Can a school of art which burst onto the art scene almost 100 years ago still be replenished and given new vitality in a time which is a world away from the one where it first emerged? The artist, D. M. (David Martin) Ross firmly believes that it can. For him cubism is not only alive and well, it is offers new and uncharted opportunities for exploration.

In a short, incendiary period between 1908 to 1914 Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso in a unique partnership took painting by the scruff of the neck, gave it a good shaking and spat it out. They built on what Cezanne had begun and what they invented cubism meant that art would never be the same again.

Should art glorify and be accessible to ordinary people? UK-based artist Piers Midwinter firmly says yes. "Anyone is capable of producing a pure work of art but to do so, they must stay true to themselves. And what is the self? It is where each and every one of us tries to be as human as possible to be, as the Buddhists believe, the best we can be in a civilized manner."

I was born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in June, 15. 1966. In 1990 I finished my studies at the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade, (printmakers department) in the class of professor Emir Dragulj, and in the same year was admitted for the masters degree studies.  I have also received several domestic awards for printmaking, made eight 'one man show' exhibitions in Yugoslavia and Germany.

During my life I travelled all around Western Europe, but visiting Holland affected my work very strongly. It was the multiple influences of the past saved in museums, the paintings of Vermeer, Rembrandt etchings, Van Gogh and the landscapes of Van Ostade, as well as the work of Villiam Klez Hede that affected me the most...

Russ Heinls professional photography career began in Toronto where he made a name for himself photographing famous rock stars. It eventually became apparent that his creativity was being stifled by the confines of studio work. In 1990 an overpowering urge to fully explore and indulge his creativity lured him to British Columbia. Here, he fulfilled a lifelong desire to be surrounded by snowcapped mountains and the Pacific Ocean. His new studio and source of inspiration then became that of the great outdoors of the west coast.

Artists have been making marks for millennia, using natural pigments, burnt twigs, their fingers, coloured sands etc. Around 1662, a deposit of natural Graphite was discovered near Keswick, Cumberland, and this was used by masons to mark stones, and farmers to keep tallies of sheep. It took around 200 years to work out that this was a bit messy to handle, and to discover a way of embedding graphite strips between two pieces of wood, thus turning the crayon into a pencil. Coloured pencils, which are not based on graphite at all, but which have cores made from wax or oil based binders with various pigments mixed in, were not invented until the 1920's, with Derwent, for example, producing its first range of 24 coloured pencils in 1939...

12 Japanese Masters is the first book to present the incredible post-war development of Japan as a story of design. Writer Maggie Kinser Saiki presents the work, thoughts and profiles of a dozen acclaimed Japanese graphic, product, industrial and fashion designers born between 1915 and 1944.

North by North Scandinavian Graphic Design. What makes Scandinavian design unique? North by North explores the exceptional visual language and unconventional design approaches of this community. Showcasing a coherent selection of new, original and thriving talent from across the entire range of graphic design, North by North is set to be a guiding star.