AMERICAN BEAUTY presents the photographic work of Canadian photographer Philip Jarmain. Since 2010, Jarmain documented the increasingly rapid destruction of Detroit City’s early twentieth-century buildings. His emphasis is on the architecture itself of these vanishing edifices, the form and the detail. In Jarmain’s own words: “These are the last large format architectural photographs for many of these structures.” Fine art images depicting the interiors and exteriors of monumental public buildings of 1900-1910 comprise the content of this book.
The city of Detroit has had an unprecedented impact on the industrial age and the modern world. Once called “The Paris of the Midwest,” it was a city driven by innovation and craftsmanship. The architecture of Detroit in the early 1900s rivaled that of New York, Chicago, or Paris. Then came the Great Depression of the 1930s. Though Detroit would rise again, the era of opulence was over. The boom of the 1950s did not produce another architectural renaissance. In 2009, the US recession hit Detroit like a second Great Depression, compounding the decline and the ruin as the city became bankrupt.
This is a book produced for collectors. Symbolic to Detroit’s area code 313, only 313 copies are being produced and signed. Beginning with the forward written by Philip Jarmain, it features 53 photographs accompanied by text telling the history of each of these magnificent structures. Each copy will also be accompanied by a 12”x9” fine art print on 100% cotton rag archival photo paper from the American Beauty: The Opulent Pre-Depression Architecture of Detroit photography collection. A choice between four different photographs is offered, each signed and edition to the book number. This series of images has won international awards and has gained much international press including; Wired Magazine, Daily Mail UK, The Guardian, Huffington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, GQ, Dezeen, Casa Vogue, Monacle, etc.
The finest artisans have been secured in the production of this fine art photography book. This book is printed by one of the esteemed printers in North America; Hemlock Printers, located in Burnaby, BC, and hand bound by the boutique bindery Paper Chase Press In Los Angeles, CA. The finished book will be case bound in a textured black cloth, and include a linen wrapped slipcover. The 13.5” x 10.5” book is 126 pages in length.
