Lynsey Atkin: A Few Of My Favourite T̶h̶i̶n̶g̶s̶ Books

When shots asked me to write a piece about my favourite essentials for Cannes, I felt a need to swerve, partly because I couldn't think of any witty copy about portable chargers or the oxymoronic phrase ‘work appropriate swimwear’.

Instead, I rummaged through my own extensive collection of printed ephemera to find some titles that I think represent what is perhaps even more essential than remembering to take your own towel to 'The Island', which is a Cannes State Of Mind. 

Context: I have collected obscure and original books and bits and bobs for as long as I have had disposable income. Nothing – apart from my cat – makes me happier. It makes moving house an absolute hellscape, but I don’t care because it makes me interesting at dinner parties. 

In the words of Jérôme in French rom-com Le Genou de Claire, «Viens chez moi, j’ai de très bons livres» or rather, “Come to my house, I have great books”. 

The Perspective 

Represented by The World’s Worst Disasters of the Twentieth Century

I am an incredibly fatalistic person, which keeps me on my toes. 

I think it stems back to a childhood trip to ‘Plague Village’ Eyam in the Peak District in England, which is where the bubonic plague broke out in 1665, and I remember thinking that that escalated awfully fast in a really nasty way. 

This book features more modern yet equally genuine catastrophes.

I like to keep it close to my desk for a sense of perspective. 

Winning at Cannes is wonderful, and sometimes the stuff you want to win wins, but sometimes it doesn’t. 

And you know what? That’s okay. 

The Good Chat 

Represented by INTERVIEW: HANS ULRICH OBRIST X HANS-PETER FELDMAN

If you’re anything like me, small talk makes you want to die.

Thankfully, since 1993, acclaimed curator and artistic director of London’s Serpentine, Hans Ulrich Obrist has been interviewing icons upon icons like JG Ballard, Merce Cunningham and Ai Wei Wei. 

The man knows how to ask a good question. 

I particularly like this book from 2009 of an interview with German visual artist Hans-Peter Feldman, who responds to each question in his own inimitable style. 

If anyone asks me what my favourite colour is this week, I will be thrilled. 

The Healthy Scepticism 

Represented by Why Cats Paint – A Theory of Feline Aesthetic Analysis

Talk to me for five minutes and I will mention my cat. 

I can’t help it and I think it might be a disease, except it’s not a disease, it’s called love. 

My only disappointment is that she can’t paint like the cats in this book. 

A photographic full-colour, pitch-perfect satire that imbues Smokey and Misty with aesthetic intent as a wonderful means of deriding the art establishment. 

We all know it’s easy at Cannes to believe what all the big names and big budgets and big brands tell us is good, but sometimes we have to be a cat who paints instead. 

The Exit Strategy

Represented by Vanishing Point – How to Disappear in America Without A Trace

How to Disappear in America (not to be confused with the artist Seth Jones’ 2008 catalogue of the same title), is one of my all-time faves. 

An (at the time) anonymous Wordpress site printed into an unassuming monotone booklet in the mid 00’s, it is a practical yet quietly haunting instruction manual for how to genuinely remove yourself from society both physically and electronically. 

Now, whilst your behaviour at the shots party may not warrant going quite this far, it is always, always, always a good idea to know when to leave. 

See also: agreeing to a boat day. Last time I checked, you cannot get off.