Todd Oldham is not only a designer, whose fashion was shaping American design during the late 80´s and early 90´s - I will always remember him mostly from his TV show "Todd Time" within MTV´s "House of Style.

He was also very much into book publishing - and did a marvellous job by reprinting a selection of stories from interior´s finest and most inspriring magazine ever: The fantastic "Nest", brainchild of artist and designer Joe Holtzman, published from 1997 to 2004.

The magazine eschewed the conventionally beautiful luxury interiors of other magazines and instead featured non-traditional, exceptional, and unusual environments. The Best of Nest, includes selections from all 26 issues in a series of portfolios featuring the work of writers and photographers such as Michael Cunningham, Patti Smith, Nan Goldin, and pictures of locations as diverse and inspiring as people are - if they are NOT conventional or just boring.

Oldham himself contributed to the magazine, shooting for instance Elvix Presley´s legendary Tennesse Home "Graceland"; not as an assigned photographer but as one tourist among others, just waiting in every room for a moment alone. Togehter with a hysterically funny text by Paul Dinello, who also went from room to room, never once mentioning Elvis.

There are brutally sharp pictures of different death rows ("The Last Nest") as well as then vogue´s editor at large André Leon Talley´s room at Lennox Hill hospital, glamorously decorated by his friend Mica Ertegun and in company of his visitor Fran Leiboviz, smoking outside on a terrace.

Maybe you wondered how native Syrians still live today - you will find the answer inhere, too. Actually a concept I admire more than most of the big houses you will find in "Architectural Digest" or "House&Garden".

There are pictures of a "smallish much put upon bathroom... used by six cats and eleven artists" as well a spread of Sao Schlumberger´s lavish palais in Paris, there are photgraphs of and by Patti Smith or Nan Goldin and there is so much more...

As Oldham wrote himself - there is no chance to make a choice, or to even think that you really see "The Best" of what this magazine had to offer - just get an idea of how great, relevant and special magazine editing used to be, back then when creativity knew no limits and publishing them was still a thing.

Get the book, beautifully designed by Todd Oldham, Valerie Nelson and Greg Kozatek and let your mind get blown away.

All pictures taken from "The Best of Nest", Phaidon Press Limited, London and New York