Accidentally Wes Anderson

Accidentally Wes Anderson is a phenomenon that went viral around 2017 (it’s still going strong) and materialized into a book with a foreword by the man himself.

In this book review: What’s in the book? Is it a travel guide? A book for photographers. A community. Book layout and design. Paper, binding, and print. Where to buy this book. Support this blog & get premium features with GOLD memberships!Director Anderson’s movies are famous for their two-dimensional painterly aesthetic and matter-of-fact dialogues, garnished with retro props, wardrobes, and makeup. But Mr. Anderson’s screenplays are based and often filmed on location at real homes and businesses. This means that many of the places that would be perfect for Wes’ movies already exist in the real world — and this book is full of them.

What’s in the book?

The book features community-sourced images from all continents, with just a few of the locations familiar to Wes. The distinct pastel hues, quirky fonts, grandiose (yet cute) architecture and bright, almost cartoon-like colours. It seems that the fans have finally figured out what it is to be Wes Anderson-esque. And yet,

— Wes Anderson (foreword to the book).

“You know it when you see it,” reads the first line in the introductory text, “it’s the symmetrical lines, pastel hues, immaculate composition, or something idiosyncratic and beautiful that you can and cannot describe at once.”

The next page over shows the table of contents for the first section of the book: “United States & Canada.” Each photo in this and all sections is supplemented by a few Wikipedia-esque paragraphs about it.

Accidentally Wes Anderson presents itself as a travel guide or a catalogue of locations. I’ve been disappointed to find only two of the 200 are from Canada (both shot around Toronto), but this book is not the entire collection. There’s a new book out.

You can also find more Wes Andersonesque content on the AWA website and their enormously popular Instagram account.

Is it a travel guide?

The descriptions read like encyclopedia entries: clear, descriptive, with lots of historical context. However, that didn’t feel very useful, especially since the book warns at the beginning that the information may be out of date.

I can see this book enticing me to visit a specific spot on an already-planned trip. It would be fun to try and replicate one of those images, but I wouldn’t plan a trip around a photo. Even if that seems contrary to the premise of this book: a bucket list of travel destinations by Wally and Amanda Koval (the book’s authors).

A book for photographers.

I found this book useful as a catalogue of images that illustrate a specific style. You don’t need to visit any of the locations or know anything about them to replicate the feel. Wes Anderson accidentals can happen anywhere with the right light, composition, edits, and stage design.

It’s a flat two-dimensional staging (but sometimes it is not). It’s the pastel colours; other times, it’s warm, saturated colours or high-contrast palettes. The images appear to be only lightly edited (with the exception of a supposed perspective correction or an unusual crop on page 311).

The photos are all very good. They inspired me to seek out Wes Andersonesque scenes locally and dream up edits to my archived photos. But they also all felt entertaining, calming, and eye-catching which I think is relatable to anyone who enjoys browsing picture books for fun.

The images rarely have any narrative other than their uncanniness (is this real?) They are a matter-of-fact documentation of urban and natural surroundings. But I wouldn’t call them empty. Instead, I’d describe them as doll houses ready to be filled with characters from the reader’s own imagination.

Others who know of the book or at least the phenomenon around the internet-viral theme have published photoshoots staged as Accidentally Wes Anderson. Some filled them with models looking bemused — as you often see the actors express in WA’s actual movies.

There are even a few online/video guides on how to adapt Wes Anderson’s aesthetic in photography — most of them mention this book.

A community.

While Wally and Amanda Koval’s book project was born out of their Instagram account, they got their idea from Accidentally Wes Anderson’s Reddit group, which is currently in the top 1% of all subreddits. The subreddit does not belong to Kovals, but they do also run a Pinterest account that I found quite useful for storyboarding.

You’ll also find photographers and non-photographers starting conversations about images that remind them of Wes Anderson’s movies — online and offline. The book is the subject of several exhibitions; you can find upcoming ones on the AWA website.

Book layout and design.

The book features a simple layout: either a spread followed by a two-column text on the next page, a half-page image with a two-column text across, or a half-page image with text below.

Paper, binding, and print.

Accidentally Wes Anderson is a hardcover, full-colour, perfectly bound book with a paper jacket. It runs across 368 uncoated pages ~40gsm. It feels solid and easy to flip through. Middle pages can remain open even when the book is new.

Where to buy this book.

Accidentally Wes Anderson is available in numerous bookstores around the world. I encourage you to support your local small business. Or you can support this website by making a purchase using this link. Thanks!