This evocative souvenir traces the life and times of George Frideric Handel and Jimi Hendrix – two of the greatest musicians ever to have lived in London. Handel lived at 25 Brook Street from 1723 until his death in 1759. It was here that Handel composed his greatest works, including Messiah and its ever popular Hallelujah chorus. His stirring anthem Zadok the Priest was also written in Brook Street and has accompanied the coronation of every British monarch since George II. In 1968, Jimi Hendrix moved into an adjoining flat at number 23. Here, in the only place he said he felt truly at home, Hendrix entertained, inspired and collaborated with other icons of British 60s rock music.
Handel Hendrix House reopened in May 2023 following a £3million restoration, shedding new light on its famed residents, the great composer George Frideric Handel and rock legend Jimi Hendrix.

Known for his colourful, irreverent, and often politically charged paintings, Halim Flowers is a contemporary visual artist, spoken word performer, and author who has become one of the hottest newcomers in the contemporary art scene. As a minor, Flowers was arrested and wrongfully sentenced to two life sentences in Washington, DC, later to be released under a new juvenile lifer resentencing law. His experiences aired on HBO in the Emmy award-winning documentary Thug Life in DC, as well as Kim Kardashian-West’s film The Justice Project. Since his release, Flowers has produced a stunning spectrum of paintings expressing his ardent advocacy for human rights, and his resonant, up-lifting mantra “Love is the vaccine”. This beautifully illustrated volume provides the first full treatment of Flower’s artistic vision, with insightful interpretation from leading scholars of this star on the rise.

Exploring this much-loved public park reveals its story. In the Middle Ages, Gunnersbury belonged to the powerful mistress of a medieval king. Prosperous Tudor merchants and City aldermen followed; its first transformation saw the building of a huge Palladian mansion with formal gardens around 1660. After years of neglect it was reborn as a centre of Georgian society; a merchant politician and art collector and then a Hanoverian princess each softened the landscape and built follies. In 1800 the mansion was demolished and development plots sold off; two neighbouring villas emerged which still survive. From 1835 one was home to the banking family who eventually reunited the estate, and this building is now the Gunnersbury Park Museum. Gunnersbury was opened as a public park in 1926. This book marks the completion of the recent and extensive conservation programme – its 21st century transformation – in the lead-up to the Park centenary.

Published to coincide with the Gunnersbury Park Museum’s reopening in spring/summer 2018. Gunnersbury Park receives 30,000-40,000 visitors per year, and this is expected to rise to as many as 1 million visitors per year after the renovation and conservation programme is completed.

The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao opened in October 1997 as part of a large-scale urban renovation project, and since then its popularity has flourished. The museum’s striking twentieth century building, designed by Frank Gehry, and its one million annual visitors have cemented Bilbao’s presence on the international cultural scene. It is from here that the contemporary art collection developed. As a coherent set of more than 130 works, it exhibits some of the most significant creations of the period from the mid-twentieth century up to the modern day. This guide takes the reader on a private tour of the remarkable collection through a selection of highlights, judiciously chosen by General Director Juan Ignacio Vidarte, and offers an engaging preface or echo to the thrill of experiencing the works first hand.

Who is the intriguing man wearing a religious habit and a gold hoop earring in this portrait by Italian Baroque master Il Guercino? And why does he point to a stack of drawings? This fascinating book investigates The Ringling’s portrait of Fra Bonaventura Bisi, a Franciscan Minor Conventual friar whose work as an art dealer, printmaker, and celebrated painter of miniatures made him a major figure in the artistic culture of 17th-century Bologna. Beautifully illustrated, this volume offers new scholarship on both Guercino’s portrait and Fra Bisi’s life, including his extraordinary miniatures, his dogged pursuit of artworks for high-ranking collectors, his passionate efforts to promote the appreciation and collecting of drawings, and – not least – his incongruous gold hoop earring.

Published to accompany an important exhibition of the same name at The Ringling (14 October 2023-07 January 2024), this book, based on years of research, provides a captivating glimpse into art making and art collecting in Baroque Italy.

The Calouste Gulbenkian Museum in Lisbon holds a remarkable set of gothic ivories, including rare pieces of exceptional quality. This fully illustrated book brings these exquisite pieces to a wider audience, appealing not only to specialists but also to the general reader. Lavish colour reproductions of the ivories, accompanied by an expert text and contextual images from other collections, make this an accessible guide to this fascinating subject.

Westminster Abbey has many identities – as a place of worship, theatre of state, resting place of kings and memorial to statesmen and poets. Internationally acclaimed artist Alexander Creswell captures its many facets in these stunning watercolours.

The tranquillity and shifting light of the Abbey’s cloisters, chapels and library are captured here, along with the famous monuments of Poet’s Corner and spectacular views from the triforium, soon to become the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries.

We also see moments in the life of the Abbey – from the celebration of the Eucharist, to the warmth and intimacy of the Carol service, to the magnificent wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

This book represents the culmination of a project that began in 2011, with the artist’s commission to paint the Royal Wedding. Some of his sketches are shown alongside the finished works, affording a fascinating glimpse into the artistic process. This beautiful book perfectly captures the spirit of the Abbey and will be a treasured memento for anyone who has been to admire it.

Published to accompany an exhibition opening in spring 2018.

One of Harvard University’s most famous treasures is the internationally acclaimed Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants, the "Glass Flowers." From orchids to bananas, rhododendrons to lilies, Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka created a stunning array of glass models of plants from around the world. Working exclusively for Harvard in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Blaschkas applied their artistic expertise and botanical knowledge to craft an extraordinary collection for Harvard students, researchers, and the public. Exquisite detail is captured in this dazzling new publication, featuring new photography of models that inspire wonder and blur the line between the real and man-made. The collection demonstrates the majesty of plants and the artistry and scientific acumen of this father and son team, and is the only one of its kind in the world.

The composer, songwriter and pianist George Gershwin was deeply connected to modern art. On the centenary of his masterpiece ‘Rhapsody in Blue’, this striking book appraises his legacy as an artist in his own right, as a collector and as an inspiration to other artists. 

Before his untimely death at age 38, Gershwin produced numerous paintings, drawings and photographs. He was also an avid collector of modern art: his collection was one of the most significant of his day, with pieces by Picasso, Modigliani, Kandinsky, Chagall, Noguchi, Siqueiros and others. More recently, Gershwin’s music also inspired artwork by Miguel Covarrubias, Arthur Dove, Kara Walker, Andy Warhol and many others. This beautifully designed volume appraises these three elements of Gershwin’s artistic influence – as artist, collector and inspiration – as well as featuring select ephemera and correspondence from his artistic circle. It offers a tour through Gershwin’s multifaceted visual dimension, expanding our understanding of the composer, his music and his impact on American cultural history.

Renowned English artist Geoffrey Humphries (1945- ) is arguably the greatest figurative painter living and working in Venice today. A master of oil painting, portraiture, watercolour and drawing, this is the first publication to bring together the many facets of his work.

Humphries’ Venetian studio has been the setting for a cast of remarkable characters for more than 50 years, from rock stars, royalty and writers to eminent Venetians, artists and musicians several of whose portraits are featured here. His legendary soirées have meanwhile provided the inspiration for his kaleidoscopic theatre pieces – surreal fantasies which recall the depraved allure of Secessionist Vienna and the cabarets of the Weimar Republic; while the shimmering light and jewel tones of Venice continually inspire his watercolour portraits of the city. However, Humphries is perhaps best known for his figurative works his sensual nuance of line capturing the essence of his subjects, whether in charcoal or in oils, often transforming them into playful conversation pieces with his characteristic inventiveness and wit.

The extraordinary variety and beauty of Geoffrey Humphries’ work is showcased here in this retrospective portfolio, which chronicles his remarkable life and oeuvre, and serves as a homage to his adopted city – Venice, a fusion of past and present, the city of both yesterday and today.