La Maison
Founders
Four Eyes is the idea of crossed eyes. After years working in fine book publishing, photography, fashion, music, video production, advertising, event organization and artistic accompaniment, our aim today is to create objects with authors selected for the originality of their approach, the quality of their work, its usefulness and its aesthetic potential, in order to draw up an editorial line driven by curiosity, elegance and the friendships created.
Yegan Mazandarani - Editorial Director
Former director of Odyssée and Cahier Sauvage éditions, Yegan Mazandarani is an author-photographer, publisher and artist agent.
Passionate about books since his earliest childhood, he has a wealth of experience in fashion, music, production, international event organization and business. Among other things, he has taught creative entrepreneurship in Tehran for the Amir Kabir National Polytechnic, directed the Parisian design studio Sauvage, and advised numerous artists (photographers, visual artists, musicians, fashion designers).
Of Franco-Iranian origin, he is based between Paris, Berlin and Tricase (Puglia, Italy).
William Keo - Creative Director
William Keo is a Paris-based French-Cambodian photographer (ex-Magnum Photos) and creative director.
Previously art director at some of the world's leading advertising agencies (Publicis Conseil, Fred & Farid), he advises numerous photographers, regularly lectures for image institutions (SPEOS, ESJ Lille) and works regularly in production and advertising.
A former photojournalist with Magnum Photos, he has covered conflicts and social issues. He regularly publishes in major international newspapers such as The New York Times and Le Monde.
Three Methods - Edition
For established photographers or artists, selected by our publishing house, who wish to develop a large-scale project and be distributed in bookshops in France and/or internationally.
For further details, please consult our “Methodology” section further down the page.
Three Methods - Self-publishing
For authors, photographers and artists who don't want their first book to look like a first book, the Marque Blanche collection brings together artists supported by Four Eyes in self-publishing.
In this process, we offer authors the benefit of our experience, know-how and network: definition of the editorial project, naming, preparation of planning and economics, selection of materials and art direction, pre-sales, promotion, press and localized distribution.
Contact us for further details.
Three Methods - Corporate
For companies wishing to produce a beautiful book on their organization's identity or history.
Research and study of the brand's history, editing, art direction and layout, creation of a first edition, distribution in bookshops and press (if applicable).
Résidence
The desire to create a residency came from a simple observation: we want to work with our authors.
To do this, we need time to get to know each other, to share our desires, our problems, to exchange ideas, to prepare our publications well, then to sharpen our weapons for presentation to the public, to professionals and, more generally, for all the time needed to promote the book.
To do this, we offer ourselves the best conditions: peace and quiet, isolation, the sea, nature, little internet connection, healthy food cooked daily by chef Giulia Baglivo and time together to exchange ideas in the midst of olive groves.
Methodology
We don't receive incoming requests; we seek out and select our authors in order to draw up a coherent editorial line, nourished by our curiosity. We want to take the time necessary to hone each project, develop a relationship of trust with our authors, and place them at the center of the creative process of the publishing journey.
We want to create objects and tell stories that last over time. To achieve this, the art director, graphic designer and editor work with the author to hone his or her story, to develop it further, to find a relevant name for the book and to create an artistic direction that is strong enough to assert a style, yet sufficiently detached to never overpower the images. As a lover of book-objects, we make no concessions when it comes to the materials we use, and take great pleasure in developing special editions and first editions. We give priority to printing in France, but also work with top-notch printers in Italy and Turkey, depending on the author and the project.
We're photographers and artists ourselves, which is why we want to share an adventure with our authors, working in a spirit of trust and transparency. We strive to write an original strategy for each editorial project, we are transparent about our accounts, and we aim to invest our authors as much as possible in our projects, to help their careers grow, and to use books as a profitable means of artistic expression.
We want our authors to be happy with their work, happy with our collaboration and, above all, happy with the editorial process.
A book is a high point in a career, and it's essential to know how to bring it to life and promote it. Subscriptions or pre-sales are essential in this publishing process. We work with authors to organize their resources and find private partners or individuals to raise funds or pre-sell their works at a preferential price.
Working is good, enjoying yourself is better.
To complete their project in the best possible conditions, we are offering our authors a residency in a village in Puglia (Tricase, Italy), where they can spend a few days with publisher Yegan Mazandarani and work in the middle of an olive grove. Cooking is provided by Pugliese chef Giulia Baglivo.
The bookshop is an essential meeting place for the public and book professionals. Competition is fierce, however, and for each project we try to organize and plan events to bring the book to life: book signings, conferences and exhibitions are all moments where the author can speak, where his creativity can express itself and where a face can tell its story. For us, direct contact with the public is an essential part of the publishing adventure.
Our catalog is distributed by Art & Paper in all good bookshops in France and Belgium. We also like to create books in two languages and present them in other countries; to this end, we have developed a network of partner bookshops internationally (Italy, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Japan among others) and have acquired a certain know-how in organizing launches abroad.
