2016
Artist book, softcover
23 x 34 cm, 40 pages, 34 color images
StrzeleckiBooks, printed in South Korea
You can order the book at Motto or amazon
Templates are usually used for weblogs, text documents, DVD menus and suchlike. They have names like Classic, Culture, Minimal or Nature. Nowadays even interior styles of luxury apartments can be chosen in that way. With this in mind the book „Templates – Classic, Culture, Minimal, Nature“ offers design elements of a present-day global architecture. It comprises 34 full format photographs, which the artist Rebecca Ann Tess shot in nine mega cities. The images are reproduced on exclusive paper in full format and bound in a subtle cover. Silver endpaper and a short advertising text on the cover evoke the feeling for advertising brochures of luxury goods.
From different perspectives and distances Tess shows the cities dissolved in colorful, seductive patterns. The urban architecture is reduced to abstract fragments of gray concrete, silver steel, colorful glass and luminous LEDs – which are endlessly combined to new facade structures and are globally reproduced. It seems like one could construct the global city with a limited architectural design catalogue. A lot of the buildings are sights but seen closely they loose their geographical reference and become placeless reflections of themselves.
»Connoisseurs who favour Classic understand the finer things in life and have an intuitive attraction to sensual connotations in their lives. Classic style lovers tend to be particular. Having worked hard for their achievements they have a certain sensibility and can afford to indulge themselves with the finer things in life.
The Culture style person is someone who might be a collector, and certainly enjoys indulgence. He or she is confident, daring, not afraid to mix colours and styles.
The Minimal style palette is for people who work in demanding environments but prefer to live in an oasis of calm and tranquility.
Nature style people are free spirits, attracted to playful combinations that can inspire their inner dialogue and dreams of creating a better world for themselves and everyone around them.«
