Art & Culture

Has there ever been a more charismatic and intriguing rock star than David Bowie?In Starman, Paul Trynka has painted the definitive portrait of a great artist. From Bowie's early years in post-war, bombed-out Brixton to the decadent glamour of Ziggy Stardust to the controversial but vital Berlin period, this essential biography is a celebration of Bowie's brilliance and a timely reminder of how great music is made - now with an update on the making and release of The Next Day.

This fascinating biography provides a detailed portrait of the high-energy, charismatic international superstar and frontman of the ever-popular band, Bon Jovi. The book charts Jon's relationship with the other band members who have their fair share of rock and roll stories - sex, booze, burnouts, health and women problems. Although rock music is Jon Bon Jovi's first love, he has more recently developed an interest in acting - starring in various hit TV shows such as Ally McBeal and Sex and the City and attracting critical acclaim for his role in World War II hit film, U-571. He has also scored film music, with his score for Young Guns earning him an Oscar nomination. Bestselling writer Laura Jackson explores the personality, character, drive and the determination that have taken him from playing New Jersey clubs through all the groupie excess and glamorous indulgence to where the band is today. Two new chapters in this updated edition detail his recent work for charity, his involvement in politics and football and also give an update on the band's new albums and tours.

John Berger's writings on photography are some of the most original of the twentieth century. This selection contains many groundbreaking essays and previously uncollected pieces written for exhibitions and catalogues in which Berger probes the work of photographers such as Henri Cartier-Bresson and W. Eugene Smith - and the lives of those photographed - with fierce engagement, intensity and tenderness.The selection is made and introduced by Geoff Dyer, author of the award-winning The Ongoing Moment.How do we see the world around us? This is one of a number of pivotal works by creative thinkers whose writings on art, design and the media have changed our vision for ever.John Berger was born in London in 1926. His acclaimed works of both fiction and non-fiction include the seminal Ways of Seeing and the novel G., which won the Booker Prize in 1972. In 1962 he left Britain permanently, and he now lives in a small village in the French Alps.Geoff Dyer is the author of four novels and several non-fiction books. Winner of the Lannan Literary Award, the International Centre of Photography's 2006 Infinity Award and the American Academy of Arts and Letters's E. M. Forster Award, Dyer is also a regular contributor to many publications in the UK and the US. He lives in London.

Tom Jones' Over the Top and Back is at this special price NOW . . . 'For a lot of years, I've answered a lot of questions, but have never told my story before.'Across six decades, Sir Tom Jones has maintained a vital career in a risky, unstable business notorious for the short lives of its artists. With a drive that comes from nothing but the love for what he does, he breaks through and then wrestles with the vagaries of the music industry, the nature of success and its inevitable consequences. Having recorded an expansive body of work and performed with fellow artists from across the spectrum and across every popular music genre, from rock, pop and dance to country, blues and soul, the one constant throughout has been his unique musical gifts and unmistakable voice.But how did a boy from a Welsh coal-mining family attain success across the globe? And how has he survived the twists and turns of fame and fortune to not only stay exciting, but actually become more credible and interesting with age? In this, his first ever autobiography, Tom revisits his past and tells the tale of his journey from wartime Pontypridd to LA and beyond. He reveals the stories behind the ups and downs of his fascinating and remarkable life, from the early heydays to the subsequent fallow years to his later period of artistic renaissance.It's the story nobody else knows or understands, told by the man who lived it, and written the only way he knows how: simply and from the heart.Raw, honest, funny and powerful, this is a memoir like no other from one of the world's greatest ever singing talents.This is Tom Jones and Over the Top and Back is his story.

The unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of the hugely successful The Fry Chronicles, brilliantly read by Stephen Fry himself. Thirteen years ago, Moab is my Washpot, Stephen Frys autobiography of his early years, was published to rave reviews and was a huge bestseller. In those thirteen years since, Stephen Fry has moved into a completely new stratosphere, both as a public figure, and a private man. Now he is not just a multi-award-winning comedian and actor, but also an author, director and presenter. In January 2010, he was awarded the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards. Much loved by the public and his peers, Stephen Fry is one of the most influential cultural forces in the country. This dazzling memoir promises to be a courageously frank, honest and poignant read. It will detail some of the most turbulent and least well known years of his life with a reading that will excite you, make you laugh uproariously, move you, inform you and, above all, surprise you.

Unfaithful Music and Disappearing Ink is the long-awaited memoir from Elvis Costello, one of rock and roll's most iconic stars.Born Declan Patrick MacManus, Elvis Costello was raised in London and Liverpool, grandson of a trumpet player on the White Star Line and son of a jazz musician who became a successful radio dance band vocalist. Costello went into the family business and had taken the popular music world by storm before he was twenty-four.Costello continues to add to one of the most intriguing and extensive songbooks of the day. His performances have taken him from a cardboard guitar in his front room to fronting a rock and roll band on your television screen and performing in the world's greatest concert halls in a wild variety of company. Unfaithful Music describes how Costello's career has somehow endured for almost four decades through a combination of dumb luck and animal cunning, even managing the occasional absurd episode of pop stardom.The memoir, written entirely by Costello himself, offers his unique view of his unlikely and sometimes comical rise to international success, with diversions through the previously undocumented emotional foundations of some of his best known songs and the hits of tomorrow. The book contains many stories and observations about his renowned co-writers and co-conspirators, though Costello also pauses along the way for considerations on the less appealing side of infamy.Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink is destined to be a classic, idiosyncratic memoir of a singular man.

Build your photography skills week-by-weekThe Digital Photography Complete Course is the perfect one-on-one learning programme for any aspiring photographer. This modular 20-week course guides you through every aspect of digital photography, using a combination of tutorials, step-by-step photo shoots, practical assignments and fun Q&As. Demystify digital photography and build your photography skills with comprehensive guides on everything you need to know, from conveying movement and using natural light, to understanding exposure and mastering composition.

From Neil MacGregor, the author of A History of the World in 100 Objects, this is a view of Germany like no otherToday, as the dominant economic force in Europe, Germany looms as large as ever over world affairs. But how much do we really understand about it, and how do its people understand themselves?In this enthralling new book, Neil MacGregor guides us through the complex history, culture and identity of this most mercurial of countries by telling the stories behind 30 objects in his uniquely magical way. Beginning with the fifteenth-century invention of the Gutenberg press, MacGregor ventures beyond the usual sticking point of the Second World War to get to the heart of a nation that has given us Luther and Hitler, the Beetle and Brecht - and remade our world again and again. This is a view of Germany like no other.Neil MacGregor has been Director of the British Museum since August 2002. He was Director of the National Gallery in London from 1987 to 2002. His celebrated books include A History of the World in 100 Objects, now translated into more than a dozen languages and one of the top-selling titles ever published by Penguin Press, and Shakespeare's Restless World.

George Michael is an enigma. While he is one of the most open and vocal pop superstars on the planet, he also fiercely protective of his privacy. From the formation of Wham! In 1981 he immediately found fame and fortune beyond his wildest dreams. His music formed the soundtrack to the 1980s and he achieved all of this despite growing up in a dysfunctional family where his father openly proclaimed that George had no talent.Wham! split in 1986 but Michael went on to greater things as a solo artist. Along the way he has been embroiled in several controversies, but in refreshing contrast to other superstars, he has been happy to address his issues head-on in the media. Rob Jovanovic's biography tackles all the issues that formed George Michael and his place as a cultural icon. It also, for the first time, analyses Michael's musical output and groundbreaking videos.

A number 1 bestseller, this definitive biography of Michael Jackson is now completely updated to include the events leading to the untimely death of the star. J. Randy Taraborrelli is the expert on Michael Jackson, having known him since they were both teenagers and having interviewed the singer and his family many times. So much has been written about the life and career of Michael Jackson that it has become almost impossible to disentangle the man from the myth. J. Randy Taraborrelli cuts through the tabloid rumours and innuendo, the conflicting stories and lurid accusations, to reveal the real man. From his drilling as a child star through the blooming of his talent, from his ever-changing personal appearance to his marriages, from his addictions to his love for his children, we see what motivated one of the greatest performers of all time. Objective and revealing, this book combines impeccable research, brilliant story-telling and a clear-sighted understanding of the forces that shaped Michael's life and his death. 'The most authoritative book ever written about Michael Jackson' Daily Mail 'A superbly researched investigation' heat

David Mitchell, who you may know for his inappropriate anger on every TV panel show except Never Mind the Buzzcocks, his look of permanent discomfort on C4 sex comedy Peep Show, his online commenter-baiting in The Observer or just for wearing a stick-on moustache in That Mitchell and Webb Look, has written a book about his life.As well as giving a specific account of every single time he's scored some smack, this disgusting memoir also details:* the singular, pitbull-infested charm of the FRP ('Flat Roofed Pub')* the curious French habit of injecting everyone in the arse rather than the arm* why, by the time he got to Cambridge, he really, really needed a drink* the pain of being denied a childhood birthday party at McDonalds* the satisfaction of writing jokes about suicide* how doing quite a lot of walking around London helps with his sciatica* trying to pretend he isn't a total **** at Robert Webb's wedding* that he has fallen in love at LOT, but rarely done anything about it* why it would be worse to bump into Michael Palin than Hitler on holiday* that he's not David Mitchell the novelist. Despite what David Miliband might think

In this electrifying autobiography, Rik stands naked in front of his vast legions of fans and disciples and invites them to take communion with the blood he has spilled for them during his thirty year war on show business.He invented alternative comedy with The Young Ones, he brought down the Thatcher administration with The New Statesman and he changed the face of global culture with his masterpiece Bottom. Not only was his number one single Living Doll the saviour of rock 'n' roll but he also rescued the British film industry with the vast revenues created by his legendary movie Drop Dead Fred. In 1998, he survived an assassination attempt and spent five days in a coma before he literally came back from the dead. Having completed countless phenomenal feature films, TV series, live extravaganzas and radio voice-overs since then, Rik Mayall is now poised on the brink of a whole new epoch-shattering revolution.For the first time ever, Rik reveals in print the deep inner truth behind his gargantuan ascent to the pinnacle of international light entertainment - the mental hospitals he has broken out of, the television executives he has assaulted, the drugs he has definitely not taken, the charities he has bankrupted, the countless pregnancies he has engendered, and so much more.

Sales PointsKurland¿s photographs of rebel girls in the American landscape are stirring and iconicThis radical vision of community and feminism is highly relevant todayA book for anyone captivated by the American road and 1990s youth cultureAdditional Comp TitlesSam Contis: Deep Springs. 9781910164860, $45.00 USD (MACK, 2017)Mike Brodie: A Period of Juvenile. 9781936611027, $75.00 USD (Twin Palms, 2013)Lise Sarfati: She. 9781936611003, $95.00 USD (Twin Palms, 2012) Girl Pictures also featured in: The Financial Times, Forthcoming May 2020 Vogue Italia, Forthcoming May 2020

Following the success of Portrait of Britain and Portrait of Humanity, this second edition of the latter brings together 200 new portraits taken by photographers of all levels from all over the world, selected from tens of thousands of entries. The publication supports a world-touring exhibition which will visit USA, India, Hungary and among other places, bringing global exposure to the book. Each image in the book is accompanied by a short, telling story from each photographer, bringing home the humanity of those photographed.

Derived from the XXL monograph which saw TASCHEN undertake a comprehensive photographic survey of the artist's oeuvre, this compact edition explores Bruegel's 40 paintings through exceptional details and reproductions. We discover how, using his own pictorial language in scenes teeming with minutiae, Bruegel captured the theater of life.

A stunning insight into the homes of some of Britain's most acclaimed interior designers

An up-to-date selection of authentic stencil graffiti art from the new generation of street artists and provocateurs.

Author Gayla Partridge draws upon her knowledge of phrenology, anatomy, floral design and Ouija to create deeply imaginative embroidery art.

A definitive deep-dive into queer history and culture with hit reality show RuPaul's Drag Race as a touchstone, by the creators of the pop culture blog Tom and LorenzoA New York Times New & Noteworthy bookOne of Logo/NewNowNext's "11 Queer Books We Can't Wait to Read This Spring"From the singular voices behind Tom and Lorenzo comes the ultimate guide to all-things RuPaul's Drag Race and its influence on modern LGBTQ culture. Legendary Children centers itself around the idea that not only is RuPaul's Drag Race the queerest show in the history of television, but that RuPaul and company devised a show that serves as an actual museum of queer cultural and social history, drawing on queer traditions and the work of legendary figures going back nearly a century. In doing so, Drag Race became not only a repository of queer history and culture, but also an examination and illustration of queer life in the modern age. It is a snapshot of how LGBTQ folks live, struggle, work, and reach out to one another--and how they always have--and every bit of it is tied directly to Drag Race. Each chapter is an examination of a specific aspect of the show--the Werk Room, the Library, the Pit Crew, the runway, the Untucked lounge, the Snatch Game--that ties to a specific aspect of queer cultural history and/or the work of certain legendary figures in queer cultural history.

The first survey on the interdisciplinary biodesign genius of Neri Oxman, pioneer of "material ecology" Throughout her 20-year career, Neri Oxman has invented not only new ideas for materials, buildings and construction processes, but also new frameworks for interdisciplinary¿and interspecies¿collaborations. She coined the term ¿material ecology¿ to describe her process of producing techniques and objects informed by the structural, systemic and aesthetic wisdom of nature, from the shells of crustaceans to the flow of human breathing. Groundbreaking for its solid technological and scientific basis, its rigorous and daring experimentation, its visionary philosophy and its unquestionable attention to formal elegance, Oxman¿s work operates at the intersection of biology, engineering, architecture and artistic design, material science and computer science. This book¿designed by Irma Boom and published to accompany a midcareer retrospective of Oxman¿s work¿highlights the interdisciplinary nature of the designer¿s practice. It demonstrates how Oxman¿s contributions allow us to question and redefine the idea of modernism¿a concept in constant evolution¿and of organic design. Some of the projects featured in the book and exhibition include the Silk Pavilion, which harnesses silkworms' ability to generate a 3-D cocoon out of a single thread silk in order to create architectural constructions; Aguahoja, a water-based fabrication platform that prints structures made out of different biopolymers; and Glass, an additive manufacturing technology for 3-D printing optically transparent glass structures at architectural dimensions.

This book offers an outstanding retrospective collection of the master of 20th-century photography, Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Shortlisted for the Textile Society of America's R.L. Shep Award 2020. The kimono is the ultimate symbol of Japan, revered as the embodiment of national culture and regarded internationally as an exotic fascination. Often viewed as unchanging and timeless, this book counters that, presenting the kimono as highly dynamic and fashionable.

Pottery and Porcelain Restoration is a practical guide for amateurs to the craft of the professional restorer. With over 360 photographs, it explains the simplest, safest and ethical techniques that are recommended today and - essentially - do not further damage your pieces. Written with clear practical detail, it explains the full process and gives unique insight into the delicate job of the ceramic restorer. This new book introduces the history of pottery and porcelain, and gives an account of the methods and ethics of ceramic restoration; it gives a complete list and details of materials and equipment, and particularly advises on the best choice of glues; it describes the full restoration process, from preparation and cleaning to gluing and modelling, and finally to painting and gilding and provides step-by-step instructions for gluing multiple breaks, filling chips and large missing areas, as well as making lids, teapot spouts, hands, leaves, fingers and handles. Restoration examples are illustrated such as making Beswick horse legs, replacing missing handles on a Chinese jug and painting a Clarice Cliff jug and, finally, vital tricks of the trade are shared throughout and useful tips to setting up a workshop are given.

World of IT explores the films' singular aesthetic and meticulous world-building. This compendium includes commentary from director Andy Muschietti; producers Barbara Muschietti, Dan Lin, and Roy Lee; the acclaimed ensemble cast; and other creative players who helped bring a new, disturbing vision of King's perennial bestseller to life.

This book explains the basic sketching techniques and decisions more in depth and provides much more step-by-step example drawings, which makes it even more suitable for students and professionals who want to become better sketchers.

Accessible and jargon-free guide to drawing faces and figures

An instructional step-by-step guide devoted to drawing really cute food for young and old.

40 artists, filmmakers, illustrators and fans produce original art for a tribute to the sci-fi horror masterpiece Alien to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the film.

For the first time, Daido Moriyama explains his entire approach to photography

Reporting live from "everywhere," photographer Adam Katz Sinding (formerly known as Le 21eme) travels around the globe to document the fashion zeitgeist.