The focus of this sumptuous book is on a sense of place: village squares and bell towers, balconies and hanging gardens, old clock towers, mazes of streets, chianche paving stones, and passers-by. This is a book that celebrates the details that animate a space, collecting fascinating objects that people have invested time and effort in personalising: drawer liners for linen chests, oil cloths that gracefully covered kitchen work tables, the passmenterie of down comforters that heat beds in winter. All details are enhanced by the book's beautiful design. In appearance, Salento Small Houses in Small Villages records a moment in time, like a vintage photo album. And yet it is composed of modern images, bordered in florescent hues, framed to awaken memories and highlight moments in a zigzag of black and white and colour. The layout gives emphasis to sensations, especially the material sense of objects. It is a book that reinvents a place within its own pages, bringing Salento to life.
