‘through a quiet window’

So, today was the day quite a few of us have been waiting a rather long time for (about 3 decades in my case).  Around 6am, Steve posted an update to his facebook site, advising that the Artes Publishing website would be accepting pre-orders of his book, and that the initial 300 copies would be signed. Oh, happy day! Well, sort of. The link was ‘going live’ at lunchtime (UK) and I had a 150 mile round trip to Carlisle, and 4 hours of meetings scheduled, so I was more than a little concerned that, by the time I got home and had access to reliable technology, all the signed copies may well have been snapped up. Ah well…….to be fair, I have waited so long for Steve to publish a book of his photos, that signed or unsigned, I was just delighted to know it was finally within my grasp.

So, at 1pm, we were given a sneak preview of some of the delights which await us, when Through A Quiet Window is finally unleashed in a few weeks time. Alongside the pre-order information, was a select few photographs which feature in the book. Some of them are more than familiar to fans of Steve’s iconic Japan images; Mick astride the recumbent Buddha, outside the old Commonwealth Institute; Sylvian, Karn & Barbieri loitering in South Molton Street; David stood staring downwards, by the window in Steve’s storeroom in Stanhope Gardens. You know the ones. However, alongside these were some fabulous new shots, to whet our appetite and keep us all on tenterhooks for the next 3 weeks.

The Japan/Jansen related facebook boards have been awash this afternoon with joyous comments and discussions about the book. There is a real sense of celebration in the air, as those who have pre-ordered the book and have been lucky enough to get a signed copy, have been gabbling away like excited school-kids on Christmas Eve. It is truly lovely. And I have my wonderful compadres, Shane & Craig, to thank, who both offered to procure me a copy whilst I sweated the afternoon away, discussing Education and Health Care Plans, in a stuffy office in Northern Cumbria……(living the dream)

If you haven’t yet ordered yourself a copy, this is the link to the English language version of the website

http://artespublishing.com/books/86559-127-9-en/

The book costs approx £28 (which includes postage) and orders will be shipped from 1st October.

These are exciting times…….

All photos by Steve Jansen.

For updates and information, follow Steve on FB here:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Steve-Jansen-Official/803014983085400?fref=ts

http://www.stevejansen.com/imageshop/