Stefano Aschieri is not average. Also his books and inspiration.
I wrote this post yesterday, right after coming back from IKEA with a new book case and spending the whole afternoon moving books. First I tried organizing by color scale, then from bigger to smaller, then trying to recreate a messy but thoughtful order. I was so doomed that I started flipping through old books, the ones I always bring from home to home after every move, the ones I love so much. So I’ve asked myself: “If I had to choose, let’s say, 5 books I couldn’t live without, which ones would I choose?”. I won’t spend any more time saying how tough this exercise was. Even now, 24 hours later, I am not 100% confident about my choices. But hey, you can find here a piece of my ❤️! – Stefano
Andy Warhol – MOMA catalogue
This was the very first art book I ever bought. It was 2004, during my first visit to New York. I headed to Museum of Modern Art just because it was one of the must-go attractions in the city, not because of any particular interest in the arts and crafts. I remember getting blown away by some of the NY’s biggest players, from Keith Haring to Basquiat, but the real epiphany was Andy Warhol. I think I was too young to understand anything of it but the colorful and bold artwork, the huge screen-printed faces or daily objects. They were clearly references of what I was experiencing as a traveller in New York. I bought this Andy Warhol’s book right before coming back to Italy, and for a few years it was more an ornament than a book. Then luckily things changed, and I keep buying Warhol’s books whenever possible 🙂
Cook it raw – Phaidon
As a genuine Italian boy, I have always loved food. I actually spend more time thinking about food, then actually cooking or eating. That’s why I love to surround myself with writings about cuisine. One of my favorite is definitely Cook it raw: an IRL experiment involving the best chefs such as Massimo Bottura, Dan Barber, Albert Adria and brought to paper by Phaidon. The concept behind Cook it Raw was developed by Alessandro Porcelli. Every year he gathers the best chefs together, somewhere in the world, to explore and experiment with the different food traditions and heritage. The book traces this fantastic experiences, documenting geographical, ethnographical, cultural, historical and anthropological aspects of each destination. You can find the book here!
Andreas Gursky – The Musem of Moden Art
I feel a special bond with this book. It was 2007, I was traveling to New York with my family, way before my passion for the arts, and photography above all, begun. We went visiting MOMA, and when passing by the museum shop, I was captured by a playbill of an old exhibition, so I bought it. The picture was showing a late-90s supermarket. Years later, I was attending my photography class at university, and the same picture happened to be projected on the wall. It was from Andreas Gursky, and considered one of the most influential pictures in the world. Since then Gursky and his landscape photography became an obsession, to the point I started looking for the catalogue of the very same exhibition. I took me something like 2 years and a handful of sleepless nights on Ebay, but now it’s mine ❤️ Go have a look for yourself!
Performance by Richard Avedon
Another milestone of mine. Some friends gave me this book as a gift around 10 years ago. Thus it’s among the most-viewed books of my life, the bind is still standing, amazing! Richard Avedon is the one who shaped my idea of how a hero, or an anti-hero, should act and look like. I remember someone saying, about Avedon’s work, think of someone famous, and picture his most famous portrait in your head. 99% it’s Avedon’s. It was true! Performance is one of Avedon’s biggest retrospective, and I challenge you to find someone who wouldn’t love it. Get it!
Winkreative Design Stories – Gestalten
We’ve finally got to the present time. This book is always on my desk when I look for some inspiration. Winkreative Design Stories is an overview of the work of the uber-famous agency Winkreative. Started in London and now based in Zurich, this agency is everything I admire in creativity. They design by the rules, without being too much influenced by trends, for clients such as Air Canada, Mini, Persol or Mackintosh. I know we’re talking big here, but trust me, this book it not to be missed. Have a look here.