'I perhaps owe it to flowers', wrote Claude Monet (1840-1926), 'that I became a painter.' One of the leading figures of the Impressionist movement and perhaps the most celebrated landscape painter of his age, Monet dedicated his life to capturing the subtleties of the natural world. Trees - willows enveloped in the eerie mists of the Seine, palm trees beneath the bright Mediterranean sun or poplars heavily laden with snow - became a significant motif in his work, and he used them to experimen...

Gives you an understanding of the ways in which modern art differs from realistic works of earlier centuries. This book examines 100 works of modern art that have attracted critical and public hostility from Cy Twomblys scribbled "Olympia", Jean-Michel Basquiats crude but spontaneous "LNAPRK", and more.

A compact, introductory guide to modern art that explains styles, schools, and movements from Impressionism to the present day

The definitive introduction to the understanding and practice of archaeology, now in its second edition.

' The Book that really held me, in fact, obsessed me, was Rubicon ...This is narrative history at its best. Bloody and labyrinthine political intrigue and struggle, brilliant oratory, amazing feats of conquest and cruelty.' Ian McEwan, Books of the Year, GUARDIAN

A brilliant new account of the world's very first clash of civilisations between the Persians and the Greeks in 480BC.

The untold story of how British-French rivalry drew the battle-lines of the modern Middle East

These extraordinary homes accentuate the cosmopolitan designs of such architectural talents as Gurjit Matharoo from India, Mohamed Amine Siana from Morrocco, and Mariko Mori from Japan. Building private houses, which can sometimes be quite small, they demonstrate creativity and technological inventiveness, shaping the architecture of tomorrow.

Um ein unscheinbares Gebäude in ein begehrenswertes Zuhausezuverwandeln,braucht man nur Kreativität.

Wie kann man aus einem Haus ein Zuhause machen? Gebäude, die man so vorfindet, wie wir heute wohnen möchten, sind eine Seltenheit. Oftmals fehlt es an Platz, an Licht, Energieeffizienz, einer offenen Küche und einem flexiblem Grundriss, der für "Work from Hom" funktioniert und sich an die wandelnden Ansprüche moderner Familien anpassen lässt. Anbauten, Aufbauten, Durchbrüche, geänder...