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An original, accessible and comprehensive guide to the ever-popular master Surrealist, René Magritte

A fascinating journey through the self-reflexive and conceptually-inflected documentary photography of the 20th century, with plenty of surprises alongside the well-known landmarks. Twenty years ago, at the Basel Art Fair, Astrid Ullens bought a photograph by Brancusi, more or less on the spur of the moment. This proved to be the first step in the formation of an impressive collection that today comprises more than 5,000 photographs, some by such renowned figures as Lewis Baltz, Lee Friedlander, Helen Levitt and Walker Evans, others by young photographers like Francesco Neri, Georges Senga, Massao Mascaro and Tarrah Krajnak. This substantial volume provides an excellent introduction to the collection of Ullens' Fondation A Stichting, with more than 100 photographers plentifully represented in no fewer than 2,000 images. In doing so, it takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the self-reflexive and conceptually-inflected documentary photography of the 20th century, with plenty of surprises alongside the well-known landmarks. It also offers a portrait of a cohort of photographers who still, in one way or another, have sought to give the viewer a better understanding of the world, of nature, mankind, society, and photography itself. As well as the images and brief entries on each photographer, the book includes several essays by scholars and others, among them curator Urs Stahel, author and journalist Guy Duyplat, and photographers Nicholas Nixon, Judith Joy Ross and Jim Goldberg. An indispensable volume for all lovers of photography, SAGA is to be published to coincide with the exhibition When Images Learn To Speak at Les Rencontres d'Arles in the summer of 2024.

The ultimate publication on Hokuei, the master of Osaka ukiyo-e printmakers and one of the most intriguing artists ever in kabuki-actor prints.Hokuei: Masterpieces of Japanese Actor Prints profiles one of the most intriguing artists ever in kabuki-actor design: Shunbaisai Hokuei (active 1828-1836). A culminating figure in Osaka printmaking, Hokuei produced more masterworks than any other artist of his day. The prints, all shown in color, are largely drawn from the most extensive collection of Hokuei's works to be found anywhere. The book presents two chapters on the artist's life and work, situating his oeuvre within the demimonde of pleasure and entertainment known as the Floating World (Ukiyo). An early chapter discusses the production of Japanese prints and leads into a central section highlighting fifty-six meticulously researched masterworks in remarkable condition. The world of kabuki comes alive in fascinating detail, while assessments of design and technical attributes bring into focus the achievements of Hokuei and printmaking artisans of his age. Of particular importance for scholars and collectors, there is a fully illustrated and annotated catalogue raisonné of 270 prints—the artist's entire known print oeuvre—including designs not to be found anywhere else. As an added bonus, all Japanese inscriptions are translated into English. Well-illustrated appendices cover essential tabulations of Hokuei's prints and their formats, his students, his artist signatures and seals, publishers, carvers, printers, theaters, a glossary, an index, and a bibliography. All-told, the range of comprehensive information featured in this publication make it a singular reference not only for admirers of Hokuei, but also for those interested in the world of actors on stage.

A fascinating journey through the self-reflexive and conceptually-inflected documentary photography of the 20th century, with plenty of surprises alongside the well-known landmarks. Twenty years ago, at the Basel Art Fair, Astrid Ullens bought a photograph by Brancusi, more or less on the spur of the moment. This proved to be the first step in the formation of an impressive collection that today comprises more than 5,000 photographs, some by such renowned figures as Lewis Baltz, Lee Friedlander, Helen Levitt and Walker Evans, others by young photographers like Francesco Neri, Georges Senga, Massao Mascaro and Tarrah Krajnak. This substantial volume provides an excellent introduction to the collection of Ullens' Fondation A Stichting, with more than 100 photographers plentifully represented in no fewer than 2,000 images. In doing so, it takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the self-reflexive and conceptually-inflected documentary photography of the 20th century, with plenty of surprises alongside the well-known landmarks. It also offers a portrait of a cohort of photographers who still, in one way or another, have sought to give the viewer a better understanding of the world, of nature, mankind, society, and photography itself. As well as the images and brief entries on each photographer, the book includes several essays by scholars and others, among them curator Urs Stahel, author and journalist Guy Duyplat, and photographers Nicholas Nixon, Judith Joy Ross and Jim Goldberg. An indispensable volume for all lovers of photography, SAGA is to be published to coincide with the exhibition When Images Learn To Speak at Les Rencontres d'Arles in the summer of 2024.

Hiroshige: Nature and the City is the most extensive overview of the career of the famed Japanese print artist, Utagawa Hiroshige (1797¿1858) in the English language to date. It is based on the largest collection of Hiroshige in private hands outside Japan, the Alan Medaugh collection. The catalogue consists of 500 entries, with an emphasis on urban and rural landscapes, fan prints and prints of birds and flowers. Grouped chronologically by subject it presents Hiroshige¿s interpretation of the urban scenes from his hometown Edo (present-day Tokyo), the great series documenting travel along the famous highways of Japan, and the idylls of nature as represented in his bird-andflower prints. Hiroshige often incorporated poetry in his works and for the first time all textual content is transcribed and translated. Additionally, the catalogue pays due attention to the differences between variant editions of his prints. Thus, it provides essential comparative material for every scholar, dealer, and collector. Five essays precede the catalogue section, each written by specialists in the field. Rhiannon Paget (Curator of Asian Art at The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art) provides a general introduction to Hiroshige¿s life and career. Andreas Marks (Curator Minneapolis Museum of Art) contributes two essays: on the publishers of Hiroshige¿s prints and on Hiroshige¿s collaborative works designed with his colleagues. Shiho Sasaki (conservation specialist at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco) discusses the pigment use in Hiroshige¿s prints while John Carpenter (Curator of Japanese Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art) investigates the source of the poetry of Hiroshige bird-and-flower prints.

This lavishly illustrated book gives an overview of the celebrated photographer Ruud van Empel's career, from the 1990's up to today. Lush vegetation in a jungle, butterflies in a field of colorful, blooming flowers. The work of Ruud van Empel (Breda, 1958) initially seems lovely, but appearances are deceptive: 'The struggle for life and death continues day and night in nature,' says the artist. Van Empel's works are wondrous and alienating at the same time. For however normal it may seem, he brings together things that never come together in reality. He uses countless details of people, plants, animals or objects photographed by himself to cut and paste digitally. On the computer, he assembles this material into a composition, a process that, until 1995, was done in an analog way. The resulting `collages¿ are ingenious and realistic, but the images do not exist in real life. With painting, film and (staged) photography as his sources of inspiration, he has, like a pioneer, developed a new genre. He himself speaks of `building a photographic image¿ or `photo-objects¿. With his precisely composed scenes, worked out to the smallest details, Van Empel plays with image-making. His fictional worlds seduce, they lead the viewer astray or cause a sense of discomfort. Without seeking controversy, there are 'other' meanings lurking under the surface of Van Empel's aesthetic images. In doing so, he shows us how we are influenced by different visual cultures in everyday life. This monograph offers an overview of Van Empel's oeuvre from the 1990s to the present day.

Women and men ¿ strong, proud, tragic or beautiful ¿ from the heyday (1765¿1865) of Japanese printmaking are this book¿s subject. It seeks to dig below the surface of the prints to describe the often subtle iconography employed in these masterful creations by the most famous artists of their time. It begins with Suzuki Harunobüs subdued and introverted scenes of women seated on verandas. The book then moves on to the spectacular `big face¿ (okubi-e) portraits of prostitutes and Kabuki actors by artists like Kitagawa Utamaro, Toshusai Sharaku and Utagawa Kunimasa. Frail `streetwalkers¿, forced by circumstance into the lowest ranks of prostitution, are transformed into elegant beauties, obscuring their tragic existence. The spectacle of heroes from Japan¿s rich mythological and pseudo-historical past crowd the printed sheet. Stern-faced actors drawn by the confident hands of Utagawa Toyokuni and his pupil Kunisada demonstrate the economy of line and powerful expression of the woodblock medium. Each print is explored in the finest detail in order to explain the riddles of Ukiyo-e ¿the intriguing and captivating mode of visual expression that would have such a profound influence on Western art.

We live in a single-use society, where fashion is fast, disposability is the norm and it is easier to replace than to repair. We don¿t need to mend things anymore ¿ and yet we do. What is it about Homo faber ¿ man the maker ¿ that cannot resist fixing what is broken? As we start to decouple from the linear take-make-waste model that has dominated Western economies since the Industrial Revolution and seek something more circular, an enquiry into what mending means has never been more urgent. With a foreword by The Repair Shop¿s Jay Blades, this new book by craft and circularity advocate Katie Treggiden celebrates 25 artists, curators, menders and re-makers who have rejected the allure of the fast, disposable and easy in favour of the patina of use, the stories of age and the longevity of care and repair. Accompanying these profiles, six in-depth essays explore the societal, cultural and environmental roles of mending in a throwaway world.

Sheds light on Kerry James Marshall¿s 'Rythm Mastr', a comic series on which the artist has been working since 1999 until today

A new and in-depth look at Chinese photography by China's top curators and thinkers

Dieter Roelstraete is curator at the Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society in Chicago. Previously he was a curator for the important contemporary art exhibition documenta 14 and a senior curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Chicago from 2012 and 2015. Fran¿s Piron is a well-known independent exhibitions curator, art critic and editor. Kersten Geers is a renowned architect and part of the successful OFFICE Kersten Geers David Van Severen. He collaborated with Pieter Vermeersch on a site-specific work at the Solo House Office KGDVS in Matarra¿a, Spain. Moritz K¿ng is an independent curator and editor. He worked in Z¿rich, Antwerp and currently lives and works in Barcelona.