Best Design Books

Exclusive Interview – Tihany Iconic Hotel and Restaurant Interiors

February 18, 2014

Photo by Bill Hughes Adam D. Tihany is widely regarded as one of the world’s preeminent hospitality designers and an early pioneer of the restaurant design profession. Adam Tihany has been designing restaurants and hotels for more than 35 years, building quite the portfolio of luxury properties. Tihany is known around the globe for creating unique, luxury interior design for hotels and restaurants His outstanding contribution to the world of design has been recognized with numerous honors and awards including an Honorary Doctorate from the New York School of Interior Design and induction into the Interior Design Hall of Fame. A recognized expert in luxury, Tihany frequently writes for international lifestyle, design and travel magazines and publications. Tihany third’s book, Tihany: Iconic Hotel and Restaurant Interiors, will be published by Rizzoli , March 2014 and the Best Design Books interview the famous designer about his life, inspirations and the latest book. -What does inspire you? I draw inspiration from art, film, theater, poetry, music, food, and wine. I study human behavior as it greatly influences my work. -What projects are you working on right now? We are designing 2 Four Seasons hotel projects in Dubai and several signature restaurants at The Broadmoor…

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Interior Design

Shiro Kuramata Phaidon Book

February 11, 2014

First-ever complete monographon influential Japanese designer Shiro Kuramata (1934–91) comes in two volumes and specially designed acrylic slipcase. Shiro Kuramata (1934–91) was a truly exceptional designer of furniture and interiors. Many of his poetic, precise and unique pieces, like the expanded-metal-mesh How High the Moon Armchair and the acrylic, aluminium and paper-flower Miss Blanche Chair, are still highly prized, collected by museums like MoMA and the V&A and sold at auction. Sadly, however, most of the hundreds of interiors he designed no longer exist, and can only be glimpsed in photographs or described by those who saw them. This combination of the precious and the disappeared is appropriate for a designer like Kuramata, whose work was neither modern nor nostalgic, neither western nor Asian, but which has a remarkable creative power as well as a sense of endless invention. This compelling and highly influential work is documented here in this beautiful monograph. Author Deyan Sudjic, the director of the design museum in London and the author of many highly-acclaimed books on design and architecture, tells the story of Kuramata’s life against the backdrop of Japan’s turbulent history from the 1930s to the 1990s. It was a period in which the collapse…

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Interior Design

Fifty Years of American Interior Decoration of Mario Buatta

December 26, 2013

The eagerly anticipated first monograph to celebrate the fifty-years-and-counting career of decorating legend Mario Buatta. Influenced by the understated elegance of Colefax and Fowler and the doyenne of exuberant American decor, Sister Parish, Buatta reinvented the English Country House style stateside for clients such as Henry Ford II, Barbara Walters, Malcolm Forbes, and Mariah Carey, and for Blair House, the President’s guest quarters. The designer is acclaimed for his sumptuous rooms that layer fine antiques, confectionary curtains, and sublime colorations, creating an atmosphere of lived-in opulence. This lavishly illustrated survey—filled with images taken for the foremost shelter magazines as well as many unpublished photographs from the designer’s own archive—closely follows Buatta’s highly documented career from his professional start in the 1950s working for department store B. Altman & Co. and Elisabeth Draper, Inc. to his most recent projects, which include some of the country’s finest residences. Buatta shares exclusive insights into his process, his own rules for decorating, and personal stories of his adventures along the way.

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Art

21st century design by Marcus Fairs

December 12, 2013

If you’re looking for design-related Christmas presents, this makes the perfect gift, etc etc! Twenty-First Century Design is an overview of design at the start of the new millennium, presenting over 200 of the most important buildings, interiors, products, furnishings and lights from the last few years. With a forward written by Marcel Wanders and lavish colour photos over more than 450 pages, the book also has chapters on clothing, landscape and urban design, graphics and homeware. The book was published in October last year. Frame magazine’s reviewer called it “a 463-page encyclopaedia of cutting-edge design” and added it was “worth the design aficionado’s time and money” (see the full review at the bottom of this page), while Architecture Review described it as “an entertaining romp.” In its review, the Daily Telegraph said “Marcus Fairs knows a thing or two about design.” This beautiful book is an exuberant manifesto defining the design zeitgeist at the start of the twenty-first century, charting the bewildering array of new movements and styles that have erupted over the last few years. It essentially sets the scene for a dramatic transformation in the way design is perceived that will influence the objects and buildings that…

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Interior Design

Interiors by Yoo

November 28, 2013

“Interiors by yoo” aims to inspire the reader with design advice and thoughts from four of the most talented names in the design world: superstar designer Philippe Starck, rock royalty Jade Jagger, avantgarde Dutchman Marcel Wanders and queen of low-key luxe Kelly Hoppen MBE. Over 192 pages, it brings together yoo’s most cutting-edge interior design projects for hotels and private residences around the world; it includes feature pages on the yoo’s eighteen style palettes; and thought-provoking interviews with each designer. As John Hitchcox, yoo’s Chairman, explains in his personal introduction, “This book is a collection of our work, a tool to stimulate you into thinking about the kind of things you want to surround yourself with at home.” Launched in the UK in 2009 and more recently in Taiwan, France and China, “Interiors by yoo” has sold over 30,000 copies internationally.

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Interior Design

Furniture with soul – Master Woodwoekers and Their Craft

November 19, 2013

“Furniture with Soul” follows in the grand tradition of two other classic Kodansha books, “Sam Maloof: Woodworker” and “The Soul of a Tree: A Master Woodworker’s Reflections” by George Nakashima. Both books have inspired several generations of contemporary artists working in wood, including most of the artists in the present book. Written by respected woodworker David Savage, who will soon host a BBC special on the subject, “Furniture with Soul” explores the philosophy, career, and the pivotal moments of struggle and inspiration of ten top craftspeople. Savage travelled throughout the United States and Britain to interview renowned artists in the field with candour and an uncompromising eye. As he puts it, the craftspeople featured in this book have lived lives dedicated to the creation of objects that will fill us with awe and wonder. These makers are at once artists and designers and top-of-the-line craftspeople, creating handcrafted objects in the small workshop or studio, stretching artistic boundaries, uninterested in mass-produced products. Their pursuit is excellence and the individuality that will make their work a landmark of our age. Savage shines the spotlight on some of the world’s best woodworkers, including John Makepeace, John Cederquist, Jack Larimore, Gary Knox Bennett, and…

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Interior Design

5 interior design books you should read

November 5, 2013

Not So Big House This best seller was met with an extraordinary response when it was published in 1998. In it, visionary architect Sarah Susanka embraced the notion of smaller, simpler shelters that better meet the needs of the way we live today. The book created a groundswell of interest among homeowners, architects, and builders. More than 200 photographs bring the spirit of the “Not So Big” house alive. The Color Scheme Bible: Inspirational Palettes for Designing Home Interiors “A practical guide to using color successfully.” The power of color is its ability to influence mood, create atmosphere, and enhance perception. As a result, one of the most effective ways to transform any room is by changing its color. Which colors to use is the challenge. The Color Scheme Bible is a practical, yet inspiring reference for those who want to take advantage of different colors without clashing. It contains 150 color scheme ideas for home decorators and interior designers. The book explains how to choose colors that will complement each other for a subdued effect, and which colors and combinations will energize the room. Topics covered include: How color creates ambiance and atmosphere Using color to give a small…

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Interior Design

Axel Vervoordt: Living With Light

October 24, 2013

About This Book Following the best seller Axel Vervoordt: Timeless Interiors, this volume of twenty new interiors expands on the Vervoordt vision for creating exceptional homes that combine natural elements, antiques, and fine art. The art of harmonious living is extolled in this volume through twenty bespoke interiors designed by the Axel Vervoordt company. Each room incorporates natural elements—light, water, metal, wood—blended with a modern aesthetic and punctuated with fine art. The Vervoordt concept of the home is revealed through a refined balance between art and nature to create timeless living spaces. The range of featured properties includes homes by the sea as well as in urban and rural locations, demonstrating a breadth of styles possible within the essential Vervoordt design principles. Photography by Laziz Hamani brings into focus both the unique design details and the carefully constructed interiors that fuse to create each striking setting. These exceptional residences are rich with inspirational ideas to incorporate into your own home so that you can celebrate your living space in the singular Vervoordt style. About the Author Axel Vervoordt is an internationally acclaimed antiques and art collector and dealer based in Belgium. He has organized numerous exhibitions around the world, including…

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Interior Design

Miller’s Mid Century Modern

October 10, 2013

For lovers of mid-century interior design looking into adding the style to their homes, Judith Miller’s Mid-Century Modern: Living with Mid-Century Modern Design is an excellent guide. The book, which was published in November 2012, is a comprehensive guide to the style that has stood the test of time and still inspires modern decorators. For those who sigh over the clean lines of an Eames chair or the rounded swoops of Georg Jensen silver, this is a book to treasure. The book covers the most iconic designs and designers from the 1940s to 1960s providing information on the development of different innovations in design, production methods, and materials. This era was particularly rich in change as more and more designers pressed the limits of what was possible. Furniture, ceramics, glass, metalware, interiors and textiles from the period are some of the most desirable collectibles on the market today. Miller’s guide has stand-alone feature pages highlighting the careers and influence of groundbreaking designers, including Alvar Aalto, Charles and Ray Eames, Robin and Licienne Day, Georg Jensen, Arne Jacobsen and many others. The book contains 500-plus photographs making it a must-have for collectors, designers and others looking for photo references. Miller began…

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Interior Design

Alidad – The timeless home will be launched in october

October 8, 2013

The work of London-based, Persian-born interior designer Alidad is the realization of a fantasy of splendor in elegant brocade and rich damask. Award-winning interior designer Alidad is renowned for creating interiors of comfort made from a warm, glowing elegance with richness, color, and sumptuous materials. His work is associated with the exacting use of intricately patterned antique and modern textiles, upholstered furniture, and a high quality of craftsmanship. This book presents his unique aesthetic – a kind of controlled glamour that embraces exotic forms, patterns, and fabrics while at the same time evoking the timeless and comforting. Alidad offers a compelling visual survey of his projects, from apartments in London and Paris and villas in Beirut and Kuwait to seaside homes in Sardinia and Cornwall. The work of Alidad is a resplendent tapestry, sewn through with color upon color and texture upon texture. The book also illustrates creatively for the reader Alidad’s approach to the practical issues of interior decoration, from architectural alteration and furniture design to choosing appropriate textiles, and it serves as an intimate resource and an entry into the secrets of evocative design.

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Interior Design

Best Furniture and lighting books: Eames – Beautiful Details

October 7, 2013

“Eames: Beautiful Details” celebrates the seamlessness and fluidity in which Charles and Ray Eames operated as both a husband-and-wife team and as designers unrestricted by traditionally profesionally boundaries. Select details of their life and work, from their refined designs to to their innovative experiments, and even including images depicting the everyday poetic moments of their lives, and are shared here in this exhibit within a book. Inspired by Charles’s immersive and original slideshows, in which he expertly selected and grouped images together that communicated information in an aesthetic, direct, and accessible way, this book strives to visually created the Eameses’ life and work by taking the viewer through a delightful journey, focusing on their “beautiful details.” The packaging design of the “Eames: Beautiful Details” slipcase is a pattern inspired by the triangles and colors of one of their most inventive, if lesser-known, designs for children, simply called, “the toy.” It also pays homage to the patterns they used on their well-loved House of Cards. The Eameses brought a sense of humor and joy to everything they created, and the design and layout of the book aims to convey that spirit in a visual feast for the eyes. It is a testament to…

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