Sell Back Your Copy
For a $18.49 Gift Card
Trade in
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Tiki Modern
 
See larger image and other views
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Tiki Modern [Hardcover]

Sven A Kirsten (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Sell Back Your Copy for $18.49
Whether you buy it used on Amazon for $103.68 or somewhere else, you can sell it back through our Book Trade-In Program at the current price of $18.49.
Used Price$103.68
Trade-in Price$18.49
Price after
Trade-in
$85.19

Book Description

September 12, 2007
Sexy savage: Excavating Tiki's finest offerings TASCHEN's Book of Tiki provided the blueprint for the re-appreciation and revival of Tiki style. Almost completely wiped from the consciousness of Americans until recently, Sven Kirsten's tome put Tiki on the map as a unique pop culture phenomenon. Never before had Tiki culture's visual power and pervasiveness been revealed with such detail and insight. Not only did the book inspire the erecting of many new Tiki bars from New York to London to Berlin to Prague to Waikiki, but also motivated a myriad of Tiki artisans to pick up the chisel and carry on the forgotten tradition, while spurring many others to create their own home hideaways, making "Tiki" a household name again. This new follow-up book, which brings together the two recent retro trends of mid-century modernism and Tiki style, is bound to lift the Tiki craze to a new level. With his usual mixture of ironic detachment and genuine enthusiasm for the subject, Kirsten shows us how primitivism and modernism were two sides of the same coin in the 1950s and 60s. Decor deities and ersatz ancestors outrageously merged in the modern brutalist furniture from the house of Witco, a company that outfitted Elvis Presley's Jungle Room and Hugh Hefner's Chicago Playboy pool. This was design porn at its best. The author: Sven Kirsten was conceived on a freighter of his grandfather's Hamburg-Chicago Line. Following the call of the big world, he moved to California at the age of 25. Kirsten studied at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and began shooting music videos in the late 1980s for The Cramps, Tom Waits, Sergio Mendes and others. After years of hunting down pieces of the puzzle ofPolynesian Pop, Kirsten has developed a singular insight into the Cult of Tiki and has become the country's most eminent Tiki archaeologist.


Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sven Kirsten was conceived on a freighter of his grandfather's Hamburg-Chicago Line. Following the call of the big world, he moved to California at the age of 25. Kirsten studied at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and began shooting music videos in the late 1980s for The Cramps, Tom Waits, Sergio Mendes and others. After years of hunting down pieces of the puzzle of Polynesian Pop, Kirsten has developed a singular insight into the Cult of Tiki and has become the country's most eminent Tiki archaeologist.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Taschen (September 12, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 3822847178
  • ISBN-13: 978-3822847176
  • Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 9.4 x 1.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 4.5 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #755,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sven Kirsten is the author of the "Book of Tiki", widely acknowledged as the bible of the style, and "Tiki Modern", which further explores Tiki style's relation to mid-century modernism. Sven was born in the the German port town of Hamburg in 1955. His childhood impressions gathered at Hagenbeck's Zoo, at the Hamburg Anthropology Museum, and the sailors' bars of the St. Pauli red light district left him with a longing for distant shores, and in 1980 he emigrated to California. Here he continued his career in the film industry (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0457032/#cinematographer) by studying at the San Francisco Art Institute and the American Film Institute. He left the AFI to join the vibrant music video production scene in Los Angeles in the 1980s, photographing music videos for such diverse talents as Tom Waits, Sergio Mendes, Billy Joel and The Cramps.

It was this love for visuals that inspired Sven to collect and photograph the remnants of the forgotten culture of Polynesian pop in America, leading him to identify the Tiki as its icon. As a hunter and gatherer of lost artifacts and ephemera of this phenomenon, he began to see the pattern of a unique art form, and decided to publish his findings in the "Book of Tiki" in September 2000. For the first time, the book presented all the aspects of Tiki style, its design, graphics, architecture, social culture and cocktail mixology, proving that it had been an art form in its own right, a fact which had not been recognized in its heyday. The book put Tiki firmly on the map of American pop culture, and is regarded as the standard work on the style. As it began to inspire a Tiki revival, Kirsten lectured, wrote and advised on Tiki culture in the United States and in Polynesia.

In 2007 Sven followed suit with his second book, "Tiki Modern", in which he concentrated on the juxtaposition of Pop primitivism and mid-century modernism, a key element of Tiki style. In 2010 he published his first music compilation, "The Sound of Tiki", a CD album with a 50 page booklet putting the songs into context with Tiki culture, to be enjoyed in conjunction with his books.

While regularly working as a cinematographer on German TV movies in such international locations as Capetown, St. Petersburg, Paris and Prague, Sven uses his off time at his home in Los Angeles to work on new book projects, such as the upcoming "The Look of Tiki", a treatise on the mid-century modern Aloha shirt. Sven also advises on new Tiki restaurants being built, curates Tiki exhibitions, and designs Tiki mugs, such as the new Bahooka restaurant signature mug.

 

Customer Reviews

20 Reviews
5 star:
 (18)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (20 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, intoxicating sensory overload, October 2, 2007
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Tiki Modern (Hardcover)
I've read many, many art books. Seldom have I had one that gave me such a delirious buzz as Tiki Modern. It's like walking into some cool but forgotten museum until your mind feels like it's going to explode from too much input. I just got it, today, and I can only look at it for short bits. It's so powerful.

Although I'm not a baby boomer and I do have more than my share of irony, I genuinely love this stuff. The tiki art craze was exciting and gutsy. It was totally unafraid to take a concept and run naked through the streets with it. The fact that it still offends the delicate artistic palates and political sensibilities of others only proves its validity. Besides that, tiki was damn fun.

I never thought anyone could pull off a book that was better than the original "Book of Tiki", but Sven has done it. It's a tiki feast for the eyes and the soul.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Tiki Bible #2, December 18, 2007
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Tiki Modern (Hardcover)
This book is large, this book is loaded, and this book is awesome! It is a steal at this price and it is loaded with TONS of cool retro color tiki pics. Also, did I mention there is some nude (topless) vintage tiki PIN-UP babes in this book too? It is perfect for lonely Friday nights in your tiki bar bachelor pad. Oops, did I just say that? Anyways, what more could you possibly want from a tiki book! I can't say enough good things about this book other than it must have been a true labor of love by the author and I wish there were more books out there like this one! Anyone that would criticize or knock a book like this is either not into tiki, has their nose out of joint because they too are "another-modern-tiki-artist-come-lately" with an over inflated sense of importance and ego, and were not mentioned in this book, or they have had one too many Mai-Tai's with their crack cocaine and have fried their brain. This book is a freakin' tiki bible man, pure and simple.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Tiki Modern, March 9, 2008
By 
eddie (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Tiki Modern (Hardcover)
I haven't seen a more engaging and easy to read book on Tiki than 'Tiki Modern'. It is full of vintage photographs that help readers integate the worlds of modern and primitive art. This book leaves you wanting more on the subject of Tiki while wondering "Where can I get a piece of Tiki to add to my home or personal art collection?"
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews











Only search this product's reviews



What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(23)
(11)
(10)
(10)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums





Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject