Book after Book

By Marc Johns Published by teNeues When life gets too serious, this is a great book to have at hand. All you need to do is randomly open a page and you will find a smile spreading across your lips! If the title could be misleading, the picture on the cover will reassure you that the adjective associated to these drawings is not to be taken literally. The men and the strange creatures that populate the world of Canadian artist Marc Johns might never be found smiling but they actually help us not to take life too seriously. Fashion, consumerism, religion… nothing is off-limits for Marc Johns and his drawing tools! Divided between ink and watercolour drawings on paper and drawings on yellow sticky notes, we find two-headed men, pipes that are trying to quit smoking, advice on how to wear antlers, hovering people and oddly-shaped creatures with their own dreams and fears. Not to mention flying moustaches and beards that grow pretty much anywhere! Simple and terribly communicative, you will...

The New Year has just begun and you haven’t got a calendar yet? Don’t panic! It is important that you choose something that you like, something that you won’t mind having in front of your eyes for the next twelve months... and teNeues has got something for every taste. Flowers, landscapes, design, art, humour... whatever takes your fancy! Two of my favourite calendars from their range are Hokusai 2010 and Miffy 2010 – to make both adults and children happy! Every page displays months and week days in six different languages, all bank and religious holidays are listed and at the bottom of each page you can find a useful box to write notes in. teNeues also has weekly calendars that can be propped up or laid flat on a desk. Each of the 52 pages displays a different image and, thanks to the perforation line, they can be used as postcards. Shells & Stones, with beautiful photographs by Laurent Pinsard is a very good example. If you want to support a smaller local publisher, wh...

Edited by Dagmar von Taube Published by teNeues Published in the year of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, this splendid volume is a must have for all the lovers of Berlin’s je ne sais quoi! Edited by Dagmar von Taube, this stunning photographic portfolio presents about 300 images depicting Berlin’s troubled past and vibrant present. You will be taken onto an exciting journey through the places that make Berlin the dynamic metropolis that it has become and you will be introduced to the people who are at the centre of the capital’s fashion, art, business, cinema and political circles. The pictures collected here are the product of some of the best photographers, including Mario Testino, Helmut Newton, Karl Lagerfeld and Peter Lindbergh. But this book is not just a feast for the eyes. An introduction by Imre Kertész, the Hungarian Nobel Prize-winning author, and a contribution by the German columnist Franz Josef Wagner, as well as by Dagmar von Taube herself are well w...

Published by teNeues With an elegant and glossy hardcover, this volume would be a precious addition to your collection of Stern Fotografie books, each focussing on a famous and talented photographer, or it would make a beautiful and classy coffee table book. ‘The Lord of light’ is the title of a captivating introduction by the journalist Jochen Siemens, who writes about his meeting with a 78-year-old Lord Snowdon, all sharp eye and no-frills attitude. We learn about the photographer’s career and are entertained by his anecdotes. However the real experience of this book begins on page 14. 25 colour and 33 black and white photographs offer a glimpse into the worlds of a variety of subjects including nannies, celebrities, the Royal Family and everybody in-between. The photographs cover a period from 1958 to 2004 and are striking in their powerful simplicity. Contenders as my favourite photograph are two royal portraits: that of Princess Margaret, whom Lord Snowdon has been married to, and...

by Karen M. Smith & John A. Flannery Published by teNeues With about 200 colour photographs and short texts written in five languages – English, German, French, Spanish and Italian – Library Design is a beautiful coffee table book and a gift that will be appreciated by all lovers of books, libraries and architectural design. The book presents a selection of international projects that range from private home libraries to award-winning public libraries. Although not going into detail about the individual projects, each of them is introduced with a description of its context and main features, location and architect details. Where available, direct website addresses and little sketches of the library plans, or of the buildings they are located in, are provided. It also features some furniture companies and independent bookshops and is, all in all, a good starting point for more in depth research and a well-designed volume that you will find yourself browsing over and over ...