Sudpsuez Lismore Castle: Food and Flowers from a Historic Irish Garden

Words by Helen Bynum

While highly finished drawings and paintings frequently feature in histories of botanical art, the preparatory sketches, first impressions and creative thoughts on paper behind them are rarely seen and have often remained hidden and locked away.

Botanical Sketchbooks brings these personal and vividly spontaneous records gloriously back into the light. In a series of biographical portraits organized thematically into four sections, the book illuminates a range of intriguing characters, from many different countries and cultures, including Germany, France, Italy, America, Australia, Japan and China. Sketchbooks proper are joined by notebooks, journals, albums, loose pieces of paper, works on vellum, manuscripts, letters, herbarium sheets and marginalia – even one drawing on the back of an envelope.

Turning the pages of this book will be an invitation to relive extraordinary experiences, imagine lost worlds, and be immersed in the endeavours, observations and motivations of the makers of such beautiful and enchanting art.

Published by Thames & Hudson Ltd

Words by Aditi Ranjan & M.P. Ranjan

Daily life in India is enriched by a colorful profusion of handmade goods, crafted with simple tools by artisans rooted in local traditions. From the richly embroidered gabba rugs of Kashmir to the polished metal mirrors of Kerala, and from the turned-wood vases of Gujarat to the coiled-cane hats of Arunachal Pradesh, the range of Indian handicrafts is as rich and varied as the country’s culture and geography.

Handmade in India is the first book to explore the entire spectrum of Indian crafts, state by state and district by district. The product of extensive fieldwork, it covers all aspects of India’s regional traditions: their historical, social, and cultural context; design and production processes; and markets old and new. Thousands of color photographs show the artisans at work, their tools, and their finished products. The broad geographic scope allows the reader to appreciate not only the astonishing diversity of Indian crafts, but also the variations (sometimes subtle, sometimes surprising) in the same craft as practiced in different regions.

This beautifully illustrated volume is an indispensable reference for product and textile designers, artists, architects, interior designers, development professionals, and collectors alike.

Published Abbeville Press

Words by Helen Wyld

Woven with dazzling images from history, mythology and the natural world, and breath-taking in their craftsmanship, tapestries were among the most valuable and high-status works of art available in Europe from the medieval period to the end of the eighteenth century. Over 600 historic examples hang in National Trust properties in England and Wales – the largest collection in the UK.

This beautifully illustrated study by tapestry expert Helen Wyld, in association with the National Trust, offers new insights into these works, from the complex themes embedded in their imagery, to long-forgotten practices of sacred significance and ritual use. The range of historical, mythological and pastoral themes that recur across the centuries is explored, while the importance of the 'revival' of tapestry from the late nineteenth century is considered in detail for the first time. Although focussed on the National Trust's collection, this book offers a fresh perspective on the history of tapestry across Europe.

Both the tapestry specialist and the keen art-history enthusiast can find a wealth of information here about woven wall hangings and furnishings, including methods of production, purchase and distribution, evolving techniques and technologies, the changing trends of subject matter across time, and how tapestries have been collected, used and displayed in British country houses across the centuries.

Published by Bloomsbury Publishing