A Rock is a River, a new book by Swiss artist Maya Rochat, binds the alchemy of photography with the physicality of painting. Rochat creates organic patterns, chromatic alterations and visual ruptures that generate a slow, ongoing process of images mutating, reflecting a world in permanent flux. In the long tradition of artists' books as artworks in their own right, Rochat understands the space of a publication as site-specific, and has conceived a series of works for the form of the publication, taking into account the possibilities of layout and printing experimentation. Drawing from the past two years of her photographic production, she revisits and interweaves images in various scales and rhythms to create an ongoing, unfolding collage in book form. The name derives from the collection of raw material Rochat gathered to create the book. Much of it was shot in Valle Verzasca, in the Locarno district of her native Switzerland, as well as within other landscapes she has a direct connection to such as Peru, where her father lives. Inspired by the altering states of matter transforming in the natural world - the sculpting forces of continually moving water, rocks transformed by rivers, solids turning to liquids and back again - Rochat works layers of transformation into each her own works, in her own process of sedimentation.

The accompanying catalogue to the first major exhibition to consider the relationship between the photographic medium and the history of abstraction in the twentieth century, on display at London's Tate Modern.The exhibition catalogue will be arranged in a broadly chronological way to tell the story of photography and its relationship with abstraction from around 1915 to the present day, and will include historic works in a variety of media from painting and sculpture to montage and kinetic installations. Beginning with the works of cubism and vorticism, the catalogue then highlights the key contributions of Bauhaus, constructivist and surrealist artists of the 1920's and 1930's. It then moves into the s̀ubjective photography' of the 1940's and 1950's, exploring the global scope of this movement through works by artists from Latin America and Asia, before considering the impacts of photography of abstract expressionism, op art and minimalism in Europe and the US.0Bringing together iconic as well as rarely seen works, Photography and Abstract Art explores the development of photography in relation to abstract art, tracing the key moments of innovation in new techniques and practice.

A spirited defense of the anarchist approach to life James Scott taught us what's wrong with seeing like a state. Now, in his most accessible and personal book to date, the acclaimed social scientist makes the case for seeing like an anarchist. Inspired by the core anarchist faith in the possibilities of voluntary cooperation without hierarchy, Two Cheers for Anarchism is an engaging, high-spirited, and often very funny defense of an anarchist way of seeing—one that provides a unique and powerful perspective on everything from everyday social and political interactions to mass protests and revolutions. Through a wide-ranging series of memorable anecdotes and examples, the book describes an anarchist sensibility that celebrates the local knowledge, common sense, and creativity of ordinary people. The result is a kind of handbook on constructive anarchism that challenges us to radically reconsider the value of hierarchy in public and private life, from schools and workplaces to retirement homes and government itself. Beginning with what Scott calls "the law of anarchist calisthenics," an argument for law-breaking inspired by an East German pedestrian crossing, each chapter opens with a story that captures an essential anarchist truth. In the course of telling these stories, Scott touches on a wide variety of subjects: public disorder and riots, desertion, poaching, vernacular knowledge, assembly-line production, globalization, the petty bourgeoisie, school testing, playgrounds, and the practice of historical explanation. Far from a dogmatic manifesto, Two Cheers for Anarchism celebrates the anarchist confidence in the inventiveness and judgment of people who are free to exercise their creative and moral capacities.

Drawing on previously untapped archival materials including letters, interviews, and more, Bernard F. Dick traces the history of Columbia Pictures, from its beginnings as the CBC Film Sales Company, through the regimes of Harry Cohn and his successors, and ending with a vivid portrait of today's corporate Hollywood. The book offers unique perspectives on the careers of Rita Hayworth and Judy Holliday, a discussion of Columbia's unique brands of screwball comedy and film noir, and analyses of such classics as The Awful Truth, Born Yesterday, and From Here to Eternity. Following the author's highly readable studio chronicle are fourteen original essays by leading film scholars that follow Columbia's emergence from Poverty Row status to world class, and the stars, films, genres, writers, producers, and directors responsible for its transformation. A new essay on Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood rounds out the collection and brings this seminal studio history into the 21st century. Amply illustrated with film stills and photos of stars and studio heads, Columbia Pictures is the first book to integrate history with criticism of a single studio, and is ideal for film lovers and scholars alike.

The symbolically laden, analog and digital works of the young Swiss artist Maya Rochat probe the depths of the photographic plane. Using her own writing and fragments of found images, she modifies her photographs to create radically associative compositions. She sources her own immediate surroundings, weaving portraits of friends and shots of landscapes into a dense, intimate visual fabric that is scratched, dissected, and reassembled with almost militant surgical intervention. The bitter, beautiful universe that surfaces in Crystal Clear patently eludes conventional codes of interpretation, relentlessly undermining the usual visual cliches and notions of beauty propagated by the media.

This book explores how digital culture is transforming museums in the 21st century. Offering a corpus of new evidence for readers to explore, the authors trace the digital evolution of the museum and that of their audiences, now fully immersed in digital life, from the Internet to home and work. In a world where life in code and digits has redefined human information behavior and dominates daily activity and communication, ubiquitous use of digital tools and technology is radically changing the social contexts and purposes of museum exhibitions and collections, the work of museum professionals and the expectations of visitors, real and virtual. Moving beyond their walls, with local and global communities, museums are evolving into highly dynamic, socially aware and relevant institutions as their connections to the global digital ecosystem are strengthened. As they adopt a visitor-centered model and design visitor experiences, their priorities shift to engage audiences, convey digital collections, and tell stories through exhibitions. This is all part of crafting a dynamic and innovative museum identity of the future, made whole by seamless integration with digital culture, digital thinking, aesthetics, seeing and hearing, where visitors are welcomed participants. The international and interdisciplinary chapter contributors include digital artists, academics, and museum professionals. In themed parts the chapters present varied evidence-based research and case studies on museum theory, philosophy, collections, exhibitions, libraries, digital art and digital future, to bring new insights and perspectives, designed to inspire readers. Enjoy the journey!

This volume compiles ideas and projects from well-known artists, architects, designers, filmmakers and researchers on mountainous regions not only in Switzerland, but worldwide. It includes writings by Vito Acconci, Doug Aitken, Ron Arad, Nairy Baghramian and Jan von Brevern, as well as a discussion on architect Bruno Taut's "Crystal Chain Letters."