Inspiring Reads: Hi-Fructose Collected 3

Anyone who has read this blog before will know how much I love a beautifully presented book. I decided to splash out on the Hi-Fructose Collected 3 boxed volume and I wasn't disappointed! The package arrived via courier service and was well packed to avoid damage. There is nothing worse than spending a lot on a book for it then to arrive with bashed corners because of poor packaging.

If you haven't heard of Hi-Fructose before, it's a magazine that offers a platform for contemporary artists of varying disciplines. The type of art falls into the 'Lowbrow' art movement category so if you like work by Junko Mizuno, Mark Ryden and Camilla d'errico then you'll probably like this too.

The ribbon tied box features:

300 page book filled with interviews and full colour images of a variety of contemporary artists
A large fold out poster by artist McBess
A snow yak face mask by Mark Ryden
A fold out sticker book with paintings made into stickers
3 velvet prints by Junko Mizuno, Skinner and Martin, Ontiveros

Another bonus is that the edition is limited to 2500.

Aesthetically the volume is very impressive but the content also lives up to the exterior. Featured artists are interviewed about their practice and also how they decided to become an artist. The conversational style of the interviews makes for interesting reading and each interview is accompanied by several large full colour images showing the range of each artists work. The great thing I found was that the book turned me onto artists that I hadn't heard of before and there was a good range styles to suit different tastes.
I have to admit there were a few artists whose work I didn't like at all but to be honest it was a minority and it was also interesting to read about their work anyway.

Overall I found the book really inspiring and the way it's presented is a bonus. It is a little on the expensive side but completely worth it. Pickup your copy from Last Gasp and Amazon