H O M E – breaking through the ‘beige’
H O M E is bursting with a lifetime of experience and knowledge – a lifetime of ‘seeing’. A weighty tome in every sense, this book seems to be an extension of Victoria herself, surpassing all the interior books we’ve read lately – and we read a lot! H O M E breaks through the ‘beige’ of current house design books with insightful writing, beautiful design, legendary typography and of course, Victoria’s exquisite and thoughtful imagery.
“An exploration and celebration of a commonly overlooked subject: the home. The book’s crisp pages are filled with musings, histories, stories, tips and photography of all things “home sweet home” from all over the world. — Title Books
We loved reading the words shared by Linda Gregoriou @pureandgeneral – whose beautiful Windsor cottage, sadly affected by the recent floods, has been featured – around the journey to producing this book: “Sometimes rejection is a great opportunity for reinvention. After spending six years writing her latest book and being rejected by four of Australia’s major publishing houses, Victoria Alexander thought ‘bugger it’ I’ll do it myself. It’s a lesson in not accepting ‘No’ for an answer. She wrote, photographed, art directed and published H O M E. She collaborated with the talented Vince Frost* to get her book just right. A spectacular feat of Victoria’s ability to reinvent; the result is a beautifully written and produced book which is hot off the Italian printing presses. It’s a work of art in itself and a book one can easily dip in and out of.”
Our homes are the very essence of us. They’re where we explore and develop our individuality more deeply than anywhere else. They are a concentrate of all we are. Quintessentially so. They fulfil a human desire and are about the human heart. Our need for wellbeing is deep seated and how we choose to live, the home we create, is unique to each of us. Home is where the real you is clearly seen.
Home reminds us to appreciate the small things. Dancing light. The simple art of boiling an egg. To slow down, rejuvenate, feel, the importance of being okay with contemplation, as much as with playfulness, laughter and joy. Home explores the significance of relationships with family and, the tricky one, ourselves.
Victoria’s book Home is a timely publication. A book that is soft and kind – depending how one might live… for me a jolt reminder that in ‘normal’ times in the blur of our lives to slow things down. In COVID times, a gentle nudge and a needed virtual cuddle when we are told and forced to ‘stay home’ to see our homes as a kinder place. To appreciate the things that we can’t buy such as time and dancing light. The simple art of making a tart or boiling the perfect egg. The importance of being ok to slow things down and be ok with contemplation as much as with playfulness and laughter and joy. — Vince Frost* / Frost* Collective
Home is our nest, our safe place, to recharge and rest, explore and be our unguarded self. With tenderness and care our attachment grows. Home is about pleasure and nurturing, about varying ideas of physical and emotional comfort. It’s not what you do there that matters most, often it’s what you don’t do.
Home is a world you can change.
In the words of Katrina O’Brien, word consultant to Home – Home (the book) is extraordinary. Wise, playful, calm, restful and meditative. All the elements have come together to make it more than the sum of its parts ... The structure gives the book a helpful rhythm and distinct moods. The typographic pages are genius. The stitching softens and slows the pace ... There’s so much to love here that it’s hard to choose highlights. I guess everyone will have their own. I particularly love the chapters on light, play, material and homing, mending, still and the recipes.
For the Southern Wild Co team, the chapter PERFU(MEmories) had us collectively sighing... ‘imagine yourself in a cottage in the country, where scents thrive’. The connection is real.
From the gentle recipes woven into each section and visual feast for the eyes, to the craftsmanship of exquisite printing and finishing and understanding Victoria’s very real struggle to be seen in a world of relentless mainstreaming and ‘dumbing down’, H O M E will surely be our new go-to book for inspiration.
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Home is available to purchase now through Victoria’s new independent Australian publishing house Love Books. Follow @victoriaalexander_books