Must reads: Style on a Shelf

As Dubai-based concept store Cities expands its offering of coffee table books, a look at how fashion can be more fun on the page than in the wardrobe

As a fashion commentator, it is always assumed that I must own a very large wardrobe - but, while I admit to enjoying my clothes, shoes, bags and, of course, jewels, it's actually coffee table books that I treasure more than anything else.

I must have close to 100 coffee table books. When I look for a new house, more important than the closets are a space for my books. Fashion is a very visual medium, plus it is full of history, of course; so it is virtually tailor-made for coffee table books and there is no better publisher than Taschen books.
Started by Benedikt Taschen, a publisher and collector of contemporary books, it makes books on all things beautiful - from art to photography - designed with such a keen eye that you want to keep them on display in your home. These books are seriously well dressed. And if design is king, content is the queen of Taschen books, as they include informative and insightful anecdotes, with writers like fashion's most famous critic Suzy Menkes as well as Valerie Steele, chief curator of the Fashion Institute and Technology Museum in New York. Rest assured, each edition is edited and curated by true experts.
Taschen publications retail from both concept stores and websites, such as www.netaporter.com. The company has opened its own stores (some of which are designed by Philippe Stark) in many fashion capitals, such as Amsterdam, Miami, Paris, London and Dallas - but, sadly, have no outlets on this side of the world. Now, however, thanks to Cities boutiques, a selection of Taschen books on art, design, photography, culture, travel, history, music and fashion will be available in Dubai.
You need to hold one of these books to understand why Taschen has so many cult collectors of their books. A concept store, Cities prides itself for introducing Dubai to the latest in modern and avant-garde home accessories and designs from around the world, so these books were a natural fit. It all started when Benedikt Taschen opened a comic book store from his hometown Cologne in Germany, and then published his first art book, Picasso.
Taschen has truly turned publishing into an art form with their oversized limited editions - the SUMO editions. Its latest offering, launched in April this year, is Naomi Campbell: Art of Beauty. Priced at US$1,740, the 496-page two-volume edition comes packaged in a case designed by British pop artist Allen Jones. Every limited edition copy is signed by the supermodel and, for this run, only 1,000 copies have been printed. It includes photography by all the fashion greats, such as Patrick Demarchelier, Helmut Newton, Herb Ritts, Mario Testino, Ellen von Unwerth and Bruce Weber, and acts as an autobiography of the supermodel's near three decades in the fashion business.
Though this limited edition may not be available in Cities, there is still plenty to choose from for any fashion connoisseur. Says Cities Hazem Aljesr, "We already carry the limited edition devoted to Valentino, and we are interested in acquiring several other titles, including Mario Testino's Sir (which focuses on male identity and men's fashion), and Fashion Designers A-Z, which is available in six different special editions."
So, next time you are looking for a gift for a fashionable friend, think beyond bags, baubles and shoes. Think books!
(Taschen books are available at Cities Boutique, Dubai Mall and Galleria Mall.)
sujata@khaleejtimes.com 

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