Railways Studios by Peter Alsop, Hardcover, 9780995133839 | Buy online at The Nile
Departments
 Free Returns*

Railways Studios

How a Government Design Studio Helped Build New Zealand

Author: Peter Alsop, Katherine Milburn, Neill Atkinson and Richard Wolfe  

Hardcover

The first ever history of the work of one of New Zealand's most active design studiosBursting with over 400 imagesAn engaging insight into the confluence of graphic art and commerceA handsomely packaged hardbackAlso full of historic photos of New Zealand trains and railway stations

A definitive illustrated history of the graphic work of the Railways Studios.

Read more
$63.01
Or pay later with
Check delivery options
Hardcover

PRODUCT INFORMATION

Summary

The first ever history of the work of one of New Zealand's most active design studiosBursting with over 400 imagesAn engaging insight into the confluence of graphic art and commerceA handsomely packaged hardbackAlso full of historic photos of New Zealand trains and railway stations

A definitive illustrated history of the graphic work of the Railways Studios.

Read more

Description

On the 100th anniversary of its creation, this book celebrates Railways Studios - the design studio of the New Zealand Railways - and its role in helping build and connect New Zealand. It's a surprising story: a government agency that produced advertising for any-and-all clients, and dominated outdoor advertising for over 65 years (1920-1987). The Studios' advertisements ranged from posters to painted billboards and brochures, and they decorated every city and town, creating a gallery of the street. Whatever the promotion - from rail travel and tourism to enlistment in the army, clothing and health promotion - the Studios played a role. Thousands of its designs influenced public attitudes, shaping how New Zealanders saw themselves. This definitive history of railways advertising is a time capsule of New Zealand life and examines the art of the Railways Studios, detailing its formative place in New Zealand design and art history.

Read more

Critic Reviews

'"Railways Studios, the design studio of the New Zealand Railways" tells the remarkable story of the way in which a government department helped connect New Zealand physically and socially, producing advertising for a range of clients and dominating outdoor advertising ... The book is lavishly illustrated with hundreds of images alongside the well-researched chapters which touch on the history of rail transport in New Zealand.' – John Daly-Peoples, New Zealand Art Review; 'A seven-years-in-the-making, lavishly illustrated literary monument to the Kiwi commercial art of the advertising and design Studio of NZ Railways, which survived 67 years...a 385-page literary monument to New Zealand commercial art.' – NZ Listener, named among 101 Best Books of 2020; '… this book is a must-purchase. Highly recommended.' – Railway Observer; 'This big, beautiful book brings together a treasure trove of stunning New Zealand tourism and product ads …' – Good magazine.

Read more

About the Author

Peter Alsop is a senior executive who has worked across the public and private sectors. He is a keen collector of New Zealand art, with particular interests in tourism publicity, hand-coloured photography and mid-century New Zealand landscape paintings. He is the author and co-author of six previous books, including Promoting Prosperity, Hand-Coloured New Zealand and Scenic Playground.Neill Atkinson is Chief Historian/Manager of Heritage Content at Manatu Taonga - Ministry for Culture and Heritage, where he is responsible for the Ministry's history and reference websites: Te Ara - Encyclopedia of NZ, Dictionary of NZ Biography, TeTai Treaty Settlement Stories, 28th Maori Battalion and NZ History. He is the author of six books and a number of articles and chapters, mostly on New Zealand political and transport history, including Crew Culture: New Zealand Seafarers under Sailand Steam (Te Papa Press, 2001) and Trainland: How Railways Made New Zealand (Random House, 2007).Katherine Milburn is the ephemera collection curator at the Hocken Library, Dunedin, and has extensive knowledge of the Railways Studios' output.Richard Wolfe is an art, design and cultural historian who has a PhD in Art History from the University of Auckland and a BFA from the Elam School of Fine Arts. He was Curator of Display at Auckland War Memorial Museum from 1977 to 1997, and has written or co-authored around 40 books covering aspects of New Zealand art, history and popular culture. He has contributed over 50 articles to the quarterly Art New Zealand, as well as articles to other journals, and has curated or supported the development of multiple art exhibitions.

Read more

Product Details

Publisher
Te Papa Press
Published
1st November 2020
Pages
386
ISBN
9780995133839

Returns

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

12 Aug, 2021
Great book
By tania
03 Jun, 2021
Beautiful illustrations, a gorgeous slice of new Zealand history.
By andrea
03 Feb, 2021
A really lovely and informative book
By Carmen
08 Jan, 2021
This excellent book offers a very comprehensive timeline of the international tourist promotion of NZ by NZR, where they were the forward thinking innovators of the day. Also a very interesting social commentary on NZ through the times & the imaginative & relentless advertising promoting rail travel & excursions domestically through the studio for both the railway & advertising for private customers, then of course is all the iconic art & posters created in those spaces. A lot of reading but well worth it. Much of the travel NZ commentary is very relevant for these times.
By Chris
06 Jul, 2021
The use of very small type face describing most pictures is almost impossible to read. Disappointing for a very expensive book.
By John
17 Mar, 2021
By Brian
07 Jan, 2021
By Michael
See more
$63.01
Or pay later with
Check delivery options