The W* Library: flick through July's top titles

(Image credit: press)

last updated 11 October 2022

Shiro Kuramata
By Deyan Sudjic

The late Shiro Kuramata is the subject of this exquisitely produced new monograph from Phaidon. Housed in a perspex slipcase, the twin volumes provide a complete catalogue of Kuramata's poetically precise furniture and interiors, with the larger book containing essays and writings edited by Deyan Sudjic. Kuramata bridged the gap between modernism and post-modernism, transcending straight minimalism with playful subversions of simple form and a desire to push the boundaries of materials. Ultimately his interiors, mostly for retail clients, have proved transitory but the legacy of his approach still lingers in everything from high street design - from the likes of Muji - to the emergence of the design art furniture movement.

Published by Phaidon, £100

Writer: Jonathan Bell

An image of books — *This definitive monograph of the inspirational designer consists of two volumes, beautifully housed in a perspex slipcase*

*Kuramata (pictured) bridged the gap between modernism and post-modernism, with playful subversions of simple form and a desire to push the boundaries of materials*

*A selection of interviews with, and writings by, Kurumata, give a sense of the designer's poetic, humorous and thoughtful intellect*

*A spread from the book depicts Revolving Cabinet, 1970 (left) and Pipe-Arm Chair, 1970 (right)*

Berthold Lubetkin: Architecture and the Tradition of Progress
By John Allan

For many architects, Berthold Lubetkin (1901-1990) is the quintessential, big 'M' Modernist; a man whose career spanned many countries, collaborators and approaches but for whom modern architecture was always allied with social progress and equality. Born in Tbilisi, Lubetkin's education took him from revolutionary Russia to Paris. There he worked alongside Le Corbusier, before ending up in the fertile environment of pre-war London with a host of other émigré architects. John Allan's masterly monograph on Lubetkin was originally published just after his death. Twenty years later, it has been given a well-deserved overhaul with the hope of bringing Lubetkin's enduring oeuvre - including the Highpoint housing complex, Finsbury Health Centre and Spa Green Estate - to the attention of new eyes.

Published by Artifice Books, £39.95

*From the book: The Penthouse, Highpoint Two, by Lubetkin and Tecton, 1937-38. Courtesy of Artifice books on architecture / John Allan*

*Penguin Pool, London Zoo, by Lubetkin, Drake and Tecton, 1933-34. Courtesy of Artifice books on architecture / John Allan*

*A clerestory-lit landing at Highpoint One, Highgate. Courtesy of Artifice books on architecture / John Allan*

The Vanity of Small Differences
By Grayson Perry

Grayson Perry's recent apotheosis to the giddy status of 'treasured national artist' is a fitting reward for a body of work that embraces populism, technical skill, social comment and an acute eye for detail. The Vanity of Small Differences chronicles the research and creation of Perry's recent tapestry series, spawned from his travels through the vagaries and shifting sands of British class, taste, aspiration and identity. This book not only reproduces all six tapestries and zooms in on their details but, through a collection of essays and commentaries, traces the people, places and things that Perry soaked up during his research. An accompanying app lets you get even closer to the fabric of Perry's vision.

Published by Hayward Publishing, £17.99

*'The Adoration of the Cage Fighters' by Grayson Perry. Courtesy of Victoria Miro, London.*

*Sketchbook study for 'The Upper Class at Bay', by Grayson Perry.*

*The Annunciation of the Virgin Deal', by Grayson Perry. Courtesy of Victoria Miro, London.*

Overdrive: L.A. Constructs the Future 1940-1990
Edited by Wim De Wit and Christopher James Alexander

LA's futuristic credentials have taken a dent in recent decades, as its auto-fuelled vision of urbanism evaporates in a haze of leaded petrol fumes. Back when the vision was at full throttle, however, the city's freeways were fringed by some of the most elaborate and expressive examples of modernist architecture ever seen, from billboard-esque office blocks that screamed their corporate presence to the low-slung lifestyle of the highly desirable homes that seemed to burgeon from the canyon walls. This book collates hundreds of images, including residences from the likes of Coop Himme(l)blau, Neutra, Lautner and more, all of which encapsulate the spirit of optimism, progress and elegance that the city came to represent. Nothing says LA more than a multi-level freeway interchange, except perhaps the LAX's Theme building, a true icon of both an era and a city.

Published by Getty Publications, $59.95

*From the book: Case Study House 22#, Stahl Residence, by Pierre Koenig, 1960.*

*Santa Monica (10) and San Diego (405) Freeway interchange, looking northwest, Los Angeles, 8 August 1964. Courtesy of Sacramento, California Department of Transportation, Library and History Center*

*Lawrence Residence, Venice Beach, by Mayne and Rotundi of Morphosis, 1981-84.*

Adhocism: The Case for Improvisation
By Charles Jencks and Nathan Silver

Of all the myriad movements christened by artist, cultural critic and legendary author Charles Jencks, perhaps the most pertinent to our current way of life is 'adhocism'. Jencks' original premise was that certain strands of design evolve ad hoc, making the most of fast-changing technology and environments. The observation that speed, skill and improvisation would inevitably triumph in the modern world appears to be borne out by this expanded and updated edition, which reproduces the fanzine-esque feel of the original book with an afterword and appraisal of the ad hoc in everyday life. We also learn that co-author Silver has a cat called Tupac.

Published by The MIT Press, £17.95

*From the book: 'The High Line' in New York, by James Corner, Diller Scofidio & Renfro, 2005-9. Its re-use of discarded railway apparatus represents simulated adhocism*

*Distressed Concrete Record Player and Speakers', 1983, is an example of Ron Arad's ad hoc furniture*

*Frank Gehry extends adhocism to a larger scale of borrowing, as seen by his collaging a F16 into his Aerospace Musuem*

Bruce of Los Angeles Rodeo
Edited by Vince Aletti

Oh, the enduring and slightly camp allure of the American West. Rodeo is a record of a bygone era that still resonates hard in certain ateliers, catwalks and bars around the world. Collated by Vince Aletti (mostly from his own personal collection), the book brings together the very best imagery by Bruce Bellas, aka 'Bruce of Los Angeles'. One of the first photographers to turn his lens to the alluring forms of the male physique, Bellas built up an understandable cult following as he chronicled the city's nascent bodybuilding scene as well as other outlets of raw machismo (the rodeo being an obvious subject matter). This limited edition book has been published by ACNE, off the (presumably bare) back of a rodeo-inspired collection of clothes from the Stockholm-based brand.

Published by Acne Studios, £170

Its colour palette of black and red forms a striking backdrop to photographer Bruce Bellas' stylised nudes — Leather bound and presented in a heavy cardboard slipcase, the book's format is as rugged as its subject matter, while its colour palette of black and red forms a striking backdrop to photographer Bruce Bellas' stylised nudes

*Bellas' signature style was a cool, crisp take on the Hollywood glamour shot - carefully staged and dramatically lit, but also restrained and masculine*

Skirts
By Clare Strand

Photographer Clare Strand has completed an intriguing monograph for GOST, bringing together, in its entirety and in its original exhibition size, her ghostly series of still lives, 'Skirts'. With an introduction by Philippe Starck, this large format monograph is printed on heavyweight paper to capture the velvety greys and spectral light. Skirts evokes both the phantom shadows of Victorian spirit photography and the flat, expressionless recording of crime scenes, leaving the absent drama free to hauntingly play in your head.

Published by GOST, £25

*The bereft spaces in Strand's work bring to mind Proust's maxim, 'Only that which is absent can be imagined'. © Clare Strand*

*Altar, operating table, festive board or medium's workspace? 'Skirts' is filled with emptily suggestive stages. © Clare Strand*

*The absence of drama in Strand's work draws the spectator in, as our own imaginations supply what we feel but cannot see. © Clare Strand*

Houses. Denton Corker Marshall
By Jackie Cooper, Haig Beck, Deyan Sudjic

DCM is one of Australia's largest and most successful architecture firms, set up by John Denton, Bill Corker, and Barrie Marshall back in 1972. Alongside the high-rises and galleries, the studio has always kept its domestic options open, creating a portfolio of some of the country's most remarkable houses. From farmhouses that appear embedded in the rocks and earth, to villas that seemingly float above them, the studio's new monograph focuses on the epic scale of their domestic commissions.

Published by Birkhauser Publishing, €39.95

*From the book: View Hill House, by Denton Corker Marshall. Take a tour of an interactive floor plan of the house* *here*.

Architecture on the Carpet: The Curious Tale of Construction Toys and the Genesis of Modern Buildings
By Brenda and Robert Vale

The premise of this fascinating social history is simple; play begets real life. Examining over a dozen of the twentieth century's best-known construction toys, the authors draw parallels between them and emerging architectural movements. It's a fascinating conceit, although it does feel slightly forced at times (and, oddly, there's no mention of Frank Lloyd Wright's self-proclaimed debt to Friedrich Froebel's kindergarten blocks). Nevertheless, there's no denying the nostalgic appeal of both the images and the stories behind the many ways plastic, wood and metal were put to the service of visionary infant architects.

Published by Thames & Hudson, £19.95

*From the book: 'Betta Bilda', a 1960s British interlocking brick toy by Airfix*

*'Bilda-Brix Three-Storey House', an Australian interlocking plastic brick toy of the 1960s*

*The 1914 Michigan Central Station in Detroit, designed by Warren and Wetmore, was inspiration for the earliest construction toys for high buildings that first appeared in the US*

Melina Keays is the entertaining director of Wallpaper*. She has been part of the brand since the magazine’s launch in 1996, and is responsible for entertaining content across the print and digital platforms, and for Wallpaper’s creative agency Bespoke. A native Londoner, Melina takes inspiration from the whole spectrum of art and design – including film, literature, and fashion. Her work for the brand involves curating content, writing, and creative direction – conceiving luxury interior landscapes with a focus on food, drinks, and entertaining in all its forms