Art rules the world. But what about the rules of art? In our current day and age, the general consensus seems to be that creativity, divine inspiration and art can never be bound by rules. Artists need to push the envelope, be ahead of the curve, and if there are any rules out there it is the artist's prerogative, if not God-given right, to break them.

But up to the early 20th century, artists did not have the complete artistic freedom that they are believed to enjoy today. They were bound by...

Since 1846, the Vlisco company, located in Helmond, has supplied the Western and Central African market with Dutch Wax fabrics. This book is an homage to the fabric's fascinating history - more than a hundred years old, born in Indonesia, designed in the Netherlands, loved in Africa and coveted in the West. Full of layered meaning, the fabrics find their way to Parisian fashion shows, markets in Ghana and galleries in London and New York. More than 200 examples of fabrics from the Vlisco arch...

The book introduces an emerging domain of design that is of immense interest today not only to the academic design research community but also to those in the business community charged with the development of human-cantered products, systems, services and/or environments. All the information is new. There are no other books with this focus and coverage currently available.The book is written by two design professors from the USA and Holland and will be the perfect text book to use in educati...

When times are particularly difficult, and you are likely to slip into despair, some of the greatest pop songs can provide true comfort to make it through the pain. The problem with advice in general is that we often don't take it. The great thing about advice songs is that you can kick back and listen to someone else coach you through a tough situation while rocking out at the same time. This wonderful book lists 250 of the best pop songs for those times that solid life advices are needed. T...

'Colour Based on Nature' takes the concept of Irma Boom's previous work further afield, highlighting UNESCO World Heritage sites across the globe and on every continent. This time, the colour diagrams are derived from 80 natural locations designated by the UNESCO list. It is an exercise in describing without words, using instead colours to evoke and celebrate the essence of a place. Detailed information about the World Heritage properties, their selection criteria, how many are inscribed per ...