Stichting Kunstboek BVBA - Böcker

Buro Kiefer, founded in Berlin in 1989, can be counted amongst the most important international landscape design bureaus. A mathematical and aesthetic logic lies at the basis of every design. In recombining both, landscape design answers to the ever growing job responsibilities: architecture, urban development and region development orientate the landscape. Linked up with this challenge, but also with the cultural tradition of garden art, Buro Kiefer creates new hybrids from town and landscape. Their starting point is a contemporary understanding of space. On the basis of an analysis of the space, the division of influences and ideas and recombining them, Buro Kiefer creates images referring to the future. In this book a number of important projects are presented as a whole for the first time. "Buro Kiefer, Landscape Design" is a publication in a series about leading architects and landscape designers in the Europe of today.

Akira Oshima, chef of the restaurant Yamazato in Hotel Okura, is the only Japanese chef in Europe who has been awarded with a Michelin star. His kitchen distinguishes itself from an ordinary Japanese sushi kitchen through its originality and authenticity. The Kaiseki cuisine is based on a hundred years old tradition and has a lot of symbolism and rituals. All dishes and recipes in the Kaiseki kitchen are made in function of festivities or important moments throughout the year. This unique publication tells the story of the original Japanese Kaiseki kitchen, of course richly illustrated and with dozens of wonderful dishes. The Kaiseki cuisine of the Yamazato is a truly unique reference work for those who want to discover the soul and the art of the Japanese cuisine.

In this new book, the publisher presents the top gardens of eleven master gardeners from the Netherlands. The members of the Association of Master Gardeners (Vereniging van Tophoveniers) have voluntarily submitted themselves to high quality demands and want to bring their profession to the highest possible level.Tophoveniers guarantee top quality for the complete package, not only as garden contractor, but also as designer, advisor, and person to talk to.Among the participants are Harry Esselinck, Groenpartners Tuinen, Hoveniersbedrijf Louis van der Meijden and Rien Van Mierio.In this beautiful publication the focus is on the architecture of the gardens. Because of the unique photographic material the book has become very attractive and insightful for every garden lover. In order to give the reader a complete image of the work of their participants, the author shows gardens of different sizes and from different parts of the Netherlands.Text in English and Dutch.

The ultimate reference in every rose-lover's library! The mysterious story of a more than four-centuries old quest for the black rose. Does the black rose exist, or has it ever existed? The complete history of this noble flower, based on authentic research, shows that the quest goes back to the very earliest botanical writings - references to dark roses cropped up in the early European botanical literature. Their further evolution can be easily traced by rose drawings, from the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth century. Later, rose collections came into existence, rose collectors became famous and, from the end of the eighteenth century, rose gardeners received more and more recognition for their selections.This prestigious book, in a velvety soft cover, brings the full story of the black rose, based on original research, from the oldest historical images to the most recent developments, and prominent florists of world-renown show their creations with roses.

In the brand new series, Creativity with Flowers Tomas De Bruyne, Per Benjamin and Max van de Sluis of Life3 share their knowledge and experience with young professionals and with everyone passionate about floral designs. Consisting entirely of designs for bouquets, this book includes a comprehensive history of the bouquet as well as step by step instructions on how to make them. Each of the three florists has contirbuted seven designs to the book.Also Available:Plant Arrangements ISBN: 9789058563521Passionate Emotions ISBN: 9789058563217Arrangements ISBN: 9789058562791Christmas Emotions ISBN: 9789058562401Christmas ISBN: 9789058562074Interior Decoration ISBN: 9789058561893Sympathy ISBN: 9789058562548Table Arrangements ISBN: 9789058563231Wedding Emotions ISBN: 9789058561756Wedding Flowers ISBN: 9789058563095Life3: Ten Years of Inspiration ISBN: 9789058564139

The bouquet is without a doubt the bestseller among all floral works. Bouquets make ideal thank you gifts and they are superb for spoiling your loved one on Valentine's Day. For every occasion there is a special flower, shape or scent. In this inspirational book, you will find 100 bouquets created by five master florists. They have made beautiful bouquets for every season centred around the themes of love, gratitude, farewell, amosphere and invitation. A great book packed with ideas for every florist and bouquet lover!Florists:Janine and Bart Schampheleer from Domus Florum, Aalst, Kris De Spiegeleere and Els Van Nedervelde from Palladio, Bruges, Anne-France Libert from Fleurd'O, Brussels, Patrick Houbrechts and Bea Verbeeck from Monet, Alken, and Sofie Lannoy from PhiloSofie, Gits.

Jacques Simon is unmistakably a very important link in the renewal of French landscape architecture. For the first time in an oeuvre, Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian garden culture are combined with typically Latin structures, with classic architectural landscapes. He works as often as possible in situ, and does not shy away from driving the excavator himself. Since the eighties, he has also been creating transitory landscapes: with heavy and less heavy equipment, he brings patterns in fields, cultivated fields, snow-clad grounds, and so on. The list of important realisations by this landscape architect is impressive, and so is his influence. Text in English and French.

No one who wants to explore the world of floristry can do without the basics. They are even more essential for those who want to experiment. This handy book contains eleven basic techniques that every florist just has to master. All of these techniques are explained by master florist and teacher Gudrun Cottenier and explained in step-by-step instructions. Every technique comes with four or five compositions that show the possible variants on each theme. An indispensable manual for every hobby florist!Also available:Bouquets: Creativity with Flowers ISBN 9789058561886 £22.50Christmas: Creativity with Flowers ISBN 9789058562074 £22.50Interior Decoration: Creativity with Flowers ISBN 9789058561893 £22.50

On Roses brings an ode to the rose as the Queen of Flowers. In this inspirational book, Françoise Vandonink and Stefan Roosen - both Belgian floristry champions - bundle a wealth of exceptionally beautiful compositions with roses that accompany us on our journey through life. The birth of a child, a christening party, a first communion, an engagement party, a wedding, an anniversary, a funeral, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and birthday parties are all bathed in fragrance and multi-coloured roses and petals. Text in English, French and Dutch.

It is difficult to rival the beauty of trees, with their tall, slender stature and the height of their crowns. Nevertheless, the ambition of the Parckdesign call for proposals was to take up the challenge of highlighting the ancestral link that exists between man and nature, between man's artefacts and his relationship with the natural element and environment by the means of urban furniture.Put in a contemporary context, park furniture is focused on the willingness to experiment, test, enhance and discover natural sites that are seeking a more specific identity.

Today surrealism may be firstly known as a school in literature and fine arts, but the influence of this 20th-century school on other domains cannot be underestimated. The world of contemporary design doesn't escape a healthy portion of surreal humour. Forms with a smile bundles designs and objects of modern surrealists and shows that nothing is what it seems to be.Hairy carpets, lamps in the shape of a milk bottle, USB sticks cut from wood branches or chairs made from plush toys. Is it just humour? Or is it a stimulating statement wrapped in a contagious smile? Just like surrealism, design sometimes tells more than we think. Armed with subtle irony these new surrealists wage war against a world reigned by a certain sérieux. Text in English and Dutch.

The history of orchids teems with tales of temptation and passion. This stunning book combines the most luscious and tactile photographs with surprising and informative texts about orchids. The first part of the book tells the tale about the discovery of orchids through history and describes the way in which orchids are perceived. In the East the emphasis lies mainly on positive characteristics, grace and generosity. In the West orchids personify procreation and sex. Why are orchids the way they are? Why those amazing, complicated shapes? Why those incredible colours? In Orchid: The Fatal Attraction Anne Ronse discusses everything orchids have stood for in the course of history.

Jan Cox (1919-1980) was born in The Hague and spent his youth in Amsterdam. Shortly before World War II, he moved to Antwerp with his parents and his brother, the composer Harry Cox, and studied History of Art at the State University of Ghent. After the war he settled down in Brussels to become a co-founder of the Jeune Peinture Belge (Young Belgian Painting). He had contacts with the members of Cobra and became close friends with Hugo Claus and Pierre Alechinsky. In 1956 Jan Cox left for the USA where he was appointed Head of the Painting Department at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. In 1974 he returned to Belgium and found a new home in the circle of the Gallery De Zwarte Panter (The Black Panther) in Antwerp. Jan Cox thought of his artistic calling as an artistic and a humanist project. His painting has a strong surreal and magical bias but he also created imposing expressionist images. He liked classical themes: the myth of Orpheus, Homer's Iliad, Judith and Holofernes, the Calvary. Jan Cox managed to merge autobiographical elements with the universal problems of human existence. His paintings invite the beholder to reflect on the human condition, hope and the terrors of the modern world.

Big-Game consists of the Belgian Elric Petit, the Swiss Grégoire Jeanmonod and the Frenchman Augustin Scott de Martinville. Having met up at the ECAL (Cantonal School of Art of Lausanne) and given their shared passion for the aesthetics of industrial design, in 2004 they decided to join forces and found a design studio, based in Brussels as well as Lausanne. In this relatively short time they have collaborated with, amongst others, Ligne Roset, Galérie Kréo, Vlaemsch and Inout Designers. Their work is minimalist, with a humourous, sometimes slightly subversive touch.In October 2008, Grand Hornu Images (attached to the MAC) brings an exhibition about the work of the threesome, on the occasion of which this book is published. With texts by Lise Coirier and Pierre Keller, it sneaks behind the scenes and offers a visual exploration of the journey of a design object from the conception and drawings to the finalised product.Text in English and French.

'Making every day's life extraordinary' is not just a slogan for Dutch designer and floral artist Pim van den Akker. His floral creations connect the worlds of design and floral art at the same time prove how natural forms, structures and colours are determinative for the atmosphere. Pim van den Akker is a master in displaying the beauty of both flowers and plants in a surprisingly playful and movingly honest way. Beauty, naturalness, structure and individuality are the key words in his creations. This monograph not only shows the virtuosic skills of this floral expert, it is also a splendid testimony to the philosophy of this exceptional floral designer.

Ryusaku Matsuda is generally considered one of the most important and influential 'masters' of traditional and modern Japanese floral art. He has been the head of Studio Matsuda since 1993 and has written several highly acclaimed and successful books that never fail to surprise. What drives him are the motives of a true artist: 'I've tried to discover the reasons why I create works that take both so much trouble and time and I've realised that my motives are likely to stem from my desire to spend as much time with plants as possible'.

Limited edition design is hot. But can we really talk about design here? Or does it go beyond all limits of art? Some critics adopt a middle course in calling it 'designart'. Design/Art, Limited Editions deals with this phenomenon, as it presents itself today.In cooperation with international, specialised galleries, the publishers have composed an overview of the creations of more than seventy international designers. Opening with the conclusions of a vivid discussion between several curators and design critics - who obviously couldn't arrive at a uniform opinion on the subject - this publication aims to enrich your personal insight into the subject. Each copy of the book contains a serial number, perfectly reflecting the concept of limited edition design.

Despite his reputation as being one of the world's best and most promising designers, the work of Danny Venlet is one of the best kept secrets in the world of design. While this may be partly due to the fact that Danny lives and works in opposing parts of the world - Australia and Belgium - it may also be due to what defines the essence of his personality and work - modest, thriving on understatement, laidback and relaxed. Finally, there is the fact that Venlet - despite his being credited as the inventor of a curvy and more organic and humanising minimalism - does not cultivate one single style as a designer and interior architect. This book gives a first and all-encompassing overview of two decades of a career that did not only revolutionise the world of office, outdoor and residential furniture, with award-winning designs as the 'East Rider' and the 'Viteo Shower', but also introduced a total new concept of interior architecture, in which objects and users are no longer dominated by space, but the reverse.

The Hasselt Triennial is a dynamic art project for contemporary art, fashion and design, and all possible relations between them. The current edition "SuperStories" has international ambitions and comes with a range of interesting exhibitions which are linked to performing arts. The triennial program, with works by 50 national and international artists, fashion designers & designers, responds to the use of narrative and documentary elements within contemporary art, fashion and design. The stage for the triennial is the city of Hasselt (Belgium), consisting of a course along different culture houses (cultuurcentrum Hasselt, Modemuseum, Nationaal Jenevermuseum, Kunstencentrum Z33 and CIAP). The exhibition catalogue "SuperStories" does not only show the exhibited objects, but reflects in a broader context on the relationship between the various visual arts disciplines.

After the successful "Emotions", "Wedding Emotions" and "Christmas Emotions", Life3's florists Per Benjamin, Tomas De Bruyne and Max van de Sluis will surprise the floral world with a fourth book in this series: "Passionate Emotions". No better tools to translate the whole spectrum of life's passions and pleasures than flowers, with their stunning diversity, colours and shapes. This beautiful album explores feelings of affection, love, tenderness, passion and romance. All these lovely emotions - sometimes dramatic, sometimes light-hearted - result in vibrant and colourful floral designs. Combined with Life3's special flair to create moods and atmospheres by using stunning and suiting backdrops to their compositions, this makes up for a book that is a true work of art and will undoubtedly stir anyone's passion and imagination.

"Table Arrangements" is the seventh volume in the successful series "Creativity With Flowers". Life3 arranges floral ornamentations that will bring some sparkle to your table, will stun your table guests and will add greatly to the ambiance of any party. "Table Arrangements" provides you with numerous ideas and looks to create when a special get-together is in order. Casual or stylish, delicate or eye-catching; these centrepieces will both dress up your table setting and provide your guests with a conversation starter.

What started out as a hobby or a way of simply making a living has blossomed into a professional career for Damien Koh. He has grown into an internationally acclaimed floral artist who is highly sought after for demonstrations and lectures. Damien has toured more than 30 cities both in Asia and in Europe and was introduced into the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD) in 1996 and in the Professional Floral Communicators International (PFCI) in September 2005, making him the first Chinese man to make it to the prestigious organisation. Damien owns Fleur Connection - a florist studio and floral design school in Singapore and is the principal of Pui Wa Floral Design School in Beijing. On top of this he is also a consultant to several florists and wholesalers in several countries.By diligently practicing and constant acquisition of new knowledge, Damien Koh has honed his craft to perfection. Still he keeps striving to improve, not just his craft, but the art itself. His innovative floral designs are testimony to his technical mastery and his great agility in putting a conceptual idea into place.

Annick Van Wesemael, master florist, translates her passion for her profession in romantic creations. Her floral art is a constant witness of femininity and sober finesse. After her successful first book, Tasty Tables, Annick again introduces us to a world of decorated tables. This book bubbles over with ideas to adorn tables and their environment for the most diverse occasions in an atmospheric, homey, snug, delicate, sometimes exuberant way with vegetative as well as floral materials. A spectrum of tips to turn every occasion into a fantastic party.Text in English & Dutch.Also Available:Tasty Tables ISBN: 9789058562043Creativity with Flowers: Table Arrangements ISBN: 9789058563231

Over the last ten years, the Bonsai Association Belgium has been organising a yearly international bonsai exhibition in the Belgian town of Heusden-Zolder. Each year, all exhibited pieces were photographed by professional photographers, resulting in a wealth of archive material. On the occasion of the tenth edition of the Noelanders Trophy, 250 photographs have been selected for publication. This gallery of photographs guides you through bonsai culture in Europe. Nature has shaped these bonsai over the ages but human craftsmanship, respect and patience made them a collection of living art. This book showcases a unique collection of beautiful pieces by Bonsai specialists from all over the world.

Plant Arrangements is the eighth and final volume in the successful series Creativity with Flowers by Life3 designers Per Benjamin, Tomas De Bruyne and Max van de Sluis. Life3 arranges floral ornamentations with fresh green and blooming plants, focussing on the lifespan of the arrangement. Plant Arrangements will provide you with original and long-lasting floral decorations for a variety of occasions, from bold, natural-looking containers for sun-drenched patio tables, to stylish and carefully manicured centrepieces for any special get together.The designers of Life3 allow florists around the world to share in their expertise and ideas. They introduce the expressiveness of floral design, each from his own recognisable and individual style. They take the reader on a journey through the history of the floral table piece and share their views on the future of this arrangement. Life3 shows you all the tricks and techniques to make it your own, in extensive series of step-by-step photos, with comments and personal thoughts on design, technique and the emotional aspect of the work.Go backstage with this inspirational book and learn from the masters!Also Available:Passionate Emotions ISBN: 9789058563217Arrangements ISBN: 9789058562791Bouquets ISBN: 9789058561886Christmas Emotions ISBN: 9789058562401Christmas ISBN: 9789058562074Interior Decoration ISBN: 9789058561893Sympathy ISBN: 9789058562548Table Arrangements ISBN: 9789058563231Wedding Emotions ISBN: 9789058561756Wedding Flowers ISBN: 9789058563095Life3: Ten Years of Inspiration ISBN: 9789058564139

Seven years after his first book, Bart Lens and his team Lens°Ass show how the direction they have chosen can lead to fascinating projects. The formulation of a clear and precise concept forms the basis of every single design. A concious choice of materials and elaborated detailing bring forth creations that express tranquility and serenity. The clear line-work emphasises the pure emotions that originate in the union of design and light. The great care that goes into the elaboration of the interior in all its facets is a constant preoccupation for Les°Ass. The book presents a wide variety of projects: new constructions, remodelling assignments, interior designs, even objects such as furniture and lamps. The introduction of a basic idea, a theme, forms the foundation of every project, no matter what its scale might be. This same vision is also the starting point for the recent large-scale architectural projects.Text in English and Dutch.

In 1986, Pierre Mazairac and Karel Boonzaaijer design 'Vision', starting from the philosophy of creating a cabinet as an element of architectural composition. Due to its incredible flexibility, versatility and very modest design, 'Vision' has been very successful for the Dutch manufacturer Pastoe. Twenty-five years later, its compositional scope is still limitless; from a three-dimensional relief design to a graphical lattice of lines and surfaces, from a series of sideboards to an architectural landscape of volumes. The book Vision: Space for Imagination tells the story of this young classic.Text in English & Dutch

Yuko Takagi's refined floral creations once again demonstrate how Japan rightly stands synonymous with elegance and minimalism. The delicacy of Takagi's works, arranged with precision and care, showcase the same aesthetics as traditional Ikebana. Takagi designs impeccable, timeless masterpieces showing the flowers stripped down to their essence, humble and frill free. After studying floral design with Jane Packer and at Hana-Ami Gestaltung Schule in Tokyo, Yuko Takagi honed her craft to perfection taking several international master classes and learning from the great masters of the art, amongst them, Gregor Lersch. Yuko Takagi founded and successfully runs her own floral design school and travels the world to give demonstartions and workshops. International recognition came when Takagi won several prestigious floral design contests. This monograph collects the exceptional works and illustrates the vision of this flag bearer of Japanese aesthetics.

Founded in 1968, the Interieur Foundation is a non-profit organisation, acting in the field of design, product development and innovation. One of the foundation's aims has been to put contemporary design displays for the home and interior innovations on display for a broad general public - not only for professionals, as was the case with most fairs. Unlike many other furniture shows, which offer a mix of old, new, kitsch and design, the Biannale Interieur promotes the latest contemporary forms and creativity in interior design. Design Biennale Interieur 2010 reflects the role of Interieur 2010 as a meeting place for designers and producers and as a leading design event for professionals and design fans. The book bares the soul of the event: its reputation, renewing character, quality and selection of more than 250 interior design brands, together with 'the making of' and the theme of 'the new world' - all illustrated across more than 500 pages. The book contains essays on architects Junya Ishigami (Japan), Andrea Branzi (Italy), texts and photos on the designer of the year, international young designers, design at work, design in France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, as well as practical information on top design brands.Text in English, Dutch, French and German.