Multi-Million Dollar Book Artfully Shares 'The Tradition Golf Club' Story

    /24-7PressRelease.com/ - January 27, 2005 - LA QUINTA (CA) - Read any good books lately? If you want to read the story of The Tradition Golf Club, an ultra private piece of paradise nestled against the Santa Rosa Mountains, be ready to ante-up. $3 million dollars may buy a home inside the hallowed walls, but it is the only way you'll get a copy of the limited edition, linen-wrapped archival art book featuring the stunning plates of world-renowned photographer, Joann Dost. Unveiled in an invitation-only book signing last week attended by 200 residents, legendary golfer and Tradition resident Arnold Palmer, author James Dodson and Tradition owner and visionary, David Chapman, the making of the Tradition art book is a story in itself.

The collaborative brainchild of golf developer and Palmer confidant, David Chapman and Joann Dost, official photographer of the Pebble Beach Company, the US Open and the PGA Championship, the project was envisioned from the beginning as an heirloom production. The book took more than four years to produce. The 90 page masterpiece was printed on 115# acid-free gloss premium grade Centura paper, made specifically for archival integrity. Like Tradition itself, this book is designed to increase in value through its timeless design and impeccable attention to detail. The 69 color plates and the frontice piece, featuring Palmer walking across the 'Swilken-like' bridge, constitute a production effort rarely found in the world of private publishing and certainly unlike any collateral piece in real estate development.

According to Dost, "Pre-press efforts alone consumed over six months of scanning, color correcting and imaging fine tuning that often generated as many as 15 proofs per image before the separations were made. There were press proofs made after the separations were burned and then we spent 17 days on press. Each book signature took up to one hour of tweaking on press before the signature was run. The process was very slow and only two or three signatures were printed most days." Printed in October of 2004, it wasn't until December that the final book was bound. Member's Edition books are case-bound with leather and a leather slipcase and foil embossed logo and the Tradition script is printed on the spine. Only 525 of the Member's Edition were produced.

Dost's foresight and care to the design elements of the project are a perfect complement to Chapman's creation on the grounds of The Tradition, where history whispers from every corner of the property. The uniquely secluded estate has been carefully designed to preserve the spectacular setting that became a retreat to the likes of John Kennedy, Rudolph Valentino, Dwight Eisenhower and Winston Churchill. There, in the intimate surroundings of the original Hacienda del Gato, stands the oldest continually inhabited structure in La Quinta, sheltered near a country lane by towering eucalyptus and conveying to the visitor and resident alike, a sense of place like no other in the world.


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But it is in the narrative of the golf course, punctuated by flowing native grasses and trussed by tens of thousands of flowers, that the Dost magic becomes apparent. The artist that has for decades captured the mysticism of Pebble Beach and the Monterey Peninsula, has managed to capture for posterity the timeless, ethereal beauty of the desert and the uniqueness of the Tradition experience. Turning the pages of this book compels the viewer to slow down and inhale color-rich images. Every photographic plate evokes a reverence for the subject matter and transports the reader to a scene both familiar and enchanting.

Dost's innate eye for color, composition and natural grandeur perfectly reveal the masterpiece that has been created with the golf course, where every sensuous curve and undulation appears to be revealed by nature rather than contrived by man, even if 'the Man' is Arnold Palmer. James Dodson, Palmer's favorite biographer, contributed the forward to the book and David Chapman provided the introduction. But in the end, as the 'pictures tell the story', the story belongs to Dost.














Joann Dost Creative Golf and Resort Photography specializes in resorts, clubs, golf courses, magazines, books, advertising, fine art products and documentation. Clients include Golf Magazine, Golf World, The PGA Championship, US Seniors, The US Open, the Pebble Beach Company, the Walker Cup, Pinehurst Resort, Bandon Dunes Resort, Ritz-Carlton, Golf Digest, Sports Illustrated, Clint Eastwood, Arnold Palmer, Steve Wynn, Lee Trevino, Tom Fazio, Peter Ubberoth, IMI Resorts, Tehama Golf Club, Golf for Women Magazine, Ben Crenshaw, Cape Kidnapper Club and many others. For more information contact:

831.375.3678
[email protected]
[url=http://www.joanndost.com]


MEDIA CONTACT: Carol Ackerman
The Ackerman Group
[email protected]
www.TheAckermanGroup.com
602.684.6800 (C)
[url=http://www.theackermangroup.com]

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The Ackerman Group provides strategic media, public relations and publishing services to the global golf, resort, aviation and hospitality industries. Perfecting the art of real estate development since 1972.

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