Sam Valenti IV, Founder of Ghostly
Illustration by Jeffrey Phillips
Sam Valenti IV is the founder and leader of of Ghostly International, a collective that has grown from a boutique music label known for its experimental-pop and techno acumen to an internationally recognized platform for the work of the world’s best visual artists, designers, technologists, and musicians.
Thinking Of You,
by Barbara Kruger
"Probably the first art/photography book I bought. The beautiful interplay of text and the found image and the tension between desire and morality. The book awakened me to the need to not only see these images online but to be able to meditate on them for as long as one would like."
Spiritual America,
by Richard Prince
"The point where it all comes together for our anti-hero. Rephotography as a minefield of memory and the quest for the truth buried in layers of commercial sediment. Skewers the hierarchy of art and includes a great fake interview with J.G. Ballard."
Underground,
by Naoya Hatakeyama
"Equally fantastic and repulsive in equal measure. A Sunday journey into the bowels of Tokyo reveals a psychological truth. The runoff of society is both lonely and vivid. Another planet built in our shadow."
ECM Sleeves Of Desire,
by Lars Müller
"The album covers of the ECM jazz record label. Photography not as marketing but as place. You don't need to hear the music to understand."