Staple Shops #1: ArtWords

So I was asked to blog for Le Cool London, and I decided to write about my fav LDN shops, seeing as it's not something I've directly covered here, but that I am a bit of an aficianado of. Enjoy...

Now that we’re all permanently engaged with the digital world, the idea of a bookshop seems rather quaint. I guess it is, in a way. However, in my mind, there’s nothing that beats the smell of a well-stocked bookstore, and ArtWords is just that. With the recent demise of fashion magazine emporium RD Franks and the loss of Borders’ much-loved browsing stands, it seems good ol’ WHSmith and a brace of independent newsagents are the best place to sate your glossy, thick-stocked, exotic magazine fix – but ArtWords, tucked away on Shoreditch’s Rivington Street and on hipster Mecca Broadway Market – is my idea of paradise. Dealing in all the visual arts and disciplines, ArtWords stocks only the most beautiful and thought-provoking books. For me, however, it’s the magazine selection that shines – Every international edition of all the glossies like Vogue, L’Officiel and Elle mingle with London’s cutting-edge titles like Oh Comely, Little White Lies and Notion. The selection is vast, and utterly inspiring – even as a magazine fetishist, I’ve barely read, let alone heard of half of the titles they stock. ArtWords brings to mind one of those 18th-century curiosity shops, filled with delights, but reminds that the international publishing scene of the 21st-first century is still flourishing, rich and alive. Without doubt, it’s worth an hour of your time to explore.

ArtWords, 22 Broadway Market, E8 4QJ & 65a Rivington St, EC2A 3QQ