Douglas Kirkland is one of the doyens of portrait photography in the motion picture industry, notably in Hollywood. In this publication his portraits entwine themselves with the world of letters. Françoise Kirkland stands at the helm of an ebullient team: the sky dancer Erika Lemay, costume designer Simone Guidarelli, element desinger William Thoren and together they create a modern-day abecedarium. The book is a celebration of design, a circus and a movie – all rolled into one. It harks back to the corporeal origins of the alphabet, echoing similar exercises in Western culture from the Renaissance to the great works of Art Deco, notably Erté’s famous Alphabet Suite.

Besides Douglas Kirkland’s impeccable photography, the reader is invited ‘backstage’ to the making of these images with essays by Erika Lemay, William Thoren and Françoise Kirkland. The book’s designer, Ornan Rotem, adds an introductory essay on the development of the alphabet and the long-standing romance between the human body and letters.

The book is published both as a collector’s edition and a regular edition.

The collector’s edition is limited to 200 copies and is comprised of
(1) BOOK: limited edition of the 88 page book with special cover
(2) PRINT: open edition signed and certified print of the letter of your choice, 325 x 405mm (12.75 x 16 in)
(3) POSTER: signed folded poster with the complete alphabet. Size 675 x 990mm (26.5 x 39 in)
(4) BOX: bespoke three panel box to hold book, poster and print. Dimension of closed box: 424 x 354mm (16.75 x 14 in)

After you order a book we will ask you which letter you would like.