H.R. Giger’s multi-faceted career: From surrealistic dream landscapes to album cover designs and sculptures For decades H.R. Giger (1940—2014) reigned as one of the leading exponents of fantastic art. After he studied interior and industrial design for eight years at the School of Commercial Art in Zurich, Switzerland, from 1962 till 1970, he was soon gaining attention as an independent artist, with endeavors ranging from surrealistic dream landscapes created with a spray gun and stencils, to album cover designs for famous pop stars, and sculptures. In addition, Giger’s multi-faceted career includes designing two bars, located in Tokyo and Chur, as well as work on various film projects—his creation of the set design and title figure for Ridley Scott’s film Alien won him not only international fame but also an Academy Award for Best Achievement for Visual Effects (1980). About the series: Each book in TASCHEN’s Basic Art series features: a detailed chronological summary of the life and oeuvre of the artist, covering his or her cultural and historical importance a concise biography approximately 100 illustrations with explanatory captions

An account of the life and work of Swiss painter, sculptor, architect and designer H. R. Giger (1940-2014), tormented father of creatures as fearsome as they are fascinating, inhabitants of nightmarish biomechanical worlds.

Machisu is a painter. He never had the success he thinks he is entitled to. Regardless of this, he always remains trying to be successful. His wife Sachiko keeps supporting him, despite all setbacks.

The art market has been booming. Museum attendance is surging. More people than ever call themselves artists. Contemporary art has become a mass entertainment, a luxury good, a job description, and, for some, a kind of alternative religion. In a series of beautifully paced narratives, Sarah Thornton investigates the drama of a Christie's auction, the workings in Takashi Murakami's studios, the elite at the Basel Art Fair, the eccentricities of Artforum magazine, the competition behind an important art prize, life in a notorious art-school seminar, and the wonderland of the Venice Biennale. She reveals the new dynamics of creativity, taste, status, money, and the search for meaning in life. A judicious and juicy account of the institutions that have the power to shape art history, based on hundreds of interviews with high-profile players, Thornton's entertaining ethnography will change the way you look at contemporary culture.

年過七十，依舊精力旺盛的John Berger，向來被敬重為英國最具影響力的藝術評論家。他的Ways of Seeing，從社會關係談論藝術，翻轉傳統觀畫的方式，從側面切入，看到了傳統藝術史沒有看到的問題，是使許多人印象深刻，影響深遠的一本書。 本書同時清楚標示了他的馬克思主義色彩，為文熱情、反向思考、大膽批評。二○○一年的新作The Shape of a Pocket，收錄二十四篇，他在蘇黎士、馬德里、瑞典、法蘭克福、赫爾辛基等地以不同語言發表的講演與文章，初次翻成英文出版，基本觀點集中於對現下經濟全球化趨勢的批評，文字依舊有著濃烈的批評色彩，John Berger曾在訪問中提及，這是近幾年少數幾本迫切著非出不可的一本書。 書中以對法國史前藝術的觀察，古典藝術大師米開蘭基羅、林布蘭、竇加，以及個性強烈的墨西哥女畫家卡蘿，廿世紀雕塑大師布朗庫西（Brancusi）等人的作品，以及相關的歷史社會分析，批評全球經濟掛帥環境下，對藝術的欠缺理解與乏善可陳，是一本權威敢言且殷切提醒的書。 我所謂群體意指一小群反抗勢力。當兩個以上志同道合的人聯合起來，便組成一個群體。反抗的是世界經濟新秩序的缺乏人性。凝聚的這群人是讀者、我、以及這些文章的主題人物─林布蘭，舊石器時代的洞窟壁畫畫家，一個來自羅馬尼亞的鄉下人，古埃及人，對描繪孤寂的旅館客房很在行的一位專家，薄暮中的狗，廣播電台的一個男子。意外的是，我們的交流強化了我們每個人的信念，堅信今天在世界上發生的事情是不對的，所說的相關話題往往是謊言。我寫過的書，就屬本書最迫切。─約翰．柏格 「柏格既敢言且獨特…其散文風格─一種不加渲染的放聲思考─引發…不同的世界體驗，而當中的藝術，讓人永久牢記。」─〈華盛頓郵報〉 「激發、誘惑、旁敲側擊、暗示，甚至鎮定人心…柏格令我們吃驚的是，重新賦予日常事物以深度，並擴展我們自己。」─〈奧勒岡人報〉（The Oregonian） 「激發、誘惑、旁敲側擊、暗示，甚至鎮定人心…柏格令我們吃驚的是，重新賦予日常事物以深度，並擴展我們自己。」─〈奧勒岡人報〉（The Oregonian）

一部关于毕加索的纪录片，毕加索艺术与生活最好的注解，直指内心。风格独创且缤纷多变的现代艺术魔术师毕加索，以他绚烂的彩笔，创作出一幅幅影响深远的巨作。近百年来的西方艺术，举其重要者，恐怕除了野兽主义之外，没有一支不是肇始于他，或被他吸收而善加利用的。他的创作是多元化的，熔古今于一炉。本片是其艺术与生活最好的注解，直指内心。