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# Swedish Machines: a new art book from Simon Stålenhag
- URL: https://www.andrewliptak.com/simon-stalenhag-swedish-machines-kickstarter/
- Published: 2024-08-28T13:00:44.000Z
- Updated: 2024-08-28T13:00:43.000Z
- Description: Shut up and take my money
- Author: Andrew Liptak
- Tags: News, Science Fiction

For years, I've been a huge fan of Swedish artist [Simon Stålenhag](https://simonstalenhag.se/?ref=andrewliptak.com), the author of a series of narrative art books. I love his art style: minimalist images often featuring tiny people amidst giant landscapes and fantastical machines. 

His first two books, [*Tales from the Loop*](https://bookshop.org/a/6134/9781982150693?ref=andrewliptak.com), and [*Things from the Flood*](https://bookshop.org/a/6134/9781982150716?ref=andrewliptak.com) told a story of some teenagers in an alternate 1980s Sweden, where a collider accident brought about some weird things. It was made into a TV series on Prime Video by the same name, which was quite good. His next, [*The Electric State*](https://bookshop.org/a/6134/9781501181412?ref=andrewliptak.com), is a road trip through a dystopian US, where a VR headset has turned everyone's brains off (it's being made into a film for Netflix), and his latest, [*The Labyrinth*](https://bookshop.org/a/6134/9781534320697?ref=andrewliptak.com), is a grim story about some characters trying to live in an inhospitable land. 

[“I wanted to paint ash”: Simon Stålenhag on his latest art book, The LabyrinthThe cold has come for Vermont. I woke up this week to darkening skies and a thin layer of wet snow clinging to the leaves, and it’s remained overcast and damp, which is the perfect environment for the week of Halloween, and for a project that I’ve been![](https://www.andrewliptak.com/favicon.ico)Transfer OrbitAndrew Liptak![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2c/d7/2cd7d323-e6ed-4666-8092-07e380dbdf2a/content/images/2021/03/https___bucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com_public_images_6996a0e0-2045-46a9-be89-0cf3a2861fc6_1024x1024.jpeg)](https://www.andrewliptak.com/i-wanted-to-paint-ash-simon-stalenhag-on-his-latest-art-book-the-labyrinth/)

He was one of my favorite people to [interview](https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/16/17959372/simon-stalenhag-whats-in-your-bag-sci-fi-art?ref=andrewliptak.com) when I met him back at New York Comic Con in 2018.

He's now back with a new book: *Swedish Machines*, which is now [being funded via a Kickstarter campaign](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1192053011/swedish-machines-lonely-places-new-simon-stalenhag-book?ref=andrewliptak.com). It's already well-surpassed its goal of $24,480, and for \~$44, you can get a copy of the book ($78 for a collector's edition), which should arrive in March 2025\. 

According to the description, this is Stålenhag's most personal story yet: 

> *Swedish Machines* explores masculinity, friendship, and sexuality in a queer science fiction tale about two young men stuck in the past – and in each other’s orbit. Their story spans decades, as fleeting moments become defining memories, and they set out to explore a mysterious forbidden zone together.

He's been sharing some images of the book over on his [Instagram page](https://www.instagram.com/p/C%5FKpd%5FVMhtx/?hl=en&img%5Findex=1&ref=andrewliptak.com), and it looks like classic Stålenhag art: gorgeous images with fantastical machines. I've already preordered my copy, and I can't wait to tear through it.