BELLAS ARTES

This visually striking compendium illustrates the architectural and historical evolution of over 60 iconic synagogues worldwide. Beginning with the foremost archaeological sites in the Holy Land, it extends to the Jewish sanctuaries of Europe, North Africa, Russia, the Caucasus, Israel, and the New World, from the most ancient to the most innovative creations around the globe. Masterpieces such as Frank Lloyd Wright’s Beth Sholom Synagogue in Pennsylvania, the Grand Synagogue in Paris, New York’s Temple Emanu-El, and Dresden’s Neue Synagogue are all featured in magnificent detail. In a series of compelling essays, prominent scholars Lidia Chakovskaya, Steven Fine, Max Fineblum, Mohammad Gharipour, Samuel D. Gruber, Sergey R. Kravtsov, Michael Levin, and Edward van Voolen explore the diverse architectural styles that reflect the synagogue’s rich, complex, and often tragic history. Noted Judaic studies authority Aaron Hughes provides the introduction, highlighting the synagogue’s history and liturgical furnishings from silver menorahs and textiles to carved wooden cabinets and lanterns of eternal light. This gorgeously illustrated volume will appeal to those with an appreciation for art and architecture as well as lovers of Jewish history.

Julia Morgan was truly a pioneer of her time—among other accomplishments, she was the first woman architect to be licensed in California, in 1904. Through her remarkable life and legacy, this book celebrates the Beaux-Arts architecture of California. Focusing on Morgan’s most famous project in the state, Hearst Castle, to which she devoted more than 30 years of her life, this volume also examines, for the first time, Morgan’s fabulous early buildings in the style. Morgan designed more than 700 buildings across California, many of which are designated landmarks today. Deepening the reader’s understanding of California archi-tecture, this book also places into context Morgan’s ambitions, her influences and inspirations, as well as her daily practice and challenges as a woman shaping an extraordinarily prolific and highly successful career in a man’s world. To better understand the Beaux-Arts training Morgan underwent in Paris, the reader is taken through the challenging, highly arduous Ecole des Beaux-Arts curriculum, which Morgan completed, a lone woman among men. Also explored, in detail, is the story of how the studio and kilns of California Faience, a Berkeley ceramic artisan’s shop, became the supplier of tens of thousands of tiles designed by Morgan and overseen by Hearst himself to decorate their architectural master-piece overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Interior decorator Summer Thornton believes in designing with the wildest abandon: her world is one of nickel tubs, marble fireplaces, whimsical textiles, surprising patterns, and secret gardens. Often described as maximalist with a modern, fresh sensibility, Thornton manages to achieve highly polished, sophisticated interiors that indulge in a lighthearted, almost irreverent sense of whimsy. In her first book, she will inspire readers to follow their creative impulses and make their own rules. Let yourself be transported with the dreamy, fantastical homes arranged by theme in Wonderland. “Fearless Romantic” features Thornton’s own gorgeous city house. “In Here Comes the Sun,” peek into an over-the-top tropical vacation home that’s centered on citrus. Look for her to misbehave a bit in “Good to be Bad.” If refinement is more your cup of tea, the polished settings in “The New Formal” are fit for a queen. Plus take a deep dive into the most colorful technicolor homes she’s ever designed in “Super Saturated.” With outstanding photography from A-list photog-raphers including Thomas Loof, Bjorn Wallander, Annie Schlechter, and Melanie Acevedo, and styling by AD contributor Mieke ten Have, Wonderlandis a celebration of personal expression and fearless escapism.