ARQUITECTURA Y DISEÑO

Through the turbulent passage of time, graphic design―with its vivid, neat synthesis of image and idea―has distilled the spirit of each age. Surrounding us every minute of every day, from minimalist packaging to colorful adverts, smart environmental graphics to sleek interfaces: graphic design is as much about transmitting information as it is about reflecting society’s cultural aspirations and values. With his sweeping knowledge of the field, author Jens Müller curates the standout designs for each year, a running sequence of design milestones. This collection of important graphic works represents a long-overdue reflection on the development of a creative field constantly changing and challenging itself. These key pieces act as coordinates through contemporary history, helping us trace the sheer influence of graphic design on our daily lives. About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program―now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.

This deluxe volume offers a meticulously researched and lavishly illustrated history of fifty magnificent estates in three of America’s most prized residential districts: Beverly Hills, Bel-Air, and Holmby Hills. Lush color photographs as well as a trove of historical images take readers beyond the front gates for an exceptional view of the mansions, grounds, and gardens of these sumptuous estates and tell the history of Los Angeles’s rise from rugged paddocks and farmland to famed metropolis. Each house is explored both for its historical and architectural importance, for here are the epitome of residences and gardens reflecting the famed Italianate and California Mediterranean styles by all the leading architects of Southern California, including Wallace Neff, James Dolena, Gordon Kaufmann, Robert Farquhar, Roland Coate, and Paul Williams. They built for clients such as Gary Cooper, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, and Bing Crosby, whose own stories reflect the intrigue and foibles of Hollywood society. The book’s final chapter, “Gone but Not Forgotten,” pays homage to great estates that have been destroyed or lost to history.

In a time of renewed interest in the role of plants in our lives, garden designers are increasingly turning to modern planting design techniques to introduce biodiversity and resiliency into our landscapes and to enhance human well-being by creating spaces that emphasise connection, innovation, and complexity. This is the first book to give context to the main techniques used in contemporary garden design today, and reveals how to achieve professional-level solutions in gardens of large and small by exploring and explaining a variety of tips and tools and providing a guiding framework to support the development of any style garden in a step-by-step format. Hundreds of images and case studies by some of today’s best international planting designers bring the opportunities to life on the page.

The first book to feature the interior design of the stylish, award-winning firm RRP / Rees Roberts + Partners, led by Interior Design–hall of fame inductee Lucien Rees-Roberts. As Pilar Viladas writes in her introduction, “Rees-Roberts does not have a signature style. Instead, the interiors designed by his New York firm … have style, period, and lots of it.” Well-known for his subtle use of color, texture, and fabric, Rees-Roberts’s designs capture the essence of modern living. Descended from generations of painters, his love for art is an important source for his inspiration and indelibly marks the work. Functionally elegant designs are characterized by a deference to art as well as to light and the views provided by natural surroundings. Each designed home reflects the owner’s character as well as the needs of everyday life, incorporating custom furniture and unusual antiques. The book, bound in sumptuous cloth and wrapped in a jacket with French folds, reflects the firm’s ever-present attention to detail.

Tuscany’s historical residences tell stories that no mere guidebook can capture. The houses that dot the landscape—from the stately Medici villas to the more humble yet charming farmhouses—are not just structures but also symbols of a way of life, a lasting testament to the fusion of an agrarian lifestyle, picturesque towns, notable architecture, fine craft, and art. In the book’s foreword, Cabana founder Mondadori writes, “Tuscany is not merely a region; it is a living canvas, a dreamscape that has cradled the imagination of artists, poets, and thinkers for centuries.” The interiors presented in this book are a celebration of the talents of the diverse contemporary homeowners, who are keeping the region’s creative spirit alive. Houses brim with the output of skilled craftsmen, exquisite tapestries, brocades and damasks, objects arranged as if painterly still lifes, fantastical murals, rare books, furniture from a range of periods, and fine porcelain.