Phoenix: 21st Century City

By: Booth-Clibborn, Edward

The metropolitan cities area has the largest growth in America with over 200,000 people moving there each year amongst whom are many young creative people who, attracted by the climate and prospects, bring a new dimension and vitality to the artistic scene. As Time recently stated about Arizona, "Americans discover the desert's clean air, warm weather, open spaces, and relatively affordable housing". The publication will be a visual mosaic of the metropolitan cities area, with a special emphasis on Phoenix, but other cities such as Scottsdale and Tempe will also be included. A specially commissioned photographic essay on the city will run through the book showing Phoenix and its surroundings, the urban sprawl, key buildings such as the Phoenix Central Library, shopping malls, urban projects and also evens such as the First Friday Art Walk which 15,000 people attend each month. An introductory essay by Nan Ellin, Associate Professor of Urban Design at ASU, will place the city and its art scene in a broader historical and political perspective. Commissioned photography by Tomoko Yoneda, design by Jonathan Barnbrook. The project is sponsored by Maricopa Partnership for Arts and Culture.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1861542925
• ISBN13: 9781861542922
• Release Date: November 2006
• Publisher: Booth-Clibborn Editions
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 10.9" x 1.0" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 13 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 8 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Not your typical Phoenix...

I haven't yet read PHX. But based on how I've seen it marketed in the local media, it seems that part of the point of the book is to show readers an alternative to what most people think of when they picture Phoenix "art"; i.e., the point is to get AWAY from stunning cactus-covered landscapes and kokopelli kitsch. In an East Valley Tribune (11/05/06) article, Chris Page writes, "The Maricopa Partnership for Arts and Culture, an arts advocacy group, says it's hoping the book will show the cooler side of the Valley's creative types--and in the process improve the perception of metropolitan Phoenix beyond its snowbird stereotypes." Page also points out some initial criticism of the book, coming from those who were given advance copies. The biggest complaint he cites is the scarcity of context provided for the art and architecture that `PHX' portrays.