Following in the footsteps of the hugely successful Monocle Book of Italy and The Monocle Book of the Nordics, Monocle’s latest title turns its focus to Portugal in an exciting new series of country-specific books.

For the first time, ninety of the designers’ typefaces are catalogued chronologically in a three-part volume, comprising the history of their development; exclusive type specimens; and detailed illustrations of projects in which they appear.

With a foreword by Björk—whose collaboration with M/M spans over two decades—this encyclopaedic volume traces the distinctive and integral nature of type, lettering, and signs in the work of M/M, from one-off artistic commissions to fashion branding and their long-lasting collaborations with musicians and theatres.

This complete typographic collection is the perfect companion to the two-volume monograph M to M of M/M (Paris), and will appeal not only to graphic designers, historians, and students, but to anyone interested in art and visual culture.

Specifications - Hardcover. 480 pages.

“The viewer...should enter my work through their own eyes, and their own lives,” the photographer Wolfgang Tillmans has said. An incisive observer and a creator of dazzling pictures, Tillmans has experimented for over three decades with what it means to engage the world through photography. Presenting the full breadth and depth of the artist’s career, Wolfgang Tillmans: To look without fear invites us to experience the artist’s vision of what it feels like to live today.

From ecstatic images of nightlife to abstract images made without a camera, sensitive portraits to architectural slide projections, documents of social movements to windowsill still lifes, astronomical phenomena to intimate nudes, Tillmans has explored seemingly every imaginable genre of photography, continually experimenting with how to make new pictures. He considers the role of the artist to be that of “an amplifier” of social and political causes, and his approach is animated by a concern with the possibilities of forging connections and the idea of togetherness.

Tillmans has rejected the prevailing conventions of photographic presentation, continuously developing connections between his pictures and the social space of the exhibition. In his installations, unframed prints are taped to the walls or clipped and hung from pins, and framed photographs appear alongside magazine pages. Constellations of images are grouped on walls and tabletops as photocopies, color or black-and-white photographs, and video projections, exemplifying the artist’s idea of visual democracy in action. “I see my installations as a reflection of the way I see, the way I perceive or want to perceive my environment,” Tillmans has said. “They’re also always a world that I want to live in.”

Growing up in London’s East End, Alexander McQueen left school at fifteen to become a tailor’s apprentice on Mayfair’s Savile Row. At twenty-two, he attended the prestigious art and design college Central Saint Martins and, after presenting his 1992 graduate collection that was bought on the spot by influential fashion stylist Isabella Blow, went on to change the course of fashion history.

Celebrated for his uniquely radical aesthetic, McQueen has captured the public’s imagination as few other fashion designers have before or since. Like his designs, McQueen was de ant in his opinions. His quotes on creativity, “You’ve got to know the rules to break them. That’s what I’m here for, to demolish the rules but to keep the tradition”; and women, “I design clothes because I don’t want women to look all innocent and naive…I want people to be afraid of the women I dress”; make this a thoroughly thought-provoking book. Featuring specially commissioned illustrations, this is the perfect gift for fans of fashion and of McQueen, capturing the sharp wit and unbridled spirit of a true visionary.

Specifications - Hardcover. 176 pages.

Since his death in 2011, Lucian Freud’s reputation as one of the greatest painters of the twentieth century has continued to grow with his inimitable large-scale paintings of human figures hanging in museums worldwide and reaching dizzying prices at auction. Art historians note his talent, brilliance, and complicated personal life, but until now, his own voice has often not risen above the noise. Full of verbal and visual wit, affection and irreverence, Freud’s letters now provide a revealing and at times revelatory personal look at his life and process.

This volume brings together Freud’s early letters, gathered with the endorsement of the Freud estate, from both private collections and public archives, including the Freud Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, and the Tate. Ranging from schoolboy notes to his parents to his early recognition as a professional artist, the letters, which often feature drawings and characterful visual quirks, present the multiple facets of Freud’s complex personality.

Coauthored by David Dawson, Freud’s longstanding personal assistant and now director of the Lucian Freud Archive, and Martin Gayford, author, critic, and acquaintance of Lucian Freud, these extraordinary, illustrated letters are reproduced in facsimile alongside striking reproductions of Freud’s works of this period. Linked by a narrative that weaves the letters and paintings into the story of his life, including his first marriage and separation, this book provides an intimate and fresh perspective on the first three decades of the artist’s life.

Specifications - Hardcover. 392 pages.

“All this must be either surfed or painted”: This is the underlying sentiment behind Raymond Pettibon’s iconic works of surfers and waves in this quintessential volume dedicated to the motif.

Pettibon is known for his characteristically enigmatic aesthetic and sharply satirical critiques of American culture. Though drenched in cynicism, his work empathizes with the dizzying madness of our own humanity as it engages both so-called high and low culture. Perhaps most poetic among the many motifs present in Pettibon’s oeuvre is the surfer. In 1985, Pettibon began his series of surfers and waves––which he continues to work on to this day––popular for depicting a lone surfer silently carving “a line of beauty” along an impossibly large wave. 

This book spotlights a selection of more than one hundred surfers from the series, from smaller monochromatic works on paper to colorful large-scale paintings applied directly to the wall. For Pettibon’s protagonist in these works, surfing exists apart from all else. Momentarily he achieves sublimity on the wave, distant yet synced with turbulent reality. We are forced to confront our own scale: small and feeble in the face of the power of nature, what is beyond our control. Pettibon’s lyrical writings on these painted surfaces—both his own and lines taken from literature—reference his own philosophies and the confusions of reality: he critiques and highlights the hypocrisies and vanities of the world he engages. To help navigate, the scholar Brian Lukacher explores art-historical antecedents in Pettibon’s work, particularly the seascapes of J. M. W. Turner, and Jamie Brisick, the writer and former professional surfer, examines the Southern California surf and music culture of Pettibon’s youth. Professional big wave surfers Emi Erickson and Stephanie Gilmore also describe the sensory experience of conquering the enormous waves depicted in Pettibon’s works.

Specifications - Hardcover. 208 pages.

There has never been a period in photography’s long history – no school, no movement – when flowers have not been a central focus, whether in the form of the classic still life, the botanical study, incorporated into portraiture and studies of the human body, documented in street photography, or used subversively in surrealist collage and montage.

It's a country that feels comfortingly familiar for many, yet beyond the clichés lies a complexity and variety that's perpetually surprising. For more than a decade, Monocle has roamed the length of the nation and The Monocle Book of Italy is the result of our dedicated reporting. Join us as we throw down our towels at the best beaches, sit front row at dazzling runway shows, call in at vineyards, gelato spots and furniture fairs, and maybe even hit a disco or two. See Italy through a whole new lens.

Specifications - Hardcover. 302 pages. 

Back in 2007 the first issues of Monocle magazine hit newsstands and kiosks around the globe. At its core was a pledge to commission all original photography – capturing the world on film, on the ground and in the moment. In the years since, Monocle has continued in its pursuit of documenting through its unique lens – from embassies and personal residences to world leaders and cultural stars. Each issue has featured a dedicated image-led Expo section celebrating lesser-known locales, obscure events and curious characters through truly outstanding photography. Syrian cities, French legionnaires, Thai festival goers, brutalist architecture and private member’s clubs have all graced the pages of the magazine.

The Monocle Book of Photography draws on the best of these visual stories from an archive a decade and a half in the making. A handsomely produced linen-bound edition, the book also features original reporting about each of the assignments, as well as first-hand accounts from the photographers and editors involved.

Specifications - Hardcover. 276 pages.

‘’Sometimes I feel like we are pawns in a game.
God whispers in one of my ears while the devil speaks to me in the other.
I try to do good but something stops me.‘’

Since the summer of 2018, photographer Federico Vespignani spent a few years with a group of kids from the Barrio 18 gang in Honduras and watched as they grew up within this imaginary border, becoming look-outs and then soldiers.

Surrounding the hill is an imaginary border and the kids from the neighborhood will tell you “La Dieciocho controla.” Their presence permeates every aspect of life in the hood and for some, the barrio is everything. Gang membership is a grey concept in Cerrito Lindo - it is just a part of life in the hood. It is the place you were born, where you are from. It is what they live, and outside of these blood-drawn borders, death waits.

Some of the portrayed in this book have lost their lives, some ended up in jail, some found god, and others left to look for something else.

The photographer Federico Vespignani (1988) is an Italian photographer and cinematographer. Since 2015 he has covered organized crime and environmental issues in Central America.

Specifications - Softcover. 112 pages.

Meet Amanda Gorman, America’s astounding young poet and activist.

From an early age, Little Amanda read everything she could get her hands on, from books to cereal boxes. Growing up with an auditory processing disorder and a speech impediment, Amanda had to work hard, but ultimately she took great strength from her experiences. After hearing her teacher read aloud to the class, she knew that she wanted to become a poet, and nothing would stand in her way. At the age of 19, she became America’s first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate. And, after performing her inspiring poem ‘The Hill We Climb’ at the Presidential Inauguration in January 2021, she became an icon across the world. This inspiring book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the incredible young poet and activist’s life so far.

Specifications - Hardcover. 32 pages.

Meet Pablo Picasso, one of the world’s greatest artists in the 20th century. 

Little Pablo grew up in an artistic household and after drawing his first painting at nine years old. His dad was an art teacher and helped grow his son’s talent, teaching him to use oil paints.

He moved first to Barcelona and then to France, where he achieved significant success, and went on to becoming one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. His artistic style inspired many movements in art, music and literature, which we still see today. This powerful book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the Pablo Picasso’s life.

Specifications - Hardcover. 32 pages.