German art book publisher Taschen was founded in 1980. In its early days, the publisher sold copies of Ren Magritte – the famous Belgian surrealist artist – art book at an accessible price point. Its first run, all 40,000 units of it, was instantly snapped up. The incidence set a mark, and Taschen has since been closely knitted with fine art titles. Now one of the most celebrated art specialty publishers worldwide, known for its high quality printing, historic operation and variety of subjects such as cinema, photography, painting, architecture, design and fashion.

Published in 2009 and art directed by the famed M/M Paris, Stanley Kubrick’s Napoleon: The Greatest Movie Never Made manifests itself as a record of the great director’s unfulfilled wish – completing an epic film on Napoleon. As preparation, Kubrick embarked on extensive research with dozens of assistants and Napoleon expert, an effort that lasted over two years. The process produced 15,000 reference images, 17,000 Napoleon portraits and much more. The filming was set to begin straight after the release of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), but due to financial backing and dispute with M.G.M., was not meant to be.

The book is a complete record of its pre-production, from costume, locations, props, script to category of material in its own book, as well as Kubrick’s letters and view on Napoleon. Consolidated in 2874 pages, the gold-embossment-cover hard copy weighs no less than twenty three pounds. With images in abundance, a code is provided to individual readers to download the 17,000 Napoleon portraits online. As a reference on cinema or history, Stanley Kubrick’s Napoleon: The Greatest Movie Never Made is a stunning archive of valuable, never-be-seen material.

Text: Vincent Lau | Translation: dilettante

Photo: Chan Kin Wai


USD$69.99


TASCHEN

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