Philip Perkis is one of the most widely respected American photographers, yet his work is little known outside of professional circles. In this fifty-year retrospective, and first published collection, his inimitable vision is brought to the public. With a gift for capturing moments of heartbreaking honesty and unparalleled beauty, he presents a world on the brink of transcendence. Taken in the most humble circumstances—snapped from the driver’s seat or taken at home—these images are so much more than the sum of their parts. The electric fury of barking dogs in the streets of Mexico, the white stillness of Israel, and the silence of a sleeping mother, carry within them complexities of gray, of raw emotion and metaphor. These images are the gift of a master observer with an eye tuned to the almost imperceptible miracles of everyday life. They are not one-line gags or jaded images of the poor or suffering, rather they are evocative explorations of the lovely sadness of life and the wild, sweet rhythms of the world. 125 duotone photographs
Outdoor Decorator
How to transform your garden, patio or balcony into a stylish living area.
Whether you have a garden, patio or balcony, this innovative and practical book will open up a whole new area of decorating. Forget about ground cover and seasonal planting and instead, transform your outdoor space with paint, fabric, tiles and a host of other materials. While interior decorating has become increasingly sophisticated, often the clever ideas and effects stop at the garden door. The Outdoor Decorator shows you that when it comes to decorating, the sky’s the limit! Step-by-step, Kevin McCloud covers all the elements that can transform an outdoor space – from walls, floors and fabrics, to furniture, lighting and accessories. Why not paint your garden walls in spectacular Mediterranean colours, install Cape Cod beach house decking, or rig up a pretty canopy of simple cotton fabric on your balcony? The emphasis is on quick, inexpensive projects that will suit even limited budgets, and will bring a unique look to your home.
The Planting Design Handbook
First published in 1992, this text is widely used on landscape architecture courses around the world. It examines the horticultural, ecological and aesthetic characteristics of plants, and discusses the structural and decorative roles of planting, spatial composition, species selection, planting plans and spacing, and the vital role of management. With its fresh look at aesthetic principles and its analysis of the design process, it reveals how a systematic approach can allow the greatest freedom for the creative imagination. This second edition still provides a complete examination of both the principles and the practice of design with plants, for public, institutional and private landscapes, but is fully revised and updated, taking account of developments in professional practice and reflecting a variety of the media and approaches currently used. It incorporates conceptual design approaches to planting, a range of design methods as well as tried and tested analytical and objective procedures, and a wide range of new international examples of planting design. The ecological basis for planting design has been broadened to include examples from warm temperate and subtropical vegetation types as well as those of the cool temperate and Mediterranean climate area. The layout of the book is clearer and more spacious, with colour illustrations. While retaining the detailed line drawings of the Chinese architect and painter Jia-Hua Wu, it includes an international range of new photographs and professional drawings. These illustrate a range of media now effective and useful in professional practices of various sizes.
