Co-founded by the legendary filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli films have enthralled and enchanted audiences across the world. The Art of series gives fans the opportunity to follow their favorite film from initial concept to the silver screen, thanks to hundreds of sketches, concept drawings, and animation cels, plus in-depth interviews with the creators.

    Book by Walker, Barbara G.

    From the taboo striped cloaks of the Middle Ages to the liberating stripes of the French and American flags, The Devil's Cloth chronicles the checkered past of this maligned and misunderstood pattern that has been linked to everything from medieval scandals to religious and political uprisings to contemporary fashion statements. The story begins nearly a thousand years ago, when the monks of the Carmelite Order were ordered by the Pope to surrender their striped garments--to superstitious minds a sure sign of the devil. Anti-stripe sentiment raged throughout the Middle Ages, becoming the de rigueur fashion for prostitutes, hangmen, lepers, court jesters, and disloyal Round Table knights. Over the centuries, the list expanded to include Jews, heretics, adulterous wives, madmen, convicts, and servants. Briefly rescued from ignominy by the Renaissance, the stripe enjoyed a resurgence in 1775, where its newly conferred status as an enduring symbol of freedom paved the way for a subsequent European comeback. With lively narrative style, Pastoureau traces the fascinating trajectory of the ubiquitous stripe from the stripe-related stress of biblical figures--Cain, Delilah, and Judas prominent among them--to the bathing suits, pinstripe suits, and pajamas of today. Not even the hapless zebra escapes the skewering lens of history. Whether its subject is horizontal or vertical, stylish or subversive, this richly informative book will appeal to readers of every stripe.

    Drawing from street culture, high art, and traditional Japanese painting, Murakami takes the contemporary art trend of mixing high and low to an unprecedented level (critics call him the new Warhol), producing original paintings and sculptures as well as mass-produced consumer objects such as toys, books, and most famously, a line of handbags for Louis Vuitton. A committed supporter and spokesperson for Japanese artists and a powerful commentator on postwar culture and society, Murakami has organized influential exhibitions of Japanese art as well as a biannual art fair in Tokyo. Murakami has positioned himself as a new type of artist for the twenty-first century: a hybrid of creator, entrepreneur, and cultural ambassador.In conjunction with the first major retrospective of his work, Murakami traces Murakami’s global impact socially, culturally, and art historically. Essays focus on Murakami’s early works, which were based on a social critique of Japan’s rampant consumerism; the development of his characters; his work with anime, fantasy; otaku culture; and his engagement with global pop culture. Representing output from original works of art to mass-produced multiples, the catalogue also considers the implications of Murakami’s working methods within the tradition of the Western avant-garde.

    The story begins in the years before WWII when a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a servant in a geisha house. Despite a treacherous rival who nearly breaks her spirit, the girl blossoms into the legendary geisha Sayuri (Ziyi Zhang). Beautiful and accomplished, Sayuri captivates the most powerful men of her day, but is haunted by her secret love for the one man who is out of her reach (Ken Watanabe).The Newmarket Pictorial Moviebook explores the intricate process of re-creating the period and world of the geisha. Special sections showcase production design, makeup, choreography, and costumes, featuring kimonos created especially for the movie by five-time Oscar®-nominated costume designer Colleen Atwood. Sidebars throughout also provide fascinating historical background on the geisha culture.

    A large number of Ukiyo-e woodblock printings created in Edo period (1603-1868) depict these monstrous beings in the illustrations of popular folk tales and horror stories. This book contains 70 Yurei (ghosts), Oni (demons), Kaijin (sorcerers) and Yokai (supernatural monsters) with a basic introduction to each creature's story in J/E bilingual text. These phantoms and monsters are described vividly in 120 Ukiyo-e art pieces, all created by great masters such as Hokusai, Hiroshige, Kuniyoshi and so on, giving readers a clear and terrifying image of what such supernatural figures might look like. These images have been passed down through the years, and many art genres in Japan today, including manga and games, are heavily influenced by them. This is the best reference book for Japanese art lovers, folk culture lovers, as well as Japanese pop-culture lovers. It also offers fresh ideas for those searching for new inspirations for tattoo art and design.

    From the CWA Debut Dagger Shortlist Novelist comes the extraordinary crime series that everyone is raving about. Featuring: TrophiesTormentTalisman Trophies: When DI Colin Strong interviews a suspect on suspicion of handling stolen goods he’s convinced he’s heard their voice before. Nearly 25 years ago the tape of Wearside Jack taunted West Yorkshire Police and his suspect fits the profile.Then the body of a known burglar shows up and a mysterious metal case is discovered at the scene.Strong turns to his close friend, journalist Bob Souter, and embarks on an awkward alliance to probe areas he is unable to explore.As the murder suspects start to disappear Strong must discover just who the shadowy figure inciting fear and panic amongst those he encounters is.Strong wants to bring a murderer to justice and Souter is hungry for a story.Who will get to the truth first and can their friendship remain intact?  Torment: A message left in error on a young woman's answerphone is the catalyst for uncovering some dark deeds. Three young women are missing; luxury cars are being stolen; and just what did happen to two young schoolgirls, missing since the 1980's?DI Strong and journalist, Bob Souter are drawn into murky and dangerous worlds. Talisman: Following a fire in a terraced house, the body of a prominent lawyer, Charles Chamberlain, is found naked and shackled to a bed frame. Six weeks earlier, DI Colin Strong is investigating the sudden death of a transsexual, left undiscovered in the bath for over a year. Initially, it appears to be a tragic death but one mysterious item, a card for the Talisman Club, is found in the bedroom.Meanwhile, Bob Souter, journalist and close friend of DI Strong, is probing connections between a developer and the council leader in respect of a controversial project when massive European funding is announced. Souter smells a rat and delves further into the scheme.Is there a link between the bodies and the business deal?Will Souter or DI Strong crack the case first?And what exactly is the Talisman Club? What the readers say: Trophies "Informative, interesting and thrilling""Simply unputdownable." Torment: "What a fantastic read , the author captured my interest early on with this thrilling story.""Another brilliant book from a great writer. "Torment' is an enjoyable detective book with gripping plots and a dark mystery." Talisman: "Another stupendous read""It will become one of the talked about novels of 2016"

    Banksy, Britain’s now-legendary “guerilla” street artist, has painted the walls, streets, and bridges of towns and cities throughout the world. Once viewed as vandalism, Banksy’s work is now venerated, collected, and preserved. Over the course of a decade, Martin Bull has documented dozens of the most important and impressive works by the legendary political artist, most of which are no longer in existence.

    In the years that followed, she published other notable monographs, including "Aila" (2004), "The Eyes, the Ear" (2005) and "Semear" (2007). And now, ten years after her precipitous entry onto the international stage, Aperture has published "Illuminance," the latest volume of Kawauchi's work and the first to be published outside of Japan. Kawauchi's photography has frequently been lauded for its nuanced palette and offhand compositional mastery, as well as its ability to incite wonder via careful attention to tiny gestures and the incidental details of her everyday environment. As Sean O'Hagan, writing in "The Guardian" in 2006, noted, "there is always some glimmer of hope and humanity, some sense of wonder at work in the rendering of the intimate and fragile." In "Illuminance," Kawauchi continues her exploration of the extraordinary in the mundane, drawn to the fundamental cycles of life and the seemingly inadvertent, fractal-like organization of the natural world into formal patterns. Gorgeously produced as a clothbound volume with Japanese binding, this impressive compilation of previously unpublished images is proof of Kawauchi's unique sensibility and her ongoing appeal to lovers of photography.

    More than 200 photos depict aristocrats and the middle class as well as Oscar Wilde, Lillie Langtry, Winston Churchill, Queen Victoria, and others. Commentary and annotations describe and identify the costumes.

    Sashiko is traditionally used to mend and repair clothing and textiles, but it can just as easily be used to create beautiful, decorative projects for the home. With fifteen projects applying a modern, on-trend aesthetic to this ancient craft, Make and Mend shows readers how to apply sashiko stitching to a variety of craft projects, such as repairing torn jeans, mending a ripped hem, and making decorative pillows, napkins, a tablecloth, and a totebag. Touching on the concepts of beauty in minimalism and resourceful simplicity, as well as a fascination with Japan and Japanese design, this easy and accessible book appeals to both the seasoned maker and total beginner.

    Combining his own traumatic experiences with moments of everyday redemption, the chapel will become his masterpiece.When Elsie Munday arrives to take up position as housemaid to the Spencer family, her life quickly becomes entwined with the charming and irascible Stanley, his artist wife Hilda and their tiny daughter Shirin.As the years pass, Elsie does her best to keep the family together even when love, obsession and temptation seem set to tear them apart...

    To the Western mind these fearsome warriors-samurai, the masterless ronin, and the assassin ninja-have always been a source of mystery and wonder, combining the idealism of chivalry with military fanaticism. The Ways Of The Samurai digs beneath the myth and reveals a truth even more amazing about the men who practiced a discipline drawn from Zen and Confucian ethics-bushido, the way of the warrior.

    Seeking to address the various challenges of off-camera lighting, professional photographers and advanced amateurs alike will find a range of confidence-building instruction, beginning with basic how’s and why’s of lighting for creative effect, the types of equipment available and instruction about their proper use, clear definitions of various technical concepts such as managing shutter speed and controlling flash exposure, using ambient light as well as natural sunlight during a shoot, and incorporating off-camera flash into a portrait session. Concluding this lesson plan is a look at five different real-life photo sessions, each employing a different flash technique. Here, photographers get a deeper understanding of each concept put into practice, marrying the elements of lighting with the natural elements presented by the shoot.

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.