Oay pulls down the sky is the title of Okpokwasili's first (and simultaneously released) LP initiated by Danspace Project's executive director and chief curator Judy Hussie-Taylor who brought the idea of a recording to Okwui during one of their meetings about Danspace's Platform 2020 and research institute. These songs were written by Okwui between 2012 and 2018, some specifically for her interdisciplinary performances. Four of the songs were first performed by Okwui at Danspace Project, including "sam's song" on the occasion of Sam Miller's memorial on September 15, 2018. They were recorded on January 8, 2019 at the studio of recording engineer John Kilgore. The album was produced by Okwui's longtime artistic collaborator Peter Born. Immediately upon hearing about this recording, Belladonna's founder Rachel Levitsky had the idea to publish the lyrics and to invite Asiya Wadud to write in response to Okwui's songs. --From Belladonna web site

This pioneering book is the first publication in English to devote itself to the methods, techniques and history of reverse painting and gilding on glass, often known as 'verre eglomise'. Since the Renaissance the practice has passed in and out of fashion but today it is enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Discerning designers commission decorated glass for wall and ceiling panelling and for furniture inserts, while artists are increasingly exploring the medium, pushing at its boundaries. This book is written for students, artists, conservators, curators, interested amateurs, teachers and designers, many of whom will have been patiently waiting to learn more on this topic. The history of unfired decoration on glass is recounted in depth, illustrated with hitherto unpublished pictures. In the practical section clear step-by-step projects, suitable for a beginner as well as for a more experienced artist, serve as a singular introduction to an elegant, sophisticated art. Book Review 1: This is probably the most condensed (and refreshingly so), yet comprehensive book to date on gilded and painted glass. Concise and easy to read it mainly covers the most widely used cold process of gold and painted decoration on glass. Frances wastes no time in pointing out and clearing up the true meaning of the term verre eglomise, now commonly used as a general title for any type of decoration applied to glass, but let's not give too much away. This is all covered, including both cold and hot methods, in the opening paragraphs and under the Terminology section. There are many old books from medieval manuscripts to un-translated documentation, so this book is very welcomed. There has been a long gap in the market for gilded glass, but now the art of glass decoration is enjoying such a revival, and with so many new and varied designs, this couldn't really be better timed. The book moves from techniques (ancient to modern day) to origins and the development of glass decoration throughout the world. Fabulous examples of historic and important pieces are illustrated, each with a brief description of techniques and materials used. Some of these examples show a real diversity in design and methods used. The step by step approach for the entire gilding process is also explained and shown in great detail, covering initial design process for geometric and free hand patterns, the process of laying the leaf, engraving and colouring. Recipes, materials & tools, suppliers and useful references to websites make it easy for even a complete beginner or an amateur who has never laid a single leaf, but may wish to try their hand. Even for the professional there is nothing comparable to this book. It is up to date, an excellent concise reference manual with a wealth of useful information, in essence it is a book that can teach even the most experienced restorer or gilder something new. -- Dominic Schuster for The BAFRA, British Antique Furniture Restorers Association. Book Review 2: ...This book... brings together the results of years of research by the author... time-tested arcane formulae have been thoroughly modernized; intricate order-sensitive processes are thoroughly explained. Anyone practicing today has to get many things 'right' if they expect their work to last really long-term: that is why this book is so very important. -- William Gudenrath, Resident Advisor at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass, NY, USA. Book Review 3: I started reading your book and I think that it is great - it contains amazing amounts of information and yet it doesn't beat about the bush. -- Nina Binnington, mirror specialist, Germany. Book Review 4: Have now read four times, ever more slowly and with increasing understanding of the variables. Your experience and comments about what can be laid on top of what have in particular been very handy indeed for working out some potential snags ....I do so agree about repeating basic instructions in each separate context - from the reader's point of view, this is a blessing. Not to have to dash back and forth to re-establish an idea from a previous chapter, keeping a thumb in the page, is genuinely sensible.... I have put pencil marks all over the pages to remind me of small important details in the text. For me, that is clear proof that this is a book... genuinely useful workaday... to learn from and work with, not just to gawp at... -- Richard Byrne, UK. Book Review 5: It's a work of gilded art! This book will encourage and teach students for years to come. -- David Smith, ornamental glass artist, UK. Book Review 6: ...I want to say how much I am enjoying the book! Its such a fantastic resource and so inspiring - a real gift to the glass world. -- Lucy Batt, glass artist, UK. Book Review 7: ... after so much time, research and careful thought, it is truly an inspiration. I am very keen to explore this use of gold and colour in what I hope eventually will be my own personal expression. -- Christopher Ainslie, glass engraver, UK. Book Review 8: ...I just got the book in the post. It's lovely! Really well done, so easy to follow and beautifully illustrated. -- Lynne Rutter, decorative artist, San Francisco, USA. Book Review 9: ...Such a handsome book, and so filled with fascinating photos and text. It is beautifully organized, and will provide many worthwhile hours for readers of all levels. Congratulations, and thank you from all of us in the gilding community. -- Ina and Allen Marx, conservators and decorative artists, USA.

*Shortlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2016* Mirza Waheed's extraordinary new novel The Book of Gold Leaves is a heartbreaking love story set in war-torn Kashmir. In an ancient house in the city of Srinagar, Faiz paints exquisite Papier Mache pencil boxes for tourists. Evening is beginning to slip into night when he sets off for the shrine. There he finds the woman with the long black hair. Roohi is prostrate before her God. She begs for the boy of her dreams to come and take her away. Roohi wants a love story. An age-old tale of love, war, temptation, duty and choice, The Book of Gold Leaves is a heartbreaking tale of a what might have been, what could have been, if only. 'I loved it. The voice is lyrical, to match the beauty of Kashmir, and yet it is tinged with melancholy and grief, as is the story it tells' Nadeem Aslam (on The Collaborator) 'Waheed's prose burns with the fever of anger and despair; the scenes in the valley are exceptional, conveying, a hallucinatory living nightmare that has become an everyday reality for Kashmiris' Metro (on The Collaborator) Mirza Waheed was born and brought up in Kashmir. His debut novel The Collaborator was shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award and the Shakti Bhat Prize, and longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize. It was also book of the year for The Telegraph, New Statesman, Financial Times, Business Standard and Telegraph India, among others. Waheed has written for the BBC, The Guardian, Granta, Al Jazeera English and the New York Times. He lives in London.

Includes preprints of: Transactions of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, ISSN 0096-3860.