The Right Intensity of Light: The Book Lists of Jules Fisher and Paul Marantz
By Steve Kroeter March 29, 2011
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| Jules Fisher |
To get a feel for the remarkably varied and ever-present role that light plays in our lives, there is no better place to look than the work of the firm founded by lighting designers Jules Fisher and Paul Marantz. Over the course of the more than 40 years that they have worked together, their combined projects reveal the full spectrum of light as a constant social, cultural, and commercial force.
In New York they designed the city’s “Tribute in Light” to honor the victims of 9/11. Well known for their architectural projects, they were responsible for lighting the world’s tallest building (Dubai) and one of the planet’s largest airport terminals (Hong Kong). Their work showcases the art in the Getty Center in Los Angeles and other major museums across the country and around the globe.
The firm has designed the lighting for more than 200 Broadway and off-Broadway shows, as well as films, ballets, operas, rock concerts, and television programs.
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| Paul Marantz |
Glimpsing the titles included on Jules Fisher and Paul Marantz's book lists is like experiencing strobe-like insights into the form and function of their world of light. From Fisher comes “The Dramatic Imagination,” “In the Light of Italy,” and “Unless It Moves the Human Heart.” From Marantz, we get “Brilliant,” “Eye and Brain,” and “In Praise of Shadows.”
While Fisher and Marantz think in many ways like artists (Fisher includes a book on the painter Corot and Marantz has one on the architect Albert Kahn, a “poet of natural light”)—working in an invisible medium—they are at the same time attuned to the power of words and how they are used. Fisher compares “picking the right word” to picking “the right intensity of light.” And on Marantz’s list is The Elements of Style, in which “clear exposition” is irreplaceable.
From the “recent and ancient” books on Fisher’s list to writing that Marantz sees as mirroring light in the “mind’s eye”—the books on these two lists provide insights into a subject that touches us all.
Announcements
Total Armageddon: A Slanted Reader on Design edited by Ian Lynam
Total Armageddon: A Slanted Reader on Design
Edited by Ian Lynam
Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Published: March 2019
Total Armageddon is about design. And culture. And complexity, notably how we, as a global civilization, deal with science fiction, taste, social media, the cities we live in, aesthetics, PowerPoint, burkas, Big Tech, full-contact sports, and other thorny topics. The book celebrates 15 years of independent publishing and brings together a who’s who of authors and essays from 32 issues of Slanted Magazine.
A Field Guide to Color by Lisa Solomon
A Field Guide to Color: A Watercolor Workbook
By Lisa Solomon
Publisher: Roost Books
Published: August 2019
In this creative workbook you’ll discover fresh ways to connect with color in your art and life. Using watercolors, gouache, or any other water-based medium, explore color theory while playing with paint through a balanced blend of color experiments and loose color meditations. This inspiring workbook will change the way you relate to color
Five Oceans in a Teaspoon by Dennis Bernstein and Warren Lehrer
Five Oceans in a Teaspoon
Poems by Dennis Bernstein
Visualizations by Warren Lehrer
Introduction by Steven Heller
Publisher: Paper Crown Press
Published: September 19, 2019
“From a kidnap note for a world held hostage by an A-bomb, to a Holocaust survivor’s tattooed arms where the numbers just don’t add up, Five Oceans in a Teaspoon re-envisions a poetry memoir via a textual kaleidoscope... Bernstein and Lehrer are the Rodgers and Hart of Visual Poetry.” — Bob Holman, poet, poetry activist and chronicler, and founder of the Bowery Poetry Club
Ballpark: Baseball in the American City by Paul Goldberger
Ballpark: Baseball in the American City
By Paul Goldberger
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Published: May 2019
An illustrated, entirely new look at the history of baseball: told through the stories of the vibrant and ever-changing ballparks where the game was and is staged, by the Pulitzer Prize-winning architectural critic.
Charleston Fancy by Witold Rybczynski
Charleston Fancy: Little Houses and Big Dreams in the Holy City
By Witold Rybczynski
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: May 2019
Charleston, South Carolina, which boasts America’s first historic district, is known for its palmetto-lined streets and picturesque houses. The Holy City, named for its profusion of churches, exudes an irresistible charm. Award-winning author and cultural critic Witold Rybczynski unfolds a series of stories about a group of youthful architects, builders, and developers based in Charleston: a self-taught home builder, an Air Force pilot, a fledgling architect, and a bluegrass mandolin player.
Teaching Graphic Design History by Steven Heller
Teaching Graphic Design History
By Steven Heller
Publisher: Allworth Press
Published: June 2019
An examination of the concerted efforts, happy accidents, and key influences of the practice throughout the years, Teaching Graphic Design History is an illuminating resource for students, practitioners, and future teachers of the subject.
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