Arts and Culture

From tea fields to technology, women are the resilient, hardworking backbone of their communities. Award-winning photographer Alison Wright's 128 dynamic color plates portray women in more than 25 developing countries, whose perseverance is often overlooked. Women from Nicaragua to Nepal share empowering experiences of rising above their circumstances, be it poverty or oppressive cultural conventi

Let us rejoice in the genius that is Kevin Smith!This fun and photo-filled biography celebrates the life, films, and fans of the director responsible for such indie cult classics as Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, and Dogma. Movie-industry veteran David Gati has compiled and edited this humorous and insightful look at Smith’s nearly 30-year moviemaking journey. Through Smith's own uncensored storie

Color is a powerful force in our lives. It is a major influence in visual and verbal communication and on the decisions we make every day. Deep Color unpacks all the shades of the rainbow (plus black, white, and pink) with little-known facts, stunning visuals, and a critical perspective on color and the nonverbal meanings it carries. Essays explore the intriguing facets of color, such as imperial

A moving and joyful celebration of not only survival but also resilience and joy, expressed through 90 black-and-white portraits of Holocaust survivors and personal stories of their postwar lives.The survivors, many photographed with their family members, share lessons they have learned and pass on the wisdom that comes from building a life of one's choosing out of the wreckage of despair. Van Sis

In this imaginative typographic "dictionary," words are defined by arranging their letters to show what each word means.Generating alternatives is the basis of all creative endeavors. Words in Action is an inventive resource that was developed over decades, one word at a time, by architect and professor Michael Pause. Its 366 graphic images add to the inventory first published in Ivan Chermayeff a

Introduced in 1941, the Short Stirling was the Royal Air Force’s first four-engine heavy bomber of the Second World War. However, early on, the Stirling’s performance was compromised by several issues: a reduced wingspan, which resulted in serious limitations on maximum altitude capability; the two-stage landing gear proved to be dangerously frail; and the bomb-bay design proved incapable of carry

Featuring sloping armor and armed with a powerful 75 mm gun, Germany’s Panther tank was developed as a counter to the Soviet T-34.  Entering production in 1943, the Panther was intended to become Germany’s standard medium tank.  Although featuring potent armament and excellent armor, the Panther was hampered by disruptive production and drivetrain maintenance requirements. Produced in three varian

Celebrating a wide range of punk design in vinyl cover art, posters, flyers, fanzines, and other ephemera, The Art of Punk highlights the movement primarily within graphic design and print, while also considering its impact on wider popular culture. Punk was based on immediacy—an often-inspired amateurism and underground, close-knit communities that burned brightly but were not intended to extend

Based on an adaptation of the White Scout Car, the US half-track vehicles of  WWII combined the cross-country ability of a fully tracked vehicle with the road performance of a medium truck.  A myriad of variations of these vehicles were produced, including prime movers, armored personnel carriers, mortar carriers, and a wide range of heavily armed variants. Antiaircraft versions were often used ag

A book showcasing the legendary Fleetwood Mac blues session at Chicago’s Chess Studios in January 1969Taken by the only photographer present, some of these photos were originally shown on the first release of the album recorded that day: Fleetwood Mac in Chicago. Now, for the first time, all of the color and black-and-white shots from that day are presented in one collection, including many that h

The Vickers Armstrong Wellington, affectionately dubbed the “Wimpy” after the hamburger-scoffing cartoon character, lays claim to two distinctions within RAF WWII annals. The first related to its geodetic structure, with a cloth covering that proved to be superior to previous designs for surviving battle damage. Second, the aircraft was destined to remain on the front line with Bomber Command thro

"Kudos to Sandra Sider, for bringing simple tools to guide quilters to the playful side of design! Understanding 'the grid' can turn a simple square into a personal expression!" —designer Victoria Findlay WolfeYour resource for a lifetime of planning and designing template-free geometric modern quilts. This compact guide is like many of the best things in life: simple. Designing a successful geome

In many ways, the M26 Pershing was the most advanced and most powerful tank fielded by the US military during the Second World War. The prototype T26 "heavy" tank design was developed to answer the threat of the German Panther and Tiger tanks. Unfortunately for US Army tankers, the T26 tank wasn't ready for field use until 1945. The T26, specifically the E3 variant, was adopted and standardized as

Reborn in 1951, the Myasishchev design bureau made its mark by creating the M-4 strategic bomber. Yet, this subsonic aircraft was soon made obsolescent by supersonic fighter technology—any new strategic bomber would need supersonic performance to avoid being intercepted. Hence in 1952, Myasishchev started work on supersonic bomber projects, which led to the M-50 of 1955. Designed for sustained sup

During WWII, Germany fielded a variety of six- and eight-wheeled armored cars, which were used in numerous ways, including reconnaissance, antitank, infantry support, and other roles.  The earliest of these vehicles, the 6-Rad, or six-wheeled vehicles, were based on 6 × 4 truck chassis. Once the limitations of this design became evident, later models utilized specially designed all-wheel-drive pow

Reveals the contemporary art phenomenon of disrupted realism through the paintings of 43 artists at its core.

Profoundly shaped by the events, forces, and overflow of today's disjointed, social-media-heavy life, these artists' paintings are “disrupted” stylistically, thematically, or sometimes both.

A comprehensive how-to reference that teaches wet textile surface design techniques for making custom cloth.

Learn surface design for textiles, to create rich and personally expressive fabric surfaces. Projects by expert Susan Brandeis (author of the bestselling The Intentional Thread) help a range of levels--beginners to r

With a midengined configuration, sturdy tricycle landing gear, and nose-mounted 37 mm cannon, the Bell P-39 was a thoughtful and innovative design. However, the plane lacked the all-out performance of some other key fighters available to Allied fliers (e.g., Spitfire, Hellcat, Mustang), particularly at altitude. Largely rejected by British and American combat squadrons, the Airacobra was much bett

As of 2023, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is the fastest manned jet aircraft ever produced. It set the record in 1976 and has been retired since the late 1990s. With its unrivaled speed and stunning appearance, the Blackbird has maintained an almost supernatural mystique to this day. The type entered service in the 1960s as a high-altitude (and obviously extremely high speed) military reconnaissanc

Learn how to lean in to your unique style of creativity with this fluid art instruction book that combines creative inspiration and soulful introspection with practical instruction.

Author and licensed psychotherapist Jessica Young is your expert, empathetic guide to developing your energy and feeding your creative flow. Th