it is, if you like, a vernacular; it's a language that everybody understands. They may look at it and not think that they're looking at art, but it's having the effect on them of art. It's a language that everybody can read, so to speak.' The work here shows Quentin using this vernacular to great effect and for very different purposes. In 2007 when Elizabeth II was opening the new Eurostar at St Pancras, Quentin was asked to hide an unsightly building across the road. He drew a 2-colour illustration on his drawing board showing a cast of characters that you might meet on a London Street; this was then blown up large enough to wrap a five-storey building. Since then he has found other opportunities for site specific work. Here are beautiful drawings of new-borns, mothers and fathers in a maternity hospital in France. Some images were etched, larger than life-size, on the external glass of the building as well as used in corridors and delivery suites. Most recently Quentin has done a series of drawings of everyday life for the family rooms for prisons across the UK. And charities have benefited from Quentin's enjoyment of drawing for a purpose; the Roald Dahl Marvellous Charity's logo and cards; for Comic Relief's two virtual pantomimes during lockdown, he drew the scene changes for Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast which were then auctioned; he created a rainbow for the NHS trust mug, and posters for Islington Libraries to encourage reading. All these and more are featured in this charming book, which opens with a foreword by Quentin Blake, and includes photographs of him at work.
A long-overdue evaluation of John Walker's work from the last half century. John Walker's prolific painting career spans over sixty years. His practice is inspired by a range of visual references, notably the work of Goya, Matisse, the Abstract Expressionists and the art of Oceania, as well as by shapes and pattern motifs evoking history, time and place; however, his work cannot readily be defined as abstract or figurative, and his guiding thought is to have a conversation with the art of the past to embrace feeling and touch, and as Goya put it, to be aware of the sound of the brush. His desire to 'own' a subject is present in his engagement with the bay at Seal Point, Maine, near where he has lived for many years: 'It's about capturing something no one else has seen'. Walker's works are in major museums and private collections internationally, and he has exhibited in museums in the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand and China. Despite winning the John Moores Painting Prize in 1976, and being nominated for 1985's Turner Prize, he has exercised a resistance to reputation-building, and visualizes his studio practice as a slow, evolving process. His uncompromising judgments infuse the work, and are one reason he remains an artist respected and closely watched by many other artists, increasingly by younger admirers. Including essays by Catherine Lampert and Alex Bacon, this immersive new monograph is a long-overdue evaluation of Walker's work from the past half century, connecting key works with new perspectives and historical influences, and examining the role of form, colour and presence in his masterly paintings.
A luscious survey of forty-five of the most interesting tropical houses built in south-east Asia and Australia over the last thirty years, arranged decade by decade. This stunningly illustrated volume present forty-five of the most interesting tropical houses of the last thirty years, surveying India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia and northern Australia, arranged decade by decade. Author Patrick Bingham-Hall sets the houses in context arguing that climate, colonization and modernism, as well as geo-political events since the end of World War II, and even air conditioning, have created a very specific set of circumstances and therefore houses. These are buildings with pitched roofs, broad overhangs and eaves, verandas, big doors and windows, that optimize airflow and solar orientation. Larger-than-life, open to the elements, this is soaring architecture with a strong sense of place. Bingham-Hall makes the case that this is architecture that's environmentally attuned and innately sustainable. It's also a book of lush, jaw-dropping houses that seamlessly blend indoor and out, in locations anyone would want to visit.
A richly illustrated sourcebook of two-dimensional pattern and three dimensional ornamentation, presenting more than 1,000 historic and contemporary examples from around the world. The wealth of surface pattern and three-dimensional ornamentation in the many objects that enrich our lives is testament to the inventiveness of designers and craftspeople around the globe and throughout history. This richly illustrated, easy-to-navigate sourcebook presents more than 1,000 historic and contemporary examples of pattern and ornamentation from around the world, each one succinctly identified and explained. Arranged thematically, it is unique among pattern books, as it includes examples not only of surface pattern but also of three-dimensional ornamentation and embellishment. Two-dimensional pattern is ubiquitous, no matter what the age of an object or where it was created. From Japanese kimono and William Morris fabrics to Chinese porcelain and contemporary furniture, such works reveal humanity's unceasing desire to combine pattern with design. Just as prevalent are examples of three-dimensional embellishments that go far beyond the requirements of their practical use: an acrylic handbag has a carved motif of insects and wildflowers, a cobalt-blue pottery ewer has a dragon's-head spout and an early 19th-century fruit plate is shaped like a seashell. Designers working today are as fascinated and inspired by pattern and ornament as they have always been. This expertly compiled selection will appeal to designers, artists, illustrators and other creatives from all disciplines as well as anyone interested in visual and material culture.
This comedic journey through science history explores ten mind-bending accidents and experiments that take us inside the brain to discover how it works. Written by professor of neuroscience Caswell Barry, together with his good friend, the children's author Lucy Ann Unwin, Inside Your Brain takes readers on an irreverent gallop through history to uncover ten groundbreaking discoveries that led to our current understanding of how the brain works. The human brain is famously complex and difficult to understand. The brain is also essential to how we function - so much so, that you can't simply poke a stick at it to see what happens. However, if someone accidentally pokes a stick through their own brain, there's a lot we can learn... The ancient Egyptians discovered in battle that the brain was more important than they'd thought; Luigi Galvani sent electric shocks through dead frogs' legs and uncovered how brain cells work; Phineas Gage's unfortunate accident on the railroads revealed that you can survive a metal rod through the head because the brain operates using separate regions; while some unwitting kittens helped us understand how our brain develops. This book also touches on our present and future potential to continue testing the brain, such as how we can learn an enormous amount about how the brain processes information from AI, without experimenting on a human subject. This entertaining and engaging deep dive into the most mind-boggling area of science is sure to fascinate and delight young readers.
Part of the charming series inspired by the Forest School movement, teaching young children how to engage with nature from season to season. A Field Guide to Summer is a pocket-sized introduction to summer, inspired by the Forest School movement. Building on children's natural curiosity about the world around them, this book aims to establish a connection with nature at an early age that will go on to last a lifetime! Hunt for bugs, build your own sun dial, identify different trees and make your own flower crown. Discover how caterpillars transform into butterflies and why bees are so busy in summertime. This book features lyrical poems, hands-on crafts and activities, scientific facts and identifier pages to help children spot different animals and plants. Whether a child's access to nature is in the form of an urban park, a private garden, a field, or a forest, there is so much to discover and experience.
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